Annual reports

The COVID-19 pandemic continued to be a defining force in the lives and work of Europeans for a second year in 2021, and Eurofound continued its work of examining and recording the many and diverse impacts across the EU Member States. Living and working in Europe 2021 provides a snapshot of the changes to employment, work and living conditions in Europe, as gathered by Eurofound’s research activities in 2021.

The enormity of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the lives and work of Europeans is hard to capture, but Eurofound’s priority in 2020 was to record and assess the experience of this societal upheaval across the EU Member States in all its detail, variety and modulation. Living and working in Europe 2020 provides a snapshot of how the COVID-19 confinement measures changed employment, work and quality of life in Europe, as gathered by Eurofound’s research activities in 2020.

Living and working in Europe, Eurofound’s 2019 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 2019. The range of topics as a result is broad, from the growing diversity of employment across EU regions to rising trust in national institutions to developments in minimum wages.

Living and working in Europe 2015–2018 brings together Eurofound’s work on the quality of life, work and employment of EU citizens over the last four years of the outgoing European Parliament and Commission. It has a been a period of economic expansion, growing employment and rising living standards. There have been challenges, such as the growth of populism and the migration crisis, as well as opportunity, such as that offered by digitalisation. Over this period, Eurofound has answered some key questions about the living standards, well-being and working conditions of Europeans, highlighting where policymaking needs to target its efforts if it is to be seen to deliver.