Barcevičius, Egidijus

European countries face the challenges of ageing populations supported by shrinking workforces, more precarious types of employment, and in many cases, a decreasing number of jobs in the wake of the economic crisis. As a result, the issue of how to enable more people to participate in the labour market and to continue to do so until an older age has become a key policy issue in all EU Member States.

This report explores the growing role of the private sector in the provision of public services in the EU. The research is based on sector-specific case studies carried out in Lithuania, Spain, Sweden and the UK. It focuses specifically on social services of general interest (SSGIs) in the areas of healthcare, early childhood education and care (ECEC), employment services and long-term care.

As a relatively new mobility pattern within the EU, the post-accession return migration of workers from Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries has recently begun to generate increasing interest among academics, experts and practitioners. The return migration of these workers grew in importance in the context of the global economic crisis as it was believed that economic fluctuations across Europe might induce return migration of CEE nationals from the EU15 countries. This research aimed to contribute to a better understanding of return migration to CEE countries by generating new empirical evidence through an analysis of statistical data and literature and also through interviews with returnees, policymakers and experts on migration in the following four CEE countries: Hungary, Latvia, Poland and Romania.