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Labour and social regulation

Labour and social regulation covers the legal framework and fundamental social rights that regulates industrial relations, employment and social policies across Europe. It includes national, EU and international legislation.  Union labour law has a direct or indirect impact on the normative and functional frameworks of individual and collective labour law systems of the Member States in a relationship of mutual interference and interaction.  Increasingly Union labour laws are also shaped by agreements that the parties voluntarily enter into and by soft law mechanisms.  The reform or modernising of labour law is currently high on the agenda in several Member States.

Topic

Recent updates

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Le travail hybride en Europe: notion et pratique

Le terme «travail hybride» a été popularisé avec la forte augmentation du télétravail pendant la pandémie de COVID-19, lorsque les entreprises et les salariés ont commencé à discuter des moyens...

25 mai 2023
Publication
Research report

Eurofound research

Eurofound has monitored legislative developments in industrial relations, working conditions and restructuring in Europe over time and from a comparative perspective across the Member States. The Agency’s work in this area seeks to assist decision-makers to better understand the legal framework for creating policy. It has also put resources in place to assist audiences in understanding the sometimes complex and difficult terminology used.

EU context

This topic covers the legal framework that regulates industrial relations and employment across Europe, including EU legislation and the fundamental labour standards that need to be taken into account.

Legislation is crucial in shaping how Europeans work and live. It is the basis for ensuring better working conditions, equitable labour relations, and equal opportunities for all citizens.

Publications results (81)

Le droit à la déconnexion: mise en œuvre et incidence au niveau de l’entreprise

This report explores EU Member States’ legislation around the right to disconnect and assesses the impact of company policies in this area on employees’ hours of connection, working time, work–life balance, health and well-being, and overall workplace satisfaction.

30 November 2023
Publication
Research report
Temps de travail
Équilibre entre vie professionnelle et vie privée
Les conditions de travail et le travail durable
Télétravail
Working conditions
Agreements
Labour and social regulation
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Le travail hybride en Europe: notion et pratique

Le terme «travail hybride» a été popularisé avec la forte augmentation du télétravail pendant la pandémie de COVID-19, lorsque les entreprises et les salariés ont commencé à discuter des moyens d’organiser le travail après la crise. Le terme a été de plus en plus utilisé pour désigner les situations

25 May 2023
Publication
Research report
Les conditions de travail et le travail durable
Télétravail
Work organisation
Labour and social regulation
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L’essor du télétravail: incidence sur les conditions de travail et la réglementation

Le présent rapport expose les recherches d’Eurofound sur le télétravail pendant la pandémie de COVID-19 en 2020 et 2021. Il examine les changements dans l’incidence du télétravail, les conditions de travail des salariés travaillant à domicile et les modifications de la réglementation portant sur les

08 December 2022
Publication
Research report
Nouvelles formes d’emploi
Les conditions de travail et le travail durable
Working conditions
Télétravail
Employment relationship
COVID-19
L’ère numérique: opportunités et défis pour le travail et l’emploi
Labour and social regulation
Temps de travail
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Réglementer les salaires minimaux et les autres formes de rémunération pour les travailleurs indépendants

Ce rapport est réalisé dans le cadre du projet pilote triennal (2021-2023) intitulé «Le rôle du salaire minimum dans la mise en place de la garantie universelle des travailleurs», confié à Eurofound par la Commission européenne. Il porte sur le module 3 du projet, qui examine les salaires minimaux

30 November 2022
Publication
Research report
Rémunération et revenu
Salaire minimal
Agreements
Collective bargaining
Labour and social regulation
Relations industrielles et dialogue social
Relations industrielles
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Le télétravail dans l’UE: cadres réglementaires et évolutions récentes

Le présent rapport vise à cartographier et à analyser la législation et les conventions collectives relatives au télétravail dans les 27 États membres et en Norvège. Il met en exergue les principales différences et similitudes entre les pays en ce qui concerne la législation relative au télétravail

01 September 2022
Publication
Research report
Temps de travail
Working conditions
Télétravail
Équilibre entre vie professionnelle et vie privée
Work organisation
Agreements
Collective bargaining
Labour and social regulation
Relations industrielles et dialogue social
Relations industrielles
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Salaires minimaux en 2022: examen annuel

Après un cycle prudent de fixation des salaires minimaux pour 2021, les taux nominaux ont considérablement augmenté en 2022, à mesure que les conséquences négatives de la pandémie se sont dissipées et que la situation des économies et des marchés du travail s’est améliorée. Dans ce contexte, parmi

15 June 2022
Publication
Research report
Dialogue social
Social partners
Rémunération et revenu
Salaire minimal
Collective bargaining
Labour and social regulation
Relations industrielles et dialogue social
Relations industrielles
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Ethics in the digital workplace

