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Although the worldwide pandemic situation had already disrupted supply chains and triggered increases in energy and food prices in 2021, the situation deteriorated in 2022 with the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Governments throughout the EU had already started to intervene with policy measures in a bid to cushion the impact of rising fuel and energy prices on citizens, but the situation demanded further responses. This article summarises these first policy responses, as reported in Eurofound’s EU PolicyWatch database, up to the end of May 2022.

As the war in Ukraine has intensified, the cost of food, raw materials and energy prices, already high due to the COVID-19 pandemic, has continued to rise substantially. Ahead of coordinated action at EU level, as agreed by EU energy ministers on 9 September 2022, governments across the EU have started to implement policies to support companies affected by the rising prices, and those with commercial ties to Ukraine, Russia or Belarus. This article summarises these first policy responses, as reported in Eurofound’s EU PolicyWatch database, up to 31 May 2022.

In collecting information on essential services, the European Commission 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. For this exercise, the scope was on energy services, public transport, and digital communications, and the focus on people at risk of poverty or social exclusion (in most cases in practice, people on low incomes).

This study provides information allowing for an assessment of the representativeness of the actors involved in the European sectoral social dialogue committee for the gas 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.

Denna rapport syftar till att kartlägga och analysera lagstiftning och kollektivförhandlingar om distansarbete i de 27 medlemsstaterna och Norge. Den belyser de största skillnaderna och likheterna mellan länderna när det gäller lagstiftning om distansarbete och de senaste förändringarna av denna lagstiftning. I rapporten undersöks också den nuvarande situationen när det gäller kollektivförhandlingar om distansarbete.

I denna rapport analyseras den senaste utvecklingen och framväxande metoder på området för kollektivförhandlingar och resultatet av dessa, främst inom den privata sektorn. Rapporten undersöker system för kollektivförhandlingar i tio EU-medlemsstater och bygger på fall som identifierats genom intervjuer med viktiga intressenter och förhandlingsparter på nationell nivå. I rapporten analyseras hur covid-19-pandemin och den efterföljande ekonomiska och sociala krisen har påverkat kollektivförhandlingarnas dynamik och kollektivavtalen.

Rising energy prices are putting more people under increased financial pressure and at greater risk of energy poverty. In this data story, we take a closer look at the data from the fifth round of the Living, working and COVID-19 e-survey to explore the extent of the issue and the threat of energy poverty.

Trust in national institutions has declined across the EU over the past two years. Driven by increasingly difficult economic circumstances and unreliable news sources, even people who previously expressed higher trust levels – such as those in financially secure positions – have become less trusting.

Telework has become a permanent feature of working life in Europe. While we’ve seen the benefits of more flexible ways of working – particularly during the pandemic – the problems that arise from an increasingly connected life are also becoming clearer. Unfortunately, legislation alone may not be enough to ensure our right to disconnect.

Den femte omgången av Eurofounds e-undersökning, som genomfördes mellan den 25 mars och den 2 maj 2022, belyser den sociala och ekonomiska situationen för människor i Europa två år efter det att covid-19 först upptäcktes på den europeiska kontinenten. Den omfattar även frågor om hur det är att leva i dessa tider av osäkerhet som orsakats av kriget i Ukraina, inflationen och stigande energipriser.