This study provides information designed to aid sectoral social dialogue in the electricity sector. The study is divided into three parts: a summary of the sector’s economic and employment background; an analysis of the social partner organisations in all EU Member States, with emphasis on their membership, their role in collective bargaining, social dialogue and public policy, and their national and European affiliations; and finally, an analysis of the relevant European organisations, particularly their membership composition and their capacity to negotiate.
In 2012–2013, researchers carried out a study of labour dispute resolution
in Lithuania. The research was carried out by the Institute of Labour and
Social Research (ILSR [1]) of the Lithuanian Social Research Centre (LSRC
[2]).
In 2011, Slovenia’s electricity sector and coal industry showed a combined profit of €109.7 million, with the bulk of this being contributed by electricity production companies Grup HSE (64.7%), Group GEN (11.3%), distribution companies (19.5%) and the transmission company ELES (3.7%). In Slovenia all forms of primary energy sources are used for the production of electricity (forming 67.9% of total production).
Austria’s electricity sector is made up of around 1,000 companies (including 200 large companies) with 22,000 employees. There is one voluntary employer organisation, the OEE, and three trade unions, the GPA-djp representing white-collar workers, the PRO-GE representing blue-collar workers and the GdG-KMSfB representing municipal workers. While the GPA-djp and the PRO-GE conclude two separate collective agreements with the OEE, the GdG-KMSfB concludes three company collective agreements, in two of which the OEE also acts as a representative for the respective companies.
The UK electricity industry is of growing importance in economic and employment terms. It is marked by levels of trade union membership and collective bargaining coverage that are very high by UK private sector standards. The industry’s two main employer bodies are strongly representative of the small number of major firms that dominate the electricity sector.
In 2010, the electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning industry accounted for 3.8% of Latvia’s GDP. Electricity production, transmission, distribution and trade provided for 15% of industrial production and 8% of all employment in the industry sector. Since 1990, electricity consumption has fallen by 47%, production by 34%, imports by 44% and exports by 22%. Social dialogue is active in the sector. The trade union Energija has concluded a sector-level collective agreement with the main employers: Latvenergo group, and ABB.
The number of people working in the Italian electricity sector is quite low, compared with the national workforce. Nevertheless, the sector boasts one of the biggest companies in Italy, which employs almost two thirds of all the people working in the sector. Naturally, the presence of this group considerably influences sectoral industrial relations. In fact, the biggest enterprises participate directly in national collective bargaining.
The electricity sector has, in recent years, become increasingly important for the Swedish economy. Despite a decline in the number of companies and employees, the industry and structure of industrial relations have been largely unaffected by the crisis. The largest employer organisation, EnergiFöretagens Arbetsgivareförening (EFA), organises private sector companies including the three largest electricity producers (Vattenfall, E.ON and Fortum).
Employment in the electricity sector is a small part of Slovakia’s economy, and it has decreased over the last decade, standing at about 1% of aggregate employment in 2011. Industrial relations are quite stable but significant changes have taken place in the set-up of trade unions in the sector. The Slovak Trade Union Association of Energy merged with Chemical Trade Union Association in 2009 and established a new Energy-Chemical Trade Union Association. Some union members established a new Energy Trade Union Association.
The electricity sector in Luxembourg is concentrated in two companies – Enovos (an energy provider) and Creos (distribution) – and has limited employment. Social dialogue is well established at company level. There are two trade union federations that are responsible for this sector among others and one employer organisation. However, the social partners failed to negotiate a sector-level collective agreement in 2010.
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 2009, the second edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 2004–2005 as the European Establishment Survey on Working Time and Work-Life Balance.
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 2013, the third edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 2004–2005 as the European Establishment Survey on Working Time and Work-Life Balance.
Eurofound’s European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS) examines both the objective circumstances of European citizens' lives and how they feel about those circumstances and their lives in general. This series consists of outputs from the EQLS 2003, the first edition of the survey.
Eurofound's European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS) examines both the objective circumstances of European citizens' lives and how they feel about those circumstances and their lives in general. This series consists of outputs from the EQLS 2007, the second edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 2003.
