Upward convergence in working conditions
Published: 12 December 2019
Social convergence has gained an equal footing alongside economic convergence as an EU goal in the wake of the economic crisis. This report presents the results of a study into convergence in working conditions, a major component of social policymaking. It examines whether working conditions have improved over the past two decades in the EU as a whole and whether dissimilarities between Member States in this area have narrowed. The study includes analyses of both the trends and drivers of convergence plus expert interview data on two policy instruments that have the potential to promote convergence. Findings indicate upward convergence in working conditions overall, but uneven progress across Member States.
The executive summary for this publication is available in PDF format.
This section provides information on the data contained in this publication.
Annexes, tables and graphs
Table 1: Dimensions and subdimensions of working conditions
Table 2: Summary of convergence and divergence dynamics
Table 3: Beta-convergence patterns in seven dimensions of working conditions
Table 4: Beta-convergence in the subdimensions of working conditions
Table 5: Beta-convergence patterns by country groupings: EU15 versus EU13, 2005–2015
Table 6: Beta-convergence patterns by country groupings: Centre versus periphery, 2005–2015
Table 7: Sigma-convergence patterns in the dimensions and subdimensions of working conditions
Table 8: Gender gaps in working conditions, EU, 2006
Table 9: Gender gaps in working conditions dimensions, by Member State, 2015
Table 10: Beta-convergence in gender gaps in the dimensions of working conditions, EU, 2005–2015
Table 11: Sigma-convergence patterns in gender gaps in the dimensions and subdimensions of working conditions
Table 12: Potential drivers of convergence in working conditions
Table 13: Drivers of convergence: Statistically significant relationships
Table 14: Drivers of convergence: Multivariate analysis results
Table 15: Analysis of convergence in the drivers of convergence in working conditions
Table 16: Profile of interviewees
Table 17: Measurement of convergence – headline results by dimension
Figure 1: Speed of beta-convergence in the dimensions of working conditions
Figure 2: Speed of beta-convergence in the subdimensions of working conditions
Figure 3: Sigma-convergence patterns in the dimensions of working conditions
Figure 4: Physical environment – sigma-convergence patterns
Figure 5: Social environment – sigma-convergence patterns
Figure 6: Work intensity – sigma-convergence patterns
Figure 7: Skills and discretion – sigma-convergence patterns
Figure 8: Working time quality – sigma-convergence patterns
Figure 9: Prospects – sigma-convergence patterns
Figure 10: Earnings – sigma-convergence patterns
Figure 11: Delta-convergence patterns in the dimensions of working conditions
Figure 12: Delta-convergence patterns in the subdimensions of Earnings
Figure 13: Beta-convergence in gender gaps in subdimensions of working conditions, EU, 2005–2015
Figure 14: Number of dimensions of working conditions showing no improvement in gender gap, by Member State, 2005–2015
Figure 15: Sigma-convergence patterns in gender gaps of dimensions of working conditions
Figure 16: Highest and lowest mean scores in the dimensions of working conditions, by economic sector, EU, 2015
Figure 17: Convergence of immigration rates, EU
Eurofound recommends citing this publication in the following way.
Eurofound (2019), Upward convergence in working conditions, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg.