Digitisation and automation technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), can affect working conditions in a variety of ways and their use in the workplace raises a host of new ethical concerns. Recently, the policy debate surrounding these concerns has become more prominent and has

30 May 2022
Publication
Research report
Social dialogue
Social policies
Working conditions
Employment and labour markets
Anticipating and managing the impact of change
Digitalisation
Labour and social regulation
Job quality
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Working life in the COVID-19 pandemic 2021

This publication consists of individual country reports on working life during 2021 for 28 countries – the 27 EU Member States and Norway. The country reports summarise evidence on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on working life based on national research and survey results during 2021. They

19 May 2022
Publication
Other
Social dialogue
Social partners
Pay and income
Working time
Working conditions
COVID-19
Industrial action
Labour and social regulation
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Industrial relations
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Salaires minimaux en 2021: examen annuel

Le présent rapport résume la manière dont les taux de salaire minimal de 2021 ont été fixés en 2020, année marquée par la pandémie de COVID-19. Il passe en revue les difficultés rencontrées par les décideurs nationaux et leur réaction face aux répercussions économiques et sociales de la pandémie au

10 June 2021
Publication
Research report
Dialogue social
Social partners
Rémunération et revenu
Working poor
Salaire minimal
European Pillar of Social Rights
Collective bargaining
Labour and social regulation
Relations industrielles et dialogue social
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Handicap et intégration sur le marché du travail: tendances et soutien politiques dans les États membres de l’UE

Ce rapport examine les évolutions dans le domaine des politiques des États membres de l’UE en faveur de l’inclusion des personnes handicapées dans le marché du travail ouvert, en mettant particulièrement l’accent sur les trois étapes suivantes: l’accès au travail, le maintien dans l’emploi et le

19 April 2021
Publication
Research report
Social policies
Services publics
Working conditions
European Pillar of Social Rights
COVID-19
Disability and chronic disease
Labour market policies
Labour market participation
Conditions et qualité de vie
Labour and social regulation
Online resources results (793)

Cyprus: Amendment of law on minimum guaranteed income

In August 2015, legal amendments came into force allowing more people in Cyprus to receive a minimum guaranteed income. The government estimates the move will cost €11 million. Approximately 20,000 households had been approved for GMI benefit by November 2015, two months before the application

5 février 2016
Article
Minimum wage
Social protection
Working conditions
Employment and labour markets
Industrial relations
Labour and social regulation
Social policies
Working conditions and sustainable work
Industrial relations and social dialogue

France: Government launches major reform of the labour market

On 4 November, the government presented the outline of its bill, 'A labour code for the 21st century' ,aimed at reforming the French labour code.

21 janvier 2016
Article
Collective bargaining
Social dialogue
Labour law
Employment and labour markets
Industrial relations
Labour and social regulation
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Spain: A first assessment of the 2012 labour market reform

The impacts of the 2012 labour market reform have been mixed and not necessarily clear cut. Employers’ representatives have generally welcomed the changes, but suggested flexibility should be further encouraged. Trade unions claim the quality of employment has deteriorated and labour precariousness

23 décembre 2015
Article
Labour market policies
Employment and labour markets
Labour and social regulation

EU level: ECJ rules that travel time is treated as working time

Unions have welcomed a ruling by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) that travel time for mobile workers should be treated as working time. Employer organisations have not commented, but the UK's umbrella national employer organisation, the CBI, has said it is vital the UK’s opt-out from the EU

22 décembre 2015
Article
Labour law
Labour and social regulation

Norway: Reaction to new Working Environment Act

The hotly debated changes to Norway’s Working Environment Act came into force on 1 July 2015. They affect temporary employment, working time, age limits, maximum penalties and the collective right to sue. Protests over the changes led to the first general strike since 1998. Opposition parties have

22 décembre 2015
Article
Labour law
Labour and social regulation

EU level: European Accessibility Act proposed by the European Commission

On 2 December, the European Commission proposed a Directive on European Accessibility, aimed at ensuring the appropriate requirements of key products and services for people with disabilities.

16 décembre 2015
Article
Disability and chronic disease
Working conditions
Labour and social regulation
Working conditions and sustainable work

France: Dispute about wearing Islamic headscarf referred to EU Court of Justice

A dispute over a French IT worker being dismissed for refusing to take off her hijab has been referred to the EU Court of Justice. The woman had been asked to remove the headscarf after one of her employer’s customers said it made staff uncomfortable. The CJEU must decide whether a customer’s wishes

16 décembre 2015
Article
Labour law
Labour and social regulation

Bulgaria: One-day labour contracts introduced

Farmers now have the option to offer one-day contracts for harvest work.

