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Research report
1 September 2026

Minimum wages in 2026: Annual review

This year’s annual review presents the discussions around minimum wage setting in EU Member States and Norway during 2025, leading to the new rates for 2026. It analyses the progress on national minimum wages over the past decade, discusses the recent Court of Justice ruling and national transposition initiatives regarding the EU Minimum Wage Directive, and explores collective bargaining on wages in low-paid sectors.

Related content

Article

16 July 2026

National minimum wages in the EU: policy-driven growth, continued convergence and increased proximity to negotiated wages
Article

29 January 2026

Real growth in minimum wages in 2026, amid both progress and pullback on Member States’ ambitions
Topic

29 January 2026

Minimum wage
Data item

29 January 2026

National minimum wages, 2026 (chart)

Publications

Explore Eurofound's recent publications.

14 September 2026

Research report
New

Representativeness of the European social partner organisations: Agriculture sector – 2026

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the organisations involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the agriculture sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted and their capacity to negotiate agreements. The aim of Eurofound’s studies on representativeness is to identify the relevant national and European social partner organisations in the sector. This study identifies the European Federation of Food, Agriculture and Tourism Trade Unions (EFFAT), representing employees, and the Employers’ Group of Professional Agricultural Organisations in the European Union / Committee of Professional Agricultural Organisations in the European Union (GEOPA-COPA), representing employers, as the most representative European-level social partner organisations in the agriculture sector.

Read more about Representativeness of the European social partner organisations: Agriculture sector – 2026

9 September 2026

Eurofound research paper
New

Mapping green behavioural public policy in the EU

This paper maps how far Member States have built capacity to develop and deploy such behaviourally informed policies. It finds substantial disparities across the EU, with a troubling pattern: the countries under the greatest transition pressure are often the least equipped to design the human-centred policies that would ease it.
Read more about Mapping green behavioural public policy in the EU

1 September 2026

Research report

Minimum wages in 2026: Annual review

Minimum wage setting across the EU has become an increasingly dynamic and closely watched policy area, shaped by the transposition of the EU Minimum Wage Directive and a decade of sustained real-terms growth in statutory rates. This report examines the wage-setting discussions that took place across Member States and Norway in 2025, focusing on the countries with and without a national minimum wage, the interplay between minimum wages and collective bargaining in low-paid sectors, and the growing role of indicative reference values in shaping national decisions.
Read more about Minimum wages in 2026: Annual review

31 August 2026

Research report

Involvement of employer organisations and trade unions in the European Semester in 2024–2025

This report examines the role of trade unions and employers’ organisations in shaping the medium-term fiscal structural plans and the 2025 annual progress reports. It analyses social partners’ involvement at national level with governments, as well as their engagement with the European Commission in fact-finding missions, country reports and country-specific recommendations, and assesses their participation in the broader European semester, including the new social convergence framework.
Read more about Involvement of employer organisations and trade unions in the European Semester in 2024–2025

27 August 2026

Digital story

The shift to hybrid working: Management challenges - Digital story

This digital story presents headline findings on how hybrid work is reshaping management practices at the line manager level: Why hybrid work demands new forms of coordination; How managers maintain visibility and performance oversight without physical co-presence; What sustains team cohesion and well-being across dispersed teams; How equitable access to information and opportunities can be ensured; Where policy guidance or support is most needed.
Read more about The shift to hybrid working: Management challenges - Digital story

27 August 2026

Research report

The shift to hybrid working: Management challenges

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the transition to hybrid work, where employees split their time between working remotely and on-site. While this model offers greater flexibility, it also introduces new challenges for line managers and other supervisors. This report examines how hybrid work reshapes work organisation and influences day-to-day management practices at the line manager level, focusing on changes in coordination, communication, performance management and employee well-being.
Read more about The shift to hybrid working: Management challenges
Go to publications

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The European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) 2024 provides a comprehensive picture of the everyday reality of women and men in today's world of work. Building on the long-established questionnaire, new questions were asked in this edition to cover the key policy and research agenda around the future of work, including the impact of COVID-19, digitalisation and decarbonisation at work. The results from the 2024 survey identify emerging issues and trends in the Member States and beyond.

Explore the EWCS 2024

Join the EU-wide digitalisation survey for social economy organisations

Eurofound has launched a study on digitalisation in the social economy across the 27 EU Member States. The survey is addressed to social economy entities in the EU and runs until 30 September 2026. Your insight helps build the evidence base for better policy and support.

Fill out the survey
Read more

Podcast and Blog

Explore content from Eurofound's blog and podcast series.

