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Labour and social regulation

Labour and social regulation covers the legal framework and fundamental social rights that regulates industrial relations, employment and social policies across Europe. It includes national, EU and international legislation.  Union labour law has a direct or indirect impact on the normative and functional frameworks of individual and collective labour law systems of the Member States in a relationship of mutual interference and interaction.  Increasingly Union labour laws are also shaped by agreements that the parties voluntarily enter into and by soft law mechanisms.  The reform or modernising of labour law is currently high on the agenda in several Member States.

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Regulatory responses to algorithmic management in the EU

Since 2013, Eurofound's ERM database on restructuring-related legislation has been documenting regulatory developments in the Member States of the European Union and Norway. The most recent update to the database...

Article
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Begreppet hybridarbete blev allmänt känt i samband med den snabba ökningen av distansarbete under covid-19-pandemin, när företag och anställda började diskutera hur arbetet skulle organiseras efter pandemin. Det har i...

25 maj 2023
Publication
Research report

Eurofound research

Eurofound has monitored legislative developments in industrial relations, working conditions and restructuring in Europe over time and from a comparative perspective across the Member States. The Agency’s work in this area seeks to assist decision-makers to better understand the legal framework for creating policy. It has also put resources in place to assist audiences in understanding the sometimes complex and difficult terminology used.

EU context

This topic covers the legal framework that regulates industrial relations and employment across Europe, including EU legislation and the fundamental labour standards that need to be taken into account.

Legislation is crucial in shaping how Europeans work and live. It is the basis for ensuring better working conditions, equitable labour relations, and equal opportunities for all citizens.

Publications results (81)

This report explores EU Member States’ legislation around the right to disconnect and assesses the impact of company policies in this area on employees’ hours of connection, working time, work–life balance, health and well-being, and overall workplace satisfaction.

30 November 2023

Begreppet hybridarbete blev allmänt känt i samband med den snabba ökningen av distansarbete under covid-19-pandemin, när företag och anställda började diskutera hur arbetet skulle organiseras efter pandemin. Det har i allt större utsträckning använts för att hänvisa till situationer där arbete (som

25 May 2023

I denna rapport presenteras Eurofounds forskning om distansarbete under covid-19-pandemin 2020 och 2021. I rapporten undersöks förändringar i omfattningen av distansarbete, arbetsvillkoren för anställda som arbetar hemifrån och ändringar av bestämmelser som tar itu med frågor som rör denna

08 December 2022

Denna rapport genomförs inom ramen för det treåriga pilotprojektet (2021–2023) ”Minimilönens roll vid inrättandet av en allmän arbetsgaranti” som Europeiska kommissionen har gett Eurofound i uppdrag att genomföra. Fokus ligger på modul 3 i projektet, där man undersöker minimilöner och andra

30 November 2022

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

01 September 2022

Efter att återhållsamhet iakttagits vid förhandlingarna om minimilöner för 2021 ökade de nominella minimilönerna för 2022 markant i takt med att de negativa följderna av pandemin minskade och ekonomin och arbetsmarknadssituationen förbättrades. I samband med detta höjdes minimilönerna i 20 av de 21

15 June 2022

Digitisation and automation technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), can affect working conditions in a variety of ways and their use in the workplace raises a host of new ethical concerns. Recently, the policy debate surrounding these concerns has become more prominent and has

30 May 2022

This publication consists of individual country reports on working life during 2021 for 28 countries – the 27 EU Member States and Norway. The country reports summarise evidence on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on working life based on national research and survey results during 2021. They

19 May 2022

Rapporten sammanfattar hur minimilöner för 2021 fastställdes under 2020 – året som präglades av covid-19-pandemin. I rapporten granskas de svårigheter som nationella beslutsfattare upplevde och hur de vid beslutsfattande om minimilönen reagerade på utmaningarna till följd av pandemins ekonomiska och

10 June 2021

I denna rapport undersöks utvecklingen av medlemsstaternas politik för att inkludera personer med funktionsnedsättning på den öppna arbetsmarknaden. Särskilt fokus ligger på tre stadier, dvs. möjligheterna att ta sig in på, stanna kvar på och återvända till arbetsmarknaden efter en tids frånvaro. I

19 April 2021

Online resources results (794)

Latvia: Latest working life developments – Q4 2017

The state budget for 2018, tax reforms, the ending of strike action by healthcare workers, and continued wage growth are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in Latvia in the fourth quarter of 2017.

Italy: New rules to protect call centre workers

Measures have been introduced in Italy to protect its 80,000 call centre workers from the negative effects of increasing competitive pressures on employment, delocalisation and working conditions. Employers and unions in the sector have also adopted new rules aimed at avoiding social dumping

Estonia: New law to upgrade individual labour dispute mechanism

New regulations on resolving individual labour disputes were approved by parliament in June 2017. The changes, to take effect from 2018, are expected to make the out-of-court dispute resolution process simpler and clearer, while also giving labour dispute committees more authority.

Latvia: Latest working life developments – Q2 2017

Restrictions on extended working hours and tax reforms in the healthcare sector, strike action by family doctors, and social partner discussions on the national minimum wage are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in

Bulgaria: Latest working life developments – Q2 2017

The ongoing debate about raising the statutory minimum wage – and trade union opposition to requirements for large combustion plants – are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in Bulgaria in the second quarter of 2017.

Spain: High Court ruling abolishes recording of daily working time

The High Court has ruled that companies no longer need to keep a record of their employees’ daily working time, although they must still record overtime worked. This ruling, confirming an earlier initial ruling, has led to controversy between the social partners and forced the Labour Inspectorate to

Austria: Updated law against wage and social dumping comes into force

On 1 January 2017, Austria enacted a new law against wage and social dumping, updating (for the second time since 2015) regulations which first came into force in 2011. The law features the concept of customer liability and improves aspects of cross-border administrative prosecutions. However, its

United Kingdom: Latest working life developments – Q1 2017

The latest developments on Brexit, employment rights following the UK’s exit, figures on zero-hours contracts and in-work poverty, and legal developments on the ‘gig economy’ are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working life in

Norway: Whistle-blowing and freedom of speech in the workplace

New research suggests that, while the observed amount of wrongdoing in Norwegian workplaces and the proportion of employees who chose to report this has remained relatively stable, the number of reprisals against whistle-blowers rose between 2013 and 2016, while the effectiveness of employees’

Norway: Improving gender balance in management posts

While Norway has a good record on equal opportunities for women, the proportion of women in management is relatively low. A new report on the issue concludes that a gender-neutral approach rather than initiatives aimed at women only seems to be more successful in achieving gender balance.


Blogs results (12)
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The European Platform Tackling Undeclared Work last year documented the case of a Dutch temporary work agency that hired workers of various nationalities to work for a construction company in Belgium. The wages were suspiciously low, and the Belgian Labour Inspectorate believed that EU law

17 juli 2019
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The European Union (EU) has strong legislation in place that protects workers from being exploited and also enables businesses to engage in fair competition. Workers are mobile and can move freely within the EU single market across borders – without being dependent upon traffickers. Yet, the latest

3 maj 2016

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