In his statement to parliament (Deutscher Bundestag) on 14 March 2003 about
the government's Agenda 2010 programme of economic and social policy reforms
(DE0303105F [1]), Chancellor Gerhard Schröder announced his intention to
relax rules governing craft workers’ qualifications. Subsequently, on 28
May 2003, the cabinet decided to make it easier to establish businesses in
the craft industries. The current legislation, the Craft Trades Directive,
stipulates that a 'master’s' certificate is the prerequisite for
establishing or taking over a business in the craft sector. Currently,
businesses in 94 craft industries have to be led by a qualified 'master'
craft worker.
On 12 June 2003, the delegates at a special conference held in Glasgow by the
Fire Brigades’ Union (FBU) voted three to one in favour of accepting a
revised pay deal agreed between the local authority employers and union
negotiators. The following day, the pay agreement [1] was formally approved
by the National Joint Council for Local Authorities’ Fire Brigades (NJC),
bringing to an end the long-running pay dispute within the UK fire service.
Over recent years, the Minister of Economy and Labour Affairs, Martin
Bartenstein, has made several unsuccessful attempts to liberalise further the
current regulations on shop opening hours, which were most recently amended
in 1997 but are still seen as relatively restrictive (AT0101239N [1]). Any
such extension of opening hours and working time was opposed by both the
social partners and the political parties in parliament, except the
conservative People’s Party (Österreichische Volkspartei, ÖVP)
(AT0107221N [2]). However, in spring 2003, the coalition government of the
ÖVP and the populist Freedom Party (Freiheitliche Partei Österreichs, FPÖ)
reached agreement on further deregulation of the shop opening legislation.
On 25 June 2003, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) published a
report report [1] urging the government to protect the right of UK employees
to work more than 48 hours a week if they choose to.
[1] http://www.cbi.org.uk/ndbs/press.nsf/0363c1f07c6ca12a8025671c00381cc7/a25d7307dd360bf880256d4f002e09d0/$FILE/Working Time Report.pdf
On 7 June 2003, the German Metalworkers' Union (Industriegewerkschaft Metall,
IG Metall) and the employers' association for the German steel industry
(Arbeitgeberverband Stahl) agreed on the phasing-in of a 35-hour working week
in the eastern German steel industry by 2009. Collectively agreed working
time in the eastern steel industry is currently 38 hours a week, while a
35-hour week applies in the sector in western Germany. The new framework
agreement on employment conditions [1] (Manteltarifvertrag) now provides for
a step-by-step reduction in standard working time as follows:
The reduction of working time has become a central bargaining demand for
Hungarian trade unions at national level in recent years. In Hungary, regular
working time is regulated virtually solely by the Labour Code, as its
reduction is rarely an issue for sectoral or company-level collective
agreements. The 40-hour statutory working week has not changed since 1992,
though a minor decrease in annual working time took place in the 1990s owing
to the introduction of new public holidays. Although the 2002 election
programme of the Hungarian Socialist Party (Magyar Szocialista Párt,MSZP
[1]), now the major party in the coalition government, made promises
concerning the reduction of working time (HU0206101F [2]), until now the
government has not acted on this issue.
According to Latvian labour law, the minimum wage paid may not be lower than
the minimum set by the government. The national minimum wage is not linked to
any economically-based income indicator, with the cabinet determining the
minimum wage for 'normal-time' employees and the minimum hourly rate on the
basis of fiscal and social considerations. From a very low level - EUR 3.48
in 1992 (1 LVL currently equals 0.661 EUR) - the monthly minimum wage has
increased to EUR 105.9 in 2003. The government: raised the minimum wage twice
in 1992 (to EUR 5.07 and EUR 11.35); doubled it in 1993 (to EUR 22.70);
raised it twice in 1994 (to EUR 34.04 and EUR 42.36); increased it in 1996
(to EUR 57.49), 1998 (to EUR 63.54), 1999 (to EUR 75.64) and 2001 (to EUR
90.77); and set it at EUR 105.9 from 1 January 2003.