Eurofound's European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS) examines both the objective circumstances of European citizens' lives and how they feel about those circumstances and their lives in general. This series consists of outputs from the EQLS 2012, the third edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 2003.
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 EWCS 2005, the fourth edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 1990.
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 EWCS 2010, the fifth edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 1990.
This publication series explores scenarios for the future of manufacturing. The employment implications (number of jobs by sector, occupation, wage profile, and task content) under various possible scenarios are examined. The scenarios focus on various possible developments in global trade and energy policies and technological progress and run to 2030.
This paper provides an analytical summary of state of the art academic and policy literature on the impact of climate change and policies to manage transitions to a carbon neutral economy on employment, working conditions, social dialogue and living conditions. It maps the key empirical findings around the impact of climate change and the green transitions on jobs, sectors, regions and countries in Europe, identifying the opportunities and risks that climate change policies bring to European labour markets.
This report explores the association between skills use and skills strategies and establishment performance, and how other workplace practices, in terms of work organisation, human resources management and employee involvement, can impact on this. It looks at how skills shortages can be addressed, at least in part, by creating an environment in which employees are facilitated and motivated to make better use of the skills they already have. This further supports the business case for a more holistic approach to management.
In 2022, the European Semester was streamlined to integrate the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) established on 19 February 2021 (Regulation (EU) 2021/241). While facing the geopolitical and economic challenges triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Member States have been implementing the national Recovery and Resilience Plans (RRPs) for more than one year and around 100 billion euro in RRF funds have already been disbursed.
As economies emerge from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, labour shortages are becoming increasingly evident. These include shortages exacerbated by the crisis in some sectors and professions where they had been endemic for some time. This report will look at measures implemented at national level to tackle labour shortages in the health, care and information and communications technology sectors, as well as those arising from the twin digital and green transitions.
As part of its response to Russia’s war on Ukraine, the EU swiftly activated its Temporary Protection Directive for those fleeing the conflict in Ukraine – enabling displaced persons to settle in the EU and have access to the labour market and basic public services. This policy brief highlights the main barriers encountered by these refugees (over 5 million people to date) when seeking a job and provides suggestions on how to facilitate their integration.
With the expansion of telework and different forms of hybrid work as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important for policymakers to consider both the opportunities and the negative consequences that may result. This report will explore potential scenarios for such work. In doing so, it will identify trends and drivers, and predict how they might interact to create particular outcomes and how they are likely to affect workers and businesses. Policy pointers will outline what could be done to facilitate desirable outcomes and to avoid undesirable ones.
Living and working in Europe, Eurofound’s 2022 yearbook, provides a snapshot of the latest developments in the work and lives of Europeans as explored in the Agency’s research activities over the course of 2022. Eurofound’s research on working and living conditions in Europe provides a bedrock of evidence for input into social policymaking and achieving the Agency’s vision ‘to be Europe’s leading knowledge source for better life and work’.
The term ‘hybrid work’ became popular due to the upsurge of telework during the COVID-19 pandemic. The term has been increasingly used to refer to situations in which (teleworkable) work is performed both from the usual place of work (normally the employer’s premises) and from home (as experienced during the pandemic) or other locations. However, the concept of hybrid work is still blurry, and various meanings are in use. This topical update brings clarity to this concept by exploring available information from recent literature and the Network of Eurofound Correspondents.
Housing affordability is a matter of great concern across the EU. Poor housing affordability leads to housing evictions, housing insecurity, problematic housing costs and housing inadequacy. These problems negatively affect health and well-being, create unequal living conditions and opportunities, and come with healthcare costs, reduced productivity and environmental damage. Private market tenants face particularly large increases in the cost of housing.
Eurofound's annual review of minimum wages reports on the development of statutory and collectively agreed minimum wages across the EU and the processes through which they were set. The focus of this year’s report is on the impact of high inflation on the setting of minimum wage rates. In addition, new figures on the net value of minimum wages are presented, along with the latest policy-relevant research in the EU Member States and Norway.
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