Anticipating and managing the impact of change
1 mars 2023
Anticipating and managing the impact of change is one of the six main activities in Eurofound’s work programme for the 2021–2024 periodRead more
Anticipating and managing the impact of change is one of the six main activities in Eurofound’s work programme for the 2021–2024 period. Eurofound will provide evidence on structural developments affecting the EU economy and labour markets, driven largely by digitalisation and the transition to a carbon-neutral economy, but also by the COVID-19 crisis. The research is intended to assist policymakers in anticipating and preparing European labour markets and workplaces for these changes.
From 2021 onwards, Eurofound will provide insights into the impact of these megatrends on living and working conditions in the EU. In the area of digitalisation, research will focus on the impact on employment and working conditions, as well as on the labour market. Areas to be covered will include social dialogue and its role in shaping structural change, regulatory frameworks, social protection and Artificial Intelligence (AI). Building on previous research on platform work, the 2021–2024 period will be an opportunity to focus on mapping and providing an assessment of the effectiveness of policy initiatives in tackling the challenges identified with platform work.
Eurofound will also aim to support the EU’s transition to a carbon-neutral economy, including the circular economy and the implementation of the EU’s recovery instrument NextGenerationEU, by investigating the socioeconomic effects. These include employment shifts and the transformation of jobs and working conditions, as well as the distributional impact of climate change policies. Some of this work will build on the results of a pilot project on the future of manufacturing (FOME) carried out by Eurofound.
To continue this work in 2021–2024, Eurofound will cooperate with various international organisations and EU agencies, for example with the European Environment Agency (EEA) in the area of social impacts of climate change policies. Furthermore, existing collaboration with other research actors in the fields of digitalisation – the Joint Research Centre (JRC), Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) and European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) – will be consolidated. Further partnership with the International Labour Organization (ILO) is also foreseen on the subject of the changing world of work.
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Recent updates
European Employment and Social Rights Forum - The social dimension of the green transition
Eurofound signs new framework agreement for cooperation with the International Labour Organization
Regulating platform work in Europe: A work in progress
EU context
TopAddressing stakeholder priorities
TopEurofound’s research aims to assist policy action to address the transitions to both a carbon-neutral economy and the digital age in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as helping to understand the impact of these changes at EU and national levels.Read more
Eurofound’s research aims to assist policy action to address the transitions to both a carbon-neutral economy and the digital age in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as helping to understand the impact of these changes at EU and national levels. For example, research on the impact of these drivers of change on the workplace level will provide insight into how to best support employers and workers so they can seize the opportunities and mitigate the challenges related to these developments. Eurofound’s research will also seek to support businesses in their efforts to adapt to a constantly evolving global economy. Furthermore, the examination of the distributional impacts of climate change policies and of measures to ensure social justice will provide knowledge to help implement the Just Transition Fund. The monitoring of reforms and recent financial support will also allow for an exchange of policy approaches and lessons learned.
The Agency’s work plan is aligned with the European Commission’s political guidelines for 2021–2024, feeding directly into a number of key policy areas aimed at creating a strong social Europe. In particular, the research will support the following Commission priorities:
- European Commission: Priorities 2019–2024: An economy that works for people
- European Commission: Priorities 2019–2024: A Europe fit for the digital age
- European Commission: A European Green Deal
Blogs on this topic
Key policy messages
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The main findings emerging from Eurofound research serve as input for policymakers to address some of the key issues in this area.
- Supporting employers and workers in the twin transition to the digital age and to a carbon-neutral economy is critical. In addition to these structural developments, the recent COVID-19 pandemic presents a huge challenge for the European economy and labour market.
- New forms of employment such as platform work and ICT-based mobile work are a growing presence in European labour markets. Driven by the use of ICT, these are characterised by new types of employment relations between employer and employee, changing work organisation and work patterns. They will bring both opportunities and risks for EU labour markets facing the transition to a carbon-neutral economy and to a digital transformation against the background of the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Digital technologies are transforming work and the workplace, triggering changes on the labour market such as restructuring and job losses, and new job profiles are also starting to emerge. Task profiles in jobs are adapting because of the digitalisation of production and service provision. The result is a demand for different skills.
- It will be important to investigate the joint effects of digitalisation and the transition to a carbon-neutral economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and how they reinforce each other, or how the benefits of one can offset the negative effects of the other.
- The technology-driven potential to produce, collect and use a large amount of data can improve competitiveness of European business and job quality. However, ensuring that issues like data ownership and data protection are clarified, well-regulated and implemented will be key to avoiding exploitation and unethical behaviour.
Current and ongoing research
TopIn 2023, Eurofound will continue its research on the impact of digitalisation and the transition to a climate-neutral economy on working life.Read more
In 2023, Eurofound will continue its research on the impact of digitalisation and the transition to a climate-neutral economy on working life. It will also explore the longer-lasting impact of the COVID-19 crisis and the implications of the war in Ukraine on employment levels, employment relations and working conditions.
Research into the impact of new developments in human–machine interaction on work organisation and the human and ethical implications of digitisation at the workplace will be finalised. The ongoing monitoring of the developments in the platform economy through Eurofound’s web repository will continue, and the online resource on digitalisation will be updated during 2023.
Eurofound will finalise research on the socioeconomic impact of the transition to a carbon-neutral economy (started jointly with the European Environment Agency in 2021) and on the effects of the transition to a carbon-neutral economy on employment and overall job quality. Also to be completed in 2023 will be the foresight project on potential future scenarios related to teleworking and hybrid working.
New research will explore the roles, opportunities and challenges of policy actors in the just transition, examining the design and implementation of Just Transition policies at the regional level, their mechanisms and the actors involved. Other new research will explore the impact of change caused by the twin digital and green transition at sector level, focusing on the transformation of business activities, occupational and skill profiles, work organisation and working conditions.
A new strand of research will also look at company restructuring practices in the twin transition, with a specific focus on HR management strategies and mechanisms, the role of social dialogue and employee participation.
The sections below provide access to a range of publications, data and ongoing work on this topic.
Read less- Publications (166)
- Data
- Ongoing work (3)
Publications
Eurofound publications come in a variety of formats, including reports, policy briefs, blogs, articles and presentations.
European Employment and Social Rights Forum - The social dimension of the green transition
Arrangement 16 november 2022Data
Related data on this topic are linked below.
- Data: Platform economy repository
- Data: Platform economy initiatives - COVID-19
- Data: Future scenarios of platform work
- Database: Restructuring events database
- Data: European Jobs Monitor
Ongoing work
Research continues in this topic on a variety of themes, which are outlined below with links to forthcoming titles.
MEMBER OF THE NETWORK OF EU AGENCIES
Eurofound is an agency of the European Union