On 27 February 1997, a company-wide employment alliance (Beschäftigungspakt)
was signed at the automobile manufacturer Mercedes Benz. A whole package of
instruments should boost competitiveness and save the jobs of the 134,000
employees working for Mercedes Benz in Germany. The background to the
agreement is the increasing international competition between different
potential production locations, and the resulting need to cut costs.
When the Social Democrat Government presented its bill on a new, general
unemployment insurance (prop 1996/97:107) on 13 March 1997 it had already
secured a parliamentary majority for the proposal through negotiations with
the Centre Party. It had also secured the support of the two major trade
union confederations,LO (Landsorganisationen) and TCO (Tjänstemännens
Centralorganisation) despite the fact that the two confederations were not
entirely enamoured with the proposals.
The campaign is the latest in a series of political initiatives aimed at
improving the Danish vocational training system. Throughout the second half
of the 1990s, the Danish Government has reformed the system by increasing its
market and demand orientation, accompanied by increased financial allowances
for employees attending training. In the 1997 Financial Act, expenditure to
support companies undertaking projects aimed at planning vocational training
activities was raised from DKK 40 million to DKK 65 million. A further sum of
DDK 105 million is available to support companies which wish to improve
working life.
Law 21/96, which aims to reduce the working week to 40 hours, has given rise
to labour disputes in certain sectors and some controversial statements. An
official communication released by the Secretary of State for Employment in
March attempts to shed light on the areas of concern.
On 26 February 1997, the French Cabinet adopted a bill aiming at rebuilding
social cohesion, which is to be debated in the National Assembly some time in
April 1997.
A joint management/trade union Joint Strategic Consultative Group (JSCG) has
been established to tackle the job of negotiating an agreement to help to
transform state-owned Telecom Eireann to meet current and future competitive
challenges. The key issues which the JSCG expects to address before the end
of April 1997 are a five-year, IEP 110 million cost reduction plan, change
and flexibility proposals and the question of an Employee Share Ownership
Plan (ESOP), first proposed by the trade unions.
On 10 March, after 11 hours of talks, a "historic deal" was reached for
public sector council workers. The agreement, covering 1.5 million workers,
will harmonise conditions for manual worker s and white collar worker s in
local government for the first time.
In the new collective agreement in the Dutch building industry, signed in
March 1997, a relatively large pay increase has been matched by a degree of
increased flexibility regarding the use of temporary employment agency
workers and the rules governing working hours.
The European Commission has published its amended proposal for a Council
Directive amending Directive 77/187/EEC on the safeguarding of employees'
rights in the event of transfers of undertakings. The amended proposal
reflects the Opinions submitted by the Economic and Social Committee and the
Committee of the Regions, as well as the many amendments put forward by the
European Parliament. Soon after the publication of the amended draft, the
Commission also issued a Memorandum on the interpretation of the Directive
(Record EU9703109F [1])
The European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS) is carried out every four to five years since its inception in 2003, with the latest edition in 2016. It examines both the objective circumstances of people's lives and how they feel about those circumstances and their lives in general. It covers issues around employment, income, education, housing, family, health and work–life balance. It also looks at subjective topics, such as people's levels of happiness and life satisfaction, and perceptions of the quality of society.
This series brings together publications and other outputs of the European Jobs Monitor (EJM), which tracks structural change in European labour markets. The EJM analyses shifts in the employment structure in the EU in terms of occupation and sector and gives a qualitative assessment of these shifts using various proxies of job quality – wages, skill-levels, etc.
Eurofound's European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS) examines both the objective circumstances of European citizens' lives and how they feel about those circumstances and their lives in general. This series consists of outputs from the EQLS 2016, the fourth edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 2003.
Eurofound’s European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) paints a wide-ranging picture of Europe at work across countries, occupations, sectors and age groups. This series consists of findings from the EWCS 2015, the sixth edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 1990.
Eurofound’s European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) paints a wide-ranging picture of Europe at work across countries, occupations, sectors and age groups. This series consists of findings from the EWCS 1996, the second edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 1990.
Eurofound’s European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) paints a wide-ranging picture of Europe at work across countries, occupations, sectors and age groups. This series consists of findings from the EWCS 2001, which was an extension of the EWCS 2000 to cover the then 12 acceding and candidate countries. The survey was first carried out in 1990.
