European Restructuring Monitor

This report has a dual focus. First, it reviews recent restructuring activity in the EU, from January 2019 up to and including the first impacts of the COVID-19 crisis. The second part presents an analysis of transnational restructuring cases – those that affect workers in more than one country. The main source for both analyses is the European Restructuring Monitor events database, which has collected details of over 25,000 large-scale restructurings since it began in 2002, including nearly 2,000 since the beginning of 2019.

The U.S. online retail giant Amazon is investing heavily in Europe, creating 11,580 jobs in 2018 alone. As Europe turns towards e-commerce, automation and digitalisation, Amazon will play a key role in reshaping the retail sector. But its impacts are unlikely to be confined to retail alone.

Eurofound’s European Restructuring Monitor (ERM) is a unique EU-wide dataset on larger-scale restructuring events, which monitors the announced employment effects of restructuring in the EU28 and Norway. Using reports from selected media titles, the ERM is updated on a daily basis. This report gives an overview of key trends in restructuring in 2018, detailing the companies and sectors and European regions that experienced the greatest job losses and job gains.

Company restructuring may hit the headlines less in good times, but it remains a central experience in the working life of many. According to the most recent European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) data, just under one in three (30%) employees in the EU reported that restructuring had taken place at their workplace in the preceding three years. A similar proportion reported working in downsized workplaces. Large scale restructuring involving job loss is usually well-documented, and there is rightly a focus on what options there are for those who have lost their jobs. But what impact does all this have on those that are left behind?

Lloyds Banking Group is investing £3 billion (€3.35 billion) in technology and staff to improve its digital services. As a result, the Group has announced that it is cutting over 6,000 existing positions while creating 8,000 new jobs oriented towards digital technologies. The move reflects the growing shift towards digital service provision by the world’s biggest banking firms, with the amount of transactions in high-street banks falling and those online increasing.

Using data from the sixth European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS), carried out in 2015, the ERM report 2018 examines how workplace factors may influence the relationship between restructuring (with job losses) and the outcomes for employees. It also reviews policy and academic research on good practice in restructuring.

The next few months will determine the future of Alitalia and its 12,000 employees. The Italian flag carrier entered into bankruptcy proceedings in May after workers rejected a deal brokered by unions and management that would have seen job and pay cuts. Alitalia is currently losing up to €100 million per month and is continuing to operate thanks to an Italian government bridging loan. Meanwhile, administrators are accepting bids to take over the business from around 20 airlines, including from low-cost airlines such as Ryanair and EasyJet, whose emergence has presented such a challenge to national airlines.

The 2016 annual report from the European Restructuring Monitor (ERM) provides evidence of the employment impact of recent restructuring activity in Europe based on the European Union Labour Force Survey (EU-LFS) and the ERM events database. The thematic part of this year’s report centres on trends in both the offshoring and reshoring activity of companies in Europe, with a focus on the manufacturing sector.

The European Restructuring Monitor (ERM) annual report for 2015 explores the issue of job creation in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). SMEs are increasingly recognised as a job engine for Europe. However, given the heterogeneity of the vast SME population, not all contribute equally to employment growth. This study seeks to identify which SME types are more or less dynamic job creators and to determine their main drivers and barriers for job creation.

The European Restructuring Monitor’s annual report for 2014 explores the rapid transformation of the public sector in Europe since the onset of the financial crisis in 2008. Initially, employment expansion in the sector helped to stabilise Europe’s economy while the private sector suffered severe job losses. However, subsequent austerity measures (or fiscal consolidation) have brought in their wake widespread restructuring in the public sector.