Podcast episode
Episode 46
10 July 2026
Employment and working conditions of the most vulnerable workers

Over the past two decades, European labour markets have undergone significant transformation, with a marked rise in non-standard forms of employment such as part-time and temporary work. In this episode of Eurofound Talks, Mary McCaughey speaks with Eurofound expert Karel Fric to explore the employment and working conditions of the most vulnerable workers.

Read more about Employment and working conditions of the most vulnerable workers
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Mary McCaughey
Karel Fric
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Recently published blog posts and podcast episodes
Blog post

5 June 2026

Overheated and underprepared: How can we shield Europe's most vulnerable?
Podcast episode

29 May 2026

Behind the scenes of the European Working Conditions Survey
Podcast episode

22 April 2026

Are Europeans prepared for climate change?
Blog post

14 April 2026

Four decades of data reveal a European workforce transformed beyond recognition
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Eurofound is the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions

Eurofound is the tripartite EU agency providing knowledge to assist in the development of better social, employment and work-related policies.

Topics

Eurofound's work focuses on topics in the areas of working conditions and sustainable work, industrial relations and social dialogue, employment and labour markets, as well as living conditions and quality of life.

Topic
29 January 2026
Minimum wage

The term ‘minimum wage’ refers to the regulatory restriction on the lowest rate payable by employers to workers. Statutory minimum wages are regulated by formal laws or statutes. Collectively agreed minimum wages are stipulated within collective agreements between trade unions and employers. The term ‘national minimum wages’ is used when countries have one (or more) basic rates covering workers nationwide. They can be either statutory or collectively agreed.

Read more about Minimum wage
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Recently updated topics
Platform work
Digitalisation
Gender equality
Housing
See all topics

Data and monitoring tools

Eurofound provides various monitoring tools, dashboards, databases and individual data visualisations.

Highlight

Dashboard
New dashboard

European housing dashboard

Recently added data items

Data item

9 September 2026

Trends in BI capacity and application across the EU-27 and Norway
Data item

9 September 2026

Maturity of GBPP across the EU-27 and Norway
Data item

9 September 2026

BI research capacity across the EU-27 and Norway
Data item

9 September 2026

Application of BI to green, environmental and climate policies across the EU-27 and Norway
See surveys & data

Surveys

European Working Conditions Surveys (EWCS)

Since its launch in 1990, the European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) has provided an overview of working conditions in Europe.
Learn more about European Working Conditions Surveys (EWCS)

European Quality of Life Surveys (EQLS)

Eurofound’s European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS) documents living conditions and people’s social situation, and explores issues pertinent to the lives of European citizens.
Learn more about European Quality of Life Surveys (EQLS)

European Company Surveys (ECS)

The European Company Survey (ECS) has been carried out regularly since its inception in 2004–2005 as the European Establishment Survey on Working Time and Work–Life Balance (ESWT).
Learn more about European Company Surveys (ECS)

Living and Working in the EU e-survey

Since its launch in 2020, Eurofound's unique Living and Working in the EU e-survey has provided an overview of the ever-changing developments in living and working since the onset of the pandemic, through the recovery measures and during a time of constant change.
Learn more about Living and Working in the EU e-survey

Events

In-person event
External event
Meeting of the EU Employment Committee (EMCO)
24 – 25 September 2026 Dublin, Ireland

This is a 1.5-day informal meeting of the EU Employment Committee (EMCO). This meeting enables deeper policy exchange and strengthens collaboration, helping to shape and advance EU-wide policy and working priorities in the area of employment.

Read more about Meeting of the EU Employment Committee (EMCO)
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Other events

In-person event
External event

Joint Break the Cycle Conference

Date24 – 25 September 2026
LocationDublin, Ireland
See details : Joint Break the Cycle Conference
In-person event
Own event

Brussels Briefing: What is flexible working doing to our working lives?

DateThursday, 8 October 2026
LocationRésidence Palace, Rue de la Loi 155, 1040, Brussels, BE
See details : Brussels Briefing: What is flexible working doing to our working lives?
In-person event
External event

Mental Health Ministerial Conference

DateThursday, 15 October 2026
LocationCork, Ireland
See details : Mental Health Ministerial Conference
In-person event
Joint event

Joint Meeting of the Chief Medical Officers, Chief Nursing Officers and Chief Dental Officers

DateThursday, 15 October 2026
LocationDublin, Ireland
See details : Joint Meeting of the Chief Medical Officers, Chief Nursing Officers and Chief Dental Officers
See all events
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The tripartite EU agency providing knowledge to assist in the development of better social, employment and work-related policies

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