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Non-standard employment

Non-standard employment is an umbrella term for different employment arrangements that deviate from standard employment. They include temporary employment; part-time and on-call work; temporary agency work and other multiparty employment relationships; as well as disguised employment and dependent self-employment. The most relevant of possible future developments of non-standard work, whatever their contractual form, are related to digitalisation.

Topic

Recent updates

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Job insecurity undermines democracy

Workers on non-permanent contracts and workers with no formal contract are less satisfied with the functioning of democracy in their country, as are workers experiencing job insecurity. They are less...

1 September 2023
Corporate news
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Societal implications of labour market instability

This report investigates the social groups whose attachment to the labour market may be unstable and who are most likely to have non-standard working arrangements, and the implications of such...

29 August 2023
Publication
Research report

Eurofound expert(s)

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Carlos Vacas‑Soriano

Carlos Vacas Soriano is a research manager in the Employment unit at Eurofound. He works on topics related to wage and income inequalities, minimum wages, low pay, job quality...

Research manager,
Employment research unit
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Dragoș Adăscăliței

Dragoș Adăscăliței is a research officer in the Employment unit at Eurofound. His current research focuses on topics related to the future of work, including the impact of...

Research officer,
Employment research unit
Publications results (55)

European workers want more job certainty: Working time - Q4 2014 (EurWORK topical update)

An increasing number of European workers have part-time jobs or non-standard types of work, such as the zero-hours employment contracts that have become common in the UK. Yet most European workers with temporary contracts would like permanent jobs, and one third of people working part time would

14 April 2015
Publication
Research report
Working time
Employment status
Non-standard employment
Working conditions
Employment and labour markets
Working conditions and sustainable work

New forms of employment

Across Europe, new forms of employment are emerging that are different from traditional standard or non-standard employment in a number of ways. Some transform the relationship between employer and employee, some change work organisation and work patterns, and some do both. This report identifies

12 March 2015
Publication
Research report
Non-standard employment
New forms of employment
Platform work
Working conditions and sustainable work
Working conditions
Undeclared work
Work organisation
Employment relationship
Employment and labour markets
Anticipating and managing the impact of change
Digitalisation
Inclusive labour markets
Innovation

Individual employment relations - Q1 2014 (EurWORK topical update)

This article presents some of the key developments and research findings on aspects of individual employment relations in the EU during the first quarter of 2014. The terms and conditions of employment, entitlements and obligations and aspects related to the termination of the employment

18 February 2015
Publication
Research report
Labour law
Leave
Non-standard employment
Working conditions
Employment and labour markets
Industrial relations
Labour and social regulation
Working conditions and sustainable work
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Self-employed or not self-employed? Working conditions of ‘economically dependent workers’ - Background paper

In recent years, practices such as outsourcing and contracting-out have increasingly blurred the boundaries between dependent employment and self-employment. A new group of workers has emerged, which comprises workers who are formally ‘self-employed’, but present some characteristics of employees

29 September 2013
Publication
Customised report
Pay and income
Non-standard employment
Working conditions
Work-life balance
Job quality
Employment and labour markets
Working conditions and sustainable work

Part-time work in Europe

Non-standard employment and, more particularly, part-time work has been increasing worldwide for the past two decades. This trend has been especially strong in Europe, where the issue of different working time arrangements is an important part of the discussion among policymakers and social partners

27 October 2011
Publication
Research report
Non-standard employment
Working conditions
Labour and social regulation
Working conditions and sustainable work

Temporary agency work and collective bargaining in the EU

This report reviews the present situation regarding the use of temporary agency work (TAW) in European Union Member States. It examines arrangements for social dialogue and collective bargaining at national level across the EU. It examines the role of collective bargaining in determining such

09 January 2011
Publication
Research report
Non-standard employment
Collective bargaining
Social dialogue
Industrial relations
Industrial relations and social dialogue

EMCC case studies: Upskilling in the recession – the ProAct short-time working scheme in Wales (UK)

