Job creation

Tools for continuous monitoring of labour market developments and of restructuring in the Member States have been developed in the framework of Eurofound’s European Monitoring Centre on Change (EMCC). The EMCC is the point of access for all information on changing labour markets, restructuring and job creation. The investigation of factors supporting or inhibiting job creation also requires access to company-level information. Eurofound has conducted three waves of its European Company Survey (ECS) since 2003, providing comparative evidence on company practices and their link to innovation and job creation.

Key contributions

Eurofound’s European Jobs Monitor (EJM) looks in detail at recent shifts in employment at Member State and aggregate EU levels, covering cases of job creation and job loss by occupation and sector. The 2017 report on occupational change and wage inequality shows that in 2016 employment in the EU finally returned to the same level as before the global financial crisis.

The European Restructuring Monitor (ERM) has recently explored the case of SMEs, meaning companies with fewer than 250 employees, as a source of job creation. It found that SMEs are likely to have contributed to improved employment levels and increasingly gain attention as a source of job creation in Europe. However, due to the large scale of the SME population, there is considerable heterogeneity among them, and not all are equally dynamic job creators.

‘Born global’ enterprises – young companies with an international mindset – are also dynamic in job creation, despite their low share among enterprises. Eurofound research has looked at the potential of job creation in these new international businesses. It characterises born globals and outline their main strengths and weaknesses, as well as economic and labour market potential. 

A study on the creation of more and better jobs in home-care services highlights the persistent labour shortages in the health and social care sector. It analyses initiatives that were successful in either creating more jobs in the sector, or improving the quality of its jobs, with the dual aim of attracting new recruits and retaining existing staff.