Eurofound’s European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) paints a wide-ranging picture of Europe at work across countries, occupations, sectors and age groups. This series consists of findings from the EWCS 2000, the third edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 1990.
Eurofound’s European Company Survey (ECS) maps and analyses company policies and practices which can have an impact on smart, sustainable and inclusive growth, as well as the development of social dialogue in companies. This series consists of outputs from the first edition of the survey carried out in 2004–2005 under the name European Establishment Survey on Working Time and Work-Life Balance.
Eurofound’s European Company Survey (ECS) maps and analyses company policies and practices which can have an impact on smart, sustainable and inclusive growth, as well as the development of social dialogue in companies. This series consists of outputs from the ECS 2009, the second edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 2004–2005 as the European Establishment Survey on Working Time and Work-Life Balance.
Eurofound’s European Company Survey (ECS) maps and analyses company policies and practices which can have an impact on smart, sustainable and inclusive growth, as well as the development of social dialogue in companies. This series consists of outputs from the ECS 2013, the third edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 2004–2005 as the European Establishment Survey on Working Time and Work-Life Balance.
Automation and digitisation technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), are undergoing a rapid evolution. This impacts working conditions in a variety of ways and raises a host of new ethical concerns. In recent times, the policy debate surrounding these concerns has become more prominent and has increasingly focused on AI. Key EU policy developments, especially in relation to AI, have shaped the policy debate in many EU Member States, and in some instances they have led to the adoption of new policy initiatives that address these concerns in the context of work and employment.
Every year, Eurofound compiles a report summarising the key developments in minimum wages across EU countries. The report explains how minimum wages are set and describes the role of social partners, covering the evolution of statutory rates, collectively agreed wages and the national debates on these issues.
As part of a process to collect information on essential services, the European Commission (DG EMPL) requested Eurofound to provide input on certain aspects of existing and planned measures in the Member States to improve access to essential services, in reference to Principle 20 of the European Pillar of Social Rights. The scope of the exercise included energy services, public transport and digital communications, and the focus was on people at risk of poverty or social exclusion (in practice, people on low incomes in most cases).
The civil aviation sector has been deeply impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. It is one of the most severe crises the sector has ever experienced, giving rise to a number of significant challenges for companies and workers alike. This study will explore the role of social dialogue and collective bargaining in how the sector is adapting to the pandemic. What kinds of changes have been introduced, either through social dialogue or collective bargaining? Are the changes temporary or permanent?
This report investigates the practical implementation of the European Works Council (EWC) Directive at company level. It explores the challenges faced by existing EWCs and provides examples of identified solutions and remaining issues from the point of view of both workers and management. The report looks at the way that EWCs meet the requirements of the EWC Directive in terms of establishing processes of information and consultation.
This report will map the existing regulations on telework in European Union Member States, including in legislation and collective agreements. It will present the most recent changes to these regulations and shed light on how the future of (tele)work could be regulated at both national and EU level, in order to improve working conditions in telework arrangements and reduce the risks associated with telework and with specific ways of working remotely.
This report explores the association between skills use and skills strategies and establishment performance, and how other workplace practices, in terms of work organisation, human resources management and employee involvement, can impact on this. It looks at how skills shortages can be addressed, at least in part, by creating an environment in which employees are facilitated and motivated to make better use of the skills they already have. This further supports the business case for a more holistic approach to management.
The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have varied across sectors, occupations and categories of worker (for instance, according to gender, age or employment status). Hours worked have declined the most in sectors such as accommodation services and food and beverage services, and in occupations heavily reliant on in-person interaction, such as sales work. At the same time, it’s in these sectors that labour shortages have become increasingly evident as labour markets have begun to normalise.
This report focuses on trends and developments in collective bargaining that were evident from the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. It examines potential new strategic approaches and priorities incorporated in negotiation agendas, as well as collective bargaining practices and coordination at sector and company levels in the private sector.
This policy brief will provide an update on upward convergence in the economic, social and institutional dimensions of the European Union, as outlined in the European Pillar of Social Rights and its accompanying Social Scoreboard.
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