14 décembre 2015
Article
Working conditions
Industrial relations
Labour and social regulation
Working conditions and sustainable work
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Ireland: New law welcomed on collective bargaining

A law giving employees the right to bargain collectively has been passed in Ireland after a great deal of debate. Until now, under the constitution, a worker’s right to join a union has effectively been cancelled out by an employer’s right not to recognise a union for bargaining purposes. However

4 décembre 2015
Article
Collective bargaining
Employee representation
Social partners
Industrial relations
Labour and social regulation
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Czech Republic: Short-time work introduced in Employment Act

30 novembre 2015
Article
Working time
Working conditions
Labour and social regulation
Working conditions and sustainable work
Blogs results (12)
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Regulating platform work in Europe: A work in progress

The platform economy is one of those moving targets, which, despite receiving increasing media and policy attention, has proven difficult to regulate. Given the heterogeneity of employment relationships, business models, types of platform work and cross-border issues, this is not surprising. Yet, in

27 septembre 2022
Dragoș Adăscăliței
Blog
Platform work
Working conditions
Employment and labour markets
Anticipating and managing the impact of change
Digitalisation
Labour and social regulation
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Resumed EU Semester calls for better involvement of the social partners in implementing recovery and resilience plans

With the arrival of the month of May, the 2022 European Semester Spring Package is anticipated soon. After a transformative year in 2021, which saw the launch of the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) under NextGenerationEU, the European Semester cycle has resumed its role as the reference

3 mai 2022
Ricardo Rodriguez Contreras
Blog
Social partners
European Pillar of Social Rights
Labour and social regulation
Industrial relations and social dialogue
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Platform cooperatives ensure caring in the sharing economy

Whether it is couch surfing, baby-sitting, pizza delivery or getting Ikea furniture assembled by somebody who can do it better, platforms can mediate all kinds of voluntary or professional services. Platform work is at the heart of the ‘sharing economy’. But while this may sound like a new form of

31 mars 2022
Beate Steurer
Blog
New forms of employment
Employment relationship
Anticipating and managing the impact of change
Digitalisation
Labour and social regulation
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Gender pay transparency: Advancing the cause through a truly European proposal

With its proposed directive on gender pay transparency, the European Commission has significantly bolstered the set of tools for delivering its objectives compared to those presented in its 2014 Recommendation. The proposed portfolio of measures addresses many shortcomings of the instruments that

18 juin 2021
Christine Aumayr-Pintar
Blog
Pay and income
Working conditions and sustainable work
Gender equality
Labour and social regulation
Industrial relations and social dialogue
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As Member States take different approaches to regulating telework, will the EU bring them into line?

The massive and rapid adoption of telework in 2020 in response to the COVID-19 lockdowns exposed gaps in the legislation governing telework arrangements across the EU Member States. In some cases, there was no regulation in place; in others, it was too restrictive. Governments scrambled to put

31 mai 2021
Federica De Blasio
Blog
Working conditions and sustainable work
Teleworking
Digitalisation
Labour and social regulation
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Does the new telework generation need a right to disconnect?

Whatever the benefits of telework – and there are many, including more flexible working time, increased productivity and less commuting – there are drawbacks, as many of the one-third of Europeans who were exclusively working from home during the pandemic will attest. Primary among these is the ‘alw

3 décembre 2020
Oscar Vargas Llave
Blog
Working conditions and sustainable work
Work-life balance
Collective bargaining
Agreements
Digitalisation
Teleworking
Labour and social regulation
Anticipating and managing the impact of change
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Are simple statistics enough? On the benefits of gender pay reports and audits

Following a sluggish response by many Member States to introduce or modify gender pay transparency measures, as it recommended in 2014, the European Commission intends to table a proposal for EU-level legislation on pay transparency later in 2020. In this context, a new Eurofound study investigated

6 novembre 2020
Christine Aumayr-Pintar
Blog
Pay and income
Gender equality
Discrimination at work
Labour and social regulation
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Racial discrimination is not a thing of the past in the EU

25 juin 2020
Anna Gallinat
Blog
Working conditions and sustainable work
Working conditions
Employment and labour markets
Discrimination at work
Inclusive labour markets
Migration and mobility
Labour and social regulation
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Can short-time working save jobs during the COVID-19 crisis?

On 2 April, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced a new fund of up to €100 billion to support EU Member States to introduce short-time working or similar schemes, including for the self-employed, in an effort to safeguard jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Known as SURE

5 mai 2020
Tina Weber
Blog
COVID-19
Labour market policies
Labour and social regulation
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Economic downturns expose the vulnerability of a growing number of precarious workers

Up to the start of 2020, recent EU economic and labour market trends were often discussed in terms of the periods before and after the Great Recession. It now appears likely that, in the short- to medium-term, the repercussions of that economic crisis will be dwarfed by the unfolding impact of the

21 avril 2020
Tina Weber
Blog
COVID-19
Non-standard employment
Employment status
Labour and social regulation
Employment and labour markets

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