ProAct is a £48 million programme launched by the Welsh Assembly Government (WAG) in response to the economic crisis. Through social partner engagement, the Welsh Assembly Government developed and implemented the ProAct initiative in a matter of two to three months with the aim of helping businesses

11 November 2010
Publication
Case study
Non-standard employment
Working time
Working conditions
Working conditions and sustainable work

Very atypical work: Exploratory analysis of fourth European Working Conditions Survey - Background paper

This background paper has been prepared to complement the findings of a comparative analysis by Eurofound on what has been termed ‘very atypical work’ in the 27 EU Member States. In the background paper, the definition of very atypical forms of work includes non-written employment contracts

13 April 2010
Publication
Research report
Non-standard employment
Working conditions
Working conditions and sustainable work

Part-time work in European companies

This report reveals how widespread part-time employment has become as a working arrangement in many parts of Europe. It looks at the national policies influencing part-time employment and the possible impact of this type of work organisation on labour market flexibility. It also examines the

17 June 2008
Publication
Research report
Non-standard employment
Working time
Work organisation
Working conditions
Employment and labour markets
Working conditions and sustainable work

Industrial relations in the EU, Japan, US and other global economies, 2005–2006

In the context of global competition, it is increasingly relevant to look at Europe’s economic development in a wider perspective. This report gives an overview of the main industrial relations developments in the European Union, Japan and the US in 2005 and 2006. It charts the similarities and

11 December 2007
Publication
Research report
Non-standard employment
Collective bargaining
Industrial action
Small and medium-sized enterprises
Employment and labour markets
Industrial relations
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Online resources results (249)

Financial incentives seek to stimulate open-ended recruitment

A government Order adopted in Portugal in March 2002 aims to encourage permanent employment by means of financial subsidies for companies that convert a fixed-term contract, on expiry, into an open-ended contract. The new legislation is seen as necessary because fixed-term employment is continuing

27 May 2002
Article
Labour and social regulation
Non-standard employment
Working conditions and sustainable work
Employment and labour markets

Unions highlight unstable employment in Catalonia

In 2001-2, trade unions in the Catalonia region of Spain have taken a number of initiatives aimed at examining and criticising the level of unstable employment. CC.OO's Catalan organisation has drawn up a 'blacklist' of the 200 most unstable companies in the region, using a 'barometer of employment

29 April 2002
Article
Social partners
Labour market policies
Non-standard employment
Labour law
Labour and social regulation

Commission proposes Directive on temporary agency workers

The European Commission issued on 20 March 2002 a proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive on working conditions for temporary agency workers [1]. This is the third subject to be regulated within the framework of the Commission's September 1995 social partner consultation on the

22 April 2002
Article
Non-standard employment
Social partners
Industrial relations
Industrial relations and social dialogue

Temporary employment increases in public sector

Spain has a very high level of temporary employment, especially among women. However, in recent years the temporary employment rate has been falling slightly in the private sector, while increasing in the public sector, which previously had a relatively low level of such non-permanent employment

27 February 2002
Article
Non-standard employment
Employment and labour markets

Government initiatives spark major confrontation with trade unions

Between November and December 2001, the Italian government launched three important reform initiatives in the fields of labour market institutions, the pension system and the tax system. The Cgil, Cisl and Uil trade union confederations sharply criticised the government's action, both because of the

25 February 2002
Article
Employment and labour markets
Non-standard employment
Labour and social regulation
Living conditions and quality of life

Part-time work Directive finally implemented

TheProtection of Employees (Part-Time Work) Act 2001 [1] took effect in late December 2001. It seeks to implements the December 1997EU Directive (97/81/EC) on part-time work [2], which was based on a framework agreement negotiated by the European-level social partners in 1997 (EU9706131F [3]) under

24 February 2002
Article
Non-standard employment
Labour and social regulation

Non-permanent employment and fear of economic downturn cast shadow on work

The Finnish Ministry of Labour published its yearly 'working life barometer' in December 2001. The results indicate that employees on fixed-term and temporary contracts are discriminated against more than other groups at the workplace. Employees' general attitude to changes in working life has also

