Fondazione europea per il miglioramento delle condizioni di vita e di lavoro
L’agenzia tripartita dell’UE che fornisce le conoscenze per contribuire allo sviluppo di migliori politiche sociali, occupazionali e relative al lavoro
L’agenzia tripartita dell’UE che fornisce le conoscenze per contribuire allo sviluppo di migliori politiche sociali, occupazionali e relative al lavoro
Following the financial collapse of Allied Irish Banks (AIB [1]) in 2009, the
Irish government took control and now owns 99.8% of the bank. In early 2012,
AIB and the Irish Bank Officials Association (IBOA [2]) entered a mediation
process at the Labour Relations Commission (LRC [3]).
Young people in Europe have been particularly affected by the recession: by
mid-2013, the unemployment rate among people aged 24 and under was over 23%.
A large proportion of workers in this age group are employed on temporary
rather than permanent contracts (42% compared to just 10% of workers aged
25–64). While temporary or fixed-term contracts can be a stepping stone in
the transition from education into work, they can also trap young people in
insecure jobs. This report from the European Restructuring Monitor is based
on data from correspondents in 28 EU Member States and Norway. It examines
the reasons for the growth in temporary employment contracts across the EU
and explores the situation regarding access to social protection for young
people on such contracts. It reviews the measures put in place in various
countries to regulate the use of these contracts – often with a view to
encouraging the transition to standard contracts – and finally presents the
opinions of the social partners on the issue.
The results of Spain’s latest Quarterly Survey on Labour Costs (in Spanish)
[1] have been released. The Spanish National Institute of Statistics (INE
[2]) published the figures for the second quarter of 2013 in September.
A report, Health and Work Safety in Romanian Food Industry (1.7MB PDF, in
Romanian) [1] published by Romania’s National Federation of Food Industry
Trade Unions (Sindalimenta [2]), examines how companies and workers in the
sector have adapted to EU directives on occupational health and safety.
Malta has seen an influx of displaced immigrants from sub-Saharan Africa and
the Middle East over the past decade, substantially increasing the number of
vulnerable workers and some employers are willing to take advantage of their
plight.
Spain’s coal industry employs 4,894 workers. Of these, 3,407 work directly
for 15 extractive coal companies and a further 1,487 are employed through
subcontracting companies.
A long-running dispute in Slovakia has centred on the extension of
multi-employer collective agreements, which is regulated by Act No. 2/1991
(in Slovakian, 164 KB PDF) [1] on collective bargaining. The subject has
caused friction between representatives of employers and the trade unions.
On 30 October 2013, partners in Germany’s Pact on Apprenticeships released
the latest figures on newly concluded vocational training contracts. During
the vocational guidance year 2012/2013, 482,400 newly concluded contracts
were registered.
The term ‘blue-collar worker’ was introduced at the very beginning of the
20th century to describe manual workers. Two decades later, the term
‘white-collar worker’ appeared, describing employees who were engaged in
work requiring predominantly mental, rather than physical, effort. During the
last 20 years, establishing equality between these two statuses has been key
to Belgian industrial relations. In recent years, technological developments
and the evolution of job functions have ‘blurred’ the distinction between
blue- and white-collar workers that had previously been clearly defined.
Ten forms of precarious work in Bulgaria and the extent of their regulation
by national labour legislation have been analysed in a joint study by experts
from the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria (CITUB [1])
and the Confederation of Labour Podkrepa (CL Podkrepa [2]).
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.
The European Restructuring Monitor has reported on the employment impact of large-scale business restructuring since 2002. This series includes its restructuring-related databases (events, support instruments and legislation) as well as case studies and publications.
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).
This series reports on the new forms of employment emerging across Europe that are driven by societal, economic and technological developments and are different from traditional standard or non-standard employment in a number of ways. This series explores what characterises these new employment forms and what implications they have for working conditions and the labour market.
The European Company Survey (ECS) is carried out every four to five years since its inception in 2004–2005, with the latest edition in 2019. The survey is designed to provide information on workplace practices to develop and evaluate socioeconomic policy in the EU. It covers issues around work organisation, working time arrangements and work–life balance, flexibility, workplace innovation, employee involvement, human resource management, social dialogue, and most recently also skills use, skills strategies and digitalisation.
The fifth round of Eurofound's e-survey, fielded from 25 March to 2 May 2022, sheds light on the social and economic situation of people across Europe two years after COVID-19 was first detected on the European continent. It also explores the reality of living in a new era of uncertainty caused by the war in Ukraine, inflation, and rising energy prices.
As part of a process to collect information on essential services, the European Commission (DG EMPL) requested Eurofound to provide input on certain aspects of existing and planned measures in the Member States to improve access to essential services, in reference to Principle 20 of the European Pillar of Social Rights. The scope of the exercise included energy services, public transport and digital communications, and the focus was on people at risk of poverty or social exclusion (in practice, people on low incomes in most cases).
This report will map the existing regulations on telework in European Union Member States, including in legislation and collective agreements. It will present the most recent changes to these regulations and shed light on how the future of (tele)work could be regulated at both national and EU level, in order to improve working conditions in telework arrangements and reduce the risks associated with telework and with specific ways of working remotely.
The civil aviation sector has been deeply impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. It is one of the most severe crises the sector has ever experienced, giving rise to a number of significant challenges for companies and workers alike. This study will explore the role of social dialogue and collective bargaining in how the sector is adapting to the pandemic. What kinds of changes have been introduced, either through social dialogue or collective bargaining? Are the changes temporary or permanent?
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.
This report focuses on trends and developments in collective bargaining that were evident from the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. It examines potential new strategic approaches and priorities incorporated in negotiation agendas, as well as collective bargaining practices and coordination at sector and company levels in the private sector.
This policy brief will provide an update on upward convergence in the economic, social and institutional dimensions of the European Union, as outlined in the European Pillar of Social Rights and its accompanying Social Scoreboard.
Between 2021 and 2023 Eurofound is carrying out a pilot project on minimum wage on behalf of the European Commission. The question of how minimum wages and other forms of pay can be fixed for the self-employed is investigated as a part of this project through mapping national and sectoral approaches. Out of concern for the challenging conditions that the self-employed face, some Member States have established or are discussing establishing statutory forms of minimum pay for certain categories of self-employed.
This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the electricity sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted, their role and effective participation in the European sectoral social dialogue and their capacity to negotiate agreements. The aim of this Eurofound study on representativeness is to identify the relevant national and European social partner organisations in the electricity sector in the EU Member States.
This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the gas sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted, their role and effective participation in the European sectoral social dialogue and their capacity to negotiate agreements. The aim of this Eurofound’s study on representativeness is to identify the relevant national and European social partner organisations in the gas sector in the EU Member States.
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