A recent statement from the managing director of the Association of Employers
in the Danish Building Industry (Dansk Byggeri) has angered trade unions
represented in the building industry, the General Workers' Union
(Specialarbejderforbundet i Danmark, SiD) and the Union of Wood, Industrial
and Building Workers (Forbundet Træ-Industri-Byg, TIB). He stated that it
would be a sign of bad management and leadership if Danish building industry
employers did not take advantage of the opportunity to employ workers from
Poland and the Baltic states after they join the European Union in 1 May
2004. Such workers could be hired at the lowest wage laid down in the
relevant collective agreement without any difficulty. Normally Danish workers
are paid close to the double the sector's minimum wage of DKK 94 per hour
because of local agreements and acquired bonus entitlements. Hiring a central
or eastern European worker on the lowest possible wage might breach the
spirit of the wage development agreed in collective bargaining, but would not
be against any collectively agreed or legislative provision. The employers
also state that Danish workers on a building site will not be able to demand
that new recruits from eastern Europe be paid at the same rate as them.
On 20 June 2003, Ireland’s 270 public health doctors, represented by the
Irish Medical Organisation (IMO), returned to work after a 10-week strike
over a demand for concrete proposals from their employers in relation to
improved pay, status, and terms and conditions of employment (IE0305203F
[1]). During this time, the dispute became increasingly bitter, as the
parties’ positions remained polarised. However, the dispute has now been
resolved by a 'return to work formula' accepted by IMO and the Health Service
Employers Agency (HSEA). This formula is based on a complex set of proposals
brokered by the Labour Relations Commission (LRC), under which pay increases
due under the local pay bargaining clauses of previous national agreements
and the implementation of the Brennan Review of public health (this review
was established to examine the future of public health structures, and its
report was published in April 2002), were referred to the Public Service
Adjudication Board.
This report seeks to address the question whether the structure of business
finance in continental Europe is likely to converge towards the model
observed in the UK and US economies where financial intermediaries,
especially banks, play a much smaller role in the allocation of savings to
productive investment purposes.
Eurofound’s work on COVID-19 examines the far-reaching socioeconomic implications of the pandemic across Europe as they continue to impact living and working conditions. A key element of the research is the e-survey, launched in April 2020, with five rounds completed at different stages during 2020, 2021 and 2022. This is complemented by the inclusion of research into the ongoing effects of the pandemic in much of Eurofound’s other areas of work.
Eurofound's representativeness studies are designed to allow the European Commission to identify the ‘management and labour’ whom it must consult under article 154 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). This series consists of studies of the representativeness of employer and worker organisations in various sectors.
This series reports on developments in minimum wage rates across the EU, including how they are set and how they have developed over time in nominal and real terms. The series explores where there are statutory minimum wages or collectively agreed minimum wages in the Member States, as well as minimum wage coverage rates by gender.
The European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) launched in 1990 and is carried out every five years, with the latest edition in 2015. It provides an overview of trends in working conditions and quality of employment for the last 30 years. It covers issues such as employment status, working time duration and organisation, work organisation, learning and training, physical and psychosocial risk factors, health and safety, work–life balance, worker participation, earnings and financial security, work and health, and most recently also the future of work.
The European Restructuring Monitor has reported on the employment impact of large-scale business restructuring since 2002. This series includes its restructuring-related databases (events, support instruments and legislation) as well as case studies and publications.
Eurofound’s Flagship report series 'Challenges and prospects in the EU' comprise research reports that contain the key results of multiannual research activities and incorporate findings from different related research projects. Flagship reports are the major output of each of Eurofound’s strategic areas of intervention and have as their objective to contribute to current policy debates.
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 2019, the fourth edition of the survey. The survey was first carried out in 2004–2005 as the European Survey on Working Time and Work-Life Balance.