6 January 2002
Article
Job quality
Non-standard employment
Social partners
Working conditions
Working conditions and sustainable work

New government challenges trade union movement

A general election took place in Denmark on 20 November 2001. The result was a comfortable victory for the coalition of the Liberal Party (Venstre) and Conservative People's Party (Konservative Folkeparti), which shortly afterwards formed a government under the leadership of Anders Fogh Rasmussen of

6 January 2002
Article
Social partners
Employment and labour markets
Social protection
Skills and training
Non-standard employment

Report examines relationship between young people and work

A survey carried out in November 2001 by Iref, a research centre linked to the Christian Association of Italian Workers (Acli), examines the aspirations of young Italians towards work. The majority of them seek an independent and flexible employment relationship, which is able to offer the same

3 January 2002
Article
Non-standard employment
Working time
Working conditions
Employment and labour markets
Working conditions and sustainable work

Involuntary part-time work declines

Over the past 20 years, part-time work has been growing at a rapid pace in France, promoted by the government as a potential tool for stemming unemployment while affording the flexibility sought by the employers. Often imposed by employers, part-time work has thus been experienced by many employees

2 December 2001
Article
Non-standard employment
Working time
Employment and labour markets
Blogs results (7)
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New forms of employment in Europe – How new is new?

Standard employment is not simply being replaced by non-standard work; employment is becoming more diverse, and policy must accordingly become more tailored. The last decade has seen much public and policy debate on the future of work. Standard employment – permanent, full-time and subject to labour

15 December 2020
Irene Mandl
Blog
Platform work
Non-standard employment
Working conditions
New forms of employment
Employment relationship
Teleworking
Employment and labour markets
Working conditions and sustainable work
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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 April 2020
Tina Weber
Blog
COVID-19
Non-standard employment
Employment status
Labour and social regulation
Employment and labour markets
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ICT-enabled flexible working – All plain sailing?

Imagine you’re at work and something happens: you have to leave to visit a client, you have to go home to let in the plumber, or you have to collect the kids from school as the football training has just been cancelled. If you’re lucky, your employer gives you the flexibility to do this. If you’re

14 May 2019
Oscar Vargas Llave
Blog
Non-standard employment
Working conditions
New forms of employment
Inclusive labour markets
Digitalisation
Employment and labour markets
Anticipating and managing the impact of change
Working conditions and sustainable work
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Stamping out fraud in hiring practices across Europe

Research Manager Isabella Biletta looks at fraudulent practices in the contracting of work. Such practices involve the abuse of legitimate employment relationships with the aim of sidestepping labour and social regulations and with the effect of undermining workers’ rights and fair competition in

1 June 2018
Isabella Biletta
Blog
Non-standard employment
Posted workers
Working conditions and sustainable work
Employment relationship
Fraudulent work
The many faces of self-employment In Europe

The many faces of self-employment in Europe

While the Europe 2020 strategy actively promotes entrepreneurial self-employment as a means to create good jobs, policy makers at national and EU level are actively looking at better social protection for self-employed workers. Understanding this paradox requires looking beyond the ‘self-employed’

26 October 2017
Mathijn Wilkens
Blog
Inequality
Job creation
Non-standard employment
Working conditions and sustainable work
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Employment shifts in Europe during the recovery: three little noticed trends

The EU has finally recovered all the net employment losses sustained since the global financial crisis. It has been a long and painful process. But there is at last growing evidence of positive momentum in EU labour markets, if not quite ‘animal spirits’. Many of those member states most affected by

26 July 2017
John Hurley
Blog
Employment structure
Gender equality
Job creation
Employment and labour markets
Non-standard employment
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The rise of temporary contracts in Europe

More than one in 10 employees in the EU are employed on temporary contracts, but a majority of them would prefer a permanent contract. Temporary contracts help employers to manage their labour demand, but there are downsides for employees, such as job insecurity and lower pay.

19 February 2016
Eurofound
Blog
Employment and labour markets
Non-standard employment
Pay and income
Working conditions and sustainable work
Working poor

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