During the past decade, the Maltese economy experienced a shift from manufacturing to becoming more service oriented and started to attract higher value-added foreign investment, mainly ICT, Financial and Pharmaceutical related. Having a strong banking sector, Malta managed to minimise the impact of the economic downturn, which had little or no effect on both trade union and employers’ association membership.The public service can be regarded as having the sole cross-sector collective agreement in Malta while all others are negotiated at company level.
The economic crisis has not had any noticeable effect on the peak-level associational ‘landscape’: the landscape has remained densely organised. The six peak social partner associations are still in place and are respected parties in consultation. These national organisations have an advisory role in collective labour framework agreements and offer indications for wage development – via the bipartite Labour Foundation, the STAR. Consultation by the authorities is further guaranteed through the tripartite Social Economic Council, the SER.
The main characteristics of employment relations in Poland include the decentralisation of collective bargaining, low collective bargaining coverage (currently less than 25% of employees), the low density of trade unions' and employers' organisations and the limited relevance of cross-sector collective bargaining of any kind. Cross-sectoral collective bargaining per se is absent, unless tripartite social dialogue (as economy-wide bargaining) and some specific multi-employer agreements are taken into account.
There are four major cross-sector confederations in Portuguese industrial relations: the trade union confederations CGTP and UGT and the employers’ confederations CIP and CCP. The CPCS (Standing Committee for Social Concertation) is the central body for collective regulation of work relations. CGTP, UGT, CIP and CCP are members of this body, alongside two sectoral employers’ confederations (CAP/agriculture and CTP/tourism). There is no central cross-sectoral collective bargaining.
Until May 2011, there were five national trade union confederations and 13 employer organisations representative at national level in Romania. New regulations regarding social dialogue and industrial relations require all the social partner organisations to regain their representativity. Up to now only the national trade union confederations have taken the necessary steps to comply with the new rules. In addition, in the conditions of persistent economic crisis the entire collective bargaining process remains unclear and is functioning with difficulty.
This report gives an overview of working conditions, job quality, workers’ health and job sustainability in the chemical industry (NACE 20 and 22). It is based mostly on the fifth European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS), which gathers data on working conditions and the quality of work across 34 European countries. Additional information on the structural characteristics of the sector is derived from Eurostat data. The fifth EWCS contains responses from 626 workers in the chemical industry. The sector covers the manufacture of chemicals and chemical products, and of rubber and plastic products. The report compares aspects of work in the sector with the EU28 as a whole. Read more information on other sectors.
The economic downturn and political changes are likely to have affected employment and collective bargaining. The crisis coincided with an already fragile economic and political situation. The deficit in the first three quarters of 2012 was HUF 375 billion or 1.8% of GDP, which would not have been so low without the ‘crises taxes’ – the asset transfer from private pension funds to state budget – and the increased revenue from income tax and social security contributions. In 2012 GDP was only equal to the nominal value in 2011, which is a de facto decrease.
The three main peak-level organisations for employees are the Swedish Trade Union Confederation (LO), the Swedish Confederation of Professional Employees (TCO) and the Swedish Confederation of Professional Associations (SACO). The Swedish organisation for managers (Ledarna) is not a member of any central confederation but it participates in the European Cross-Sectoral Social Dialogue.
Ireland has one peak-level trade union confederation, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU). The main peak-level cross-sectoral employer body is the Irish Business and Employers Confederation (IBEC). Prior to the economic downturn ICTU and IBEC were engaged in tripartite national collective bargaining under the Social Partnership process.
The economic crisis has affected Slovenia quite severely. GDP decreased by about 5% between 2009 and 2011 and was estimated to be negative at -2.3%, in 2012, while the unemployment rate increased from 7% in 2008 to 12% in 2012 The main framework of social dialogue remained in place (tripartite and bipartite negotiations, wage bargaining being a part of collective agreements); however, the quality and level of social dialogue deteriorated. The trade union density rate decreased, as did membership fee revenue of the employer organisations.
The European Restructuring Monitor (ERM) has reported on the employment impact of large-scale business restructuring since 2002. This publication series include the ERM reports, as well as blogs, articles and working papers on restructuring-related events in the EU27 and Norway.
Eurofound’s European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) paints a wide-ranging picture of Europe at work across countries, occupations, sectors and age groups. This series consists of findings from the European Working Conditions Telephone Survey (EWCTS) 2021, an extraordinary edition conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic. The survey was first carried out in 1990.
This publication series gathers all overview reports on developments in working life, annual reviews in industrial relations and working conditions produced by Eurofound on the basis of national contributions from the Network of Eurofound Correspondents (NEC). Since 1997, these reports have provided overviews of the latest developments in industrial relations and working conditions across the EU and Norway. The series may include recent ad hoc articles written by members of the NEC.
Eurofound’s work on COVID-19 examines the far-reaching socioeconomic implications of the pandemic across Europe as they continue to impact living and working conditions. A key element of the research is the e-survey, launched in April 2020, with five rounds completed at different stages during 2020, 2021 and 2022. This is complemented by the inclusion of research into the ongoing effects of the pandemic in much of Eurofound’s other areas of work.