This series reports on and updates latest information on the involvement of national social partners in policymaking. The series analyses the involvement of national social partners in the implementation of policy reforms within the framework of social dialogue practices, including their involvement in elaborating the National Reform Programmes (NRPs).
This series reports on the new forms of employment emerging across Europe that are driven by societal, economic and technological developments and are different from traditional standard or non-standard employment in a number of ways. This series explores what characterises these new employment forms and what implications they have for working conditions and the labour market.
The European Company Survey (ECS) is carried out every four to five years since its inception in 2004–2005, with the latest edition in 2019. The survey is designed to provide information on workplace practices to develop and evaluate socioeconomic policy in the EU. It covers issues around work organisation, working time arrangements and work–life balance, flexibility, workplace innovation, employee involvement, human resource management, social dialogue, and most recently also skills use, skills strategies and digitalisation.
The COVID-19 crisis has increased inequality between social groups in health, housing, employment, income and well-being. While a small part of society was able to hold on to or increase its wealth, other groups such as women, young people, older people, people with disabilities, low- and middle-income earners and those with young children were acutely affected by the pandemic. Drawing on current research on how to best measure multidimensional inequality, this report highlights recent trends in inequality in the context of the COVID-19 crisis.
This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the textiles and clothing sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted, their role and effective participation in the European sectoral social dialogue and their capacity to negotiate agreements.
This report analyses how working conditions, job quality and working life outcomes – such as work–life balance, health and well-being, and sustainability of work – changed between February 2020 and spring 2021. Following up on responses to the European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) 2020, it explores the differences between three distinct groups of workers: those teleworking during the COVID-19 pandemic, those who continued to work on their employers' premises as frontline staff, and those who were furloughed or worked reduced hours.
This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in European sectoral social dialogue taking place at cross-sectoral level. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted, their role and effective participation in the European sectoral social dialogue and their capacity to negotiate agreements. The aim of this Eurofound’s study on representativeness is to identify the relevant national and European social partner organisations at cross-sectoral level in the EU Member States.
This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the civil aviation sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted, their role and effective participation in the European sectoral social dialogue and their capacity to negotiate agreements.
This report offers a backward look at the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the work and life of Europeans. The main focus is on Eurofound’s e-survey ‘ Living, working and COVID-19’ which was launched on 9 April 2020 just after the onset of the crisis. Through four rounds of the survey (two in 2020 and two in 2021), the range of questions changed to match the evolving situation and to understand the effects on the everyday lives of citizens and workers. A fifth round of the e-survey is planned for March–May 2022, with initial findings available in July.
This report explores the drivers of economic and social convergence in Europe, using a selected set of economic and social indicators to examine trends in the performance of individual Member States. It also investigates what role the Economic and Monetary Union plays in convergence, particularly in southern and eastern Member States. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on convergence is analysed and initial conclusions are drawn about the impact of EU recovery packages and their ability to prevent divergence.
The COVID-19 pandemic triggered an extraordinary level of provision of social services across the EU. Healthcare and care providers carried much of the burden and, together with essential services, played a crucial role in getting citizens through the crisis. This report explores how public services adapted to the new reality and what role was played by the digital transformation of services. The aim is to contribute to the documentation and analysis of changes in funding, delivery and use of healthcare and social services during the pandemic.
This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the professional football sector. Their relative representativeness legitimises their right to be consulted, their role and effective participation in the European sectoral social dialogue and their capacity to negotiate agreements. The aim of this Eurofound’s study on representativeness is to identify the relevant national and European social partner organisations in the professional football sector in the EU Member States.
Building on previous work by Eurofound, this report will investigate intergenerational dynamics over time. During the 2008 double-dip recession, worrying intergenerational divides appeared in many Member States, and while some of the economic and social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is universal, early data suggests disparities across demographic cohorts. Eurofound will examine how different age groups may have been affected in terms of their health, labour market participation, quality of life and financial needs, both in the short term and in the long term.
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