Eurofound's representativeness studies are designed to allow the European Commission to identify the ‘management and labour’ whom it must consult under article 154 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). This series consists of studies of the representativeness of employer and worker organisations in various sectors.
This series reports on developments in minimum wage rates across the EU, including how they are set and how they have developed over time in nominal and real terms. The series explores where there are statutory minimum wages or collectively agreed minimum wages in the Member States, as well as minimum wage coverage rates by gender.
The European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) launched in 1990 and is carried out every five years, with the latest edition in 2015. It provides an overview of trends in working conditions and quality of employment for the last 30 years. It covers issues such as employment status, working time duration and organisation, work organisation, learning and training, physical and psychosocial risk factors, health and safety, work–life balance, worker participation, earnings and financial security, work and health, and most recently also the future of work.
Eurofound’s Flagship report series 'Challenges and prospects in the EU' comprise research reports that contain the key results of multiannual research activities and incorporate findings from different related research projects. Flagship reports are the major output of each of Eurofound’s strategic areas of intervention and have as their objective to contribute to current policy debates.
Eurofound’s European Company Survey (ECS) maps and analyses company policies and practices which can have an impact on smart, sustainable and inclusive growth, as well as the development of social dialogue in companies. This series consists of outputs from the ECS 2019, the fourth edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 2004–2005 as the European Survey on Working Time and Work-Life Balance.
This series reports on and updates latest information on the involvement of national social partners in policymaking. The series analyses the involvement of national social partners in the implementation of policy reforms within the framework of social dialogue practices, including their involvement in elaborating the National Reform Programmes (NRPs).
Building on previous work by Eurofound, this report will investigate intergenerational dynamics over time. During the 2008 double-dip recession, worrying intergenerational divides appeared in many Member States, and while some of the economic and social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is universal, early data suggests disparities across demographic cohorts. Eurofound will examine how different age groups may have been affected in terms of their health, labour market participation, quality of life and financial needs, both in the short term and in the long term.
The COVID-19 pandemic triggered an extraordinary level of provision of social services across the EU. Healthcare and care providers carried much of the burden and, together with essential services, played a crucial role in getting citizens through the crisis. This report explores how public services adapted to the new reality and what role was played by the digital transformation of services. The aim is to contribute to the documentation and analysis of changes in funding, delivery and use of healthcare and social services during the pandemic.
Are the policies required to meet the commitments outlined under the EU’s plan for a green transition, the Fit-for-55 package, and the associated budgetary commitments – the Green New Deal – likely to lead to positive or negative employment outcomes by 2030? What types of jobs will be created or destroyed? Will shifts in employment be skewed towards the bottom, middle or top of the job–wage distribution? This report aims to provide answers to these questions, using macro-modelled estimates of the likely impacts of these policies on the structure of employment.
This report explores the potential socio-economic implications of the transition to a climate-neutral economy on different EU regions and groups of people. It adopts a foresight approach to envision potential actions that can be taken to shape the future. After consulting with stakeholders and experts, three scenarios were developed to consider emerging economic and social inequalities at EU and regional level. The report includes policy pointers which outline measures to be taken to achieve a just transition to a sustainable, climate-neutral economy where no one is left behind.
This report explores how environmental performance has converged – or diverged – among the EU Member States since the early 2000s. With environmental goals piling up at the EU level, is it reasonable to expect Member States to adhere to this emerging EU environmental aquis? And, just as importantly, can we expect Member States to reach these goals at the same time? This report attempts to provide answers to these and other questions high on the political agenda.
This report investigates the potential individual and societal impacts of labour market insecurity, focusing on workers with non-permanent contracts, part-time and self-employed workers, and workers who perceive their job as insecure. It explores the impact of labour market insecurities on health and well-being, social exclusion, trust in people and the perception of fairness, as well as trust in institutions. Policies aimed at reducing labour market instability following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic are also presented.
This report highlights the prevalence of psychosocial risks across countries, sectors and occupations during the later phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. It outlines the specific working conditions that can lead to work-related health problems. In particular, the report investigates the potential pitfalls related to the expansion of telework, the role of job and income insecurity as a psychosocial risk and the phenomenon of adverse social behaviour and discrimination at work. In addition, it offers policy pointers on tackling the increase in work absenteeism due to mental health problems.
This report – published every two years – covers important developments resulting from legislative reforms in collective bargaining at national or sectoral level in 2021 and 2022. It examines the average weekly working hours set by collective agreements, both across national economies and in five sectors: education, health, transport, retail and public administration.
This policy brief provides facts and figures on the working life and job quality of so-called ‘essential workers’ and is based on data from the European Working Conditions Telephone Survey (EWCTS) extraordinary edition 2021. It will define various subgroups of essential workers, describe the challenges they face and outline the type of responses provided, or being developed, to address those challenges.
This policy brief aims to contribute to the effective monitoring and evaluation of the European Child Guarantee. Progress at EU level is measured by a monitoring framework which monitors the key areas of the European Child Guarantee: early childhood education and care; education, including school-based activities and at least one healthy meal each school day; healthcare; healthy nutrition; and adequate housing. The policy brief explores trends and disparities in these areas using a convergence analysis, which tracks any disparities among EU Member States.
MEMBER OF THE NETWORK OF EU AGENCIES
Eurofound er et EU-agentur