Work-life balance
Work–life balance refers to the level of prioritisation between an individual’s work and personal life. A good work–life balance is achieved when an individual’s right to a fulfilled life inside and outside paid work is accepted and respected as the norm – to the mutual benefit of the individual, business and society. Enabling a better work–life balance for workers across the life course has been an EU policy goal for many years as it is central to ensuring that work is sustainable for all.
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Den oändliga arbetsdagen i flexibla arbetsländer i Europa
En av fem arbetstagare i hela EU rapporterar att de kontaktas av arbetsrelaterade skäl utanför sina arbetstider flera gånger i månaden. Denna artikel utforskar sambanden mellan kontakt utanför ordinarie arbetstid och den ökande digitaliseringen av arbetet.Europeiska arbetsmiljöundersökningen 2024 – Höjdpunkter
Denna digitala berättelse presenterar höjdpunkterna från European Working Conditions Survey 2024 översiktsrapporten. Den utforskar viktiga fynd från varje kapitel i rapporten med fokus på den europeiska arbetskraften, arbetsplatspraxis, mätning av arbetskvalitet, trender över tid i arbetskvalitet samt arbetslivskvaliteten i EU.Europeiska arbetsmiljöundersökningen 2024: Översiktsrapport
Nu i sin åttonde upplaga kartlägger European Working Conditions Survey 2024 förändringar i arbetslivet under mer än tre decennier. Denna högkvalitativa, sannolikhetsbaserade undersökning omfattar 35 europeiska länder, inklusive de 27 EU-medlemsstaterna, Norge, Schweiz, Albanien, Bosnien och Hercegovina, Montenegro, Nordmakedonien, Kosovo och Serbien. Över 36 600 personliga intervjuer, var och en cirka 45 minuter, genomfördes som en del av undersökningen.Work–life balance continues to be a significant research topic for Eurofound, in its surveys and other studies.
Listen to or watch a recording of our International Women's Day 2023 podcast on the work–life challenges of women and men.
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On 17 November 2017, the European Parliament, the Council and the European Commission formally proclaimed the European Pillar of Social Rights, which included an initiative to support work–life balance. Subsequently, in June 2019, the Council adopted a new Directive on work–life balance for parents and carers. The Directive aims to increase women's participation in the labour market and outlines a number of new or improved minimum standards for parental, paternity and carer’s leave, as well as flexible working arrangements, aiming to also increase men's take-up of these.
European Commission: European Pillar of Social Rightsopens in new tab
Council of the EU: Better work-life balance for parents and carers in the EU: Council adopts new rulesopens in new tab
European Commission: Work-life balanceopens in new tab
Detta är ett urval av de viktigaste resultaten för detta ämne.
13 January 2025
Quality of life in the EU in 2024: Results from the Living and Working in the EU e-survey
Eurofound’s e-survey captures the situation of European respondents and their post-pandemic concerns. This factsheet outlines the most recent data on the main challenges faced by Europeans, with a particular emphasis on the rising cost of living, health and mental health, access to healthcare services, work–life balance, and changes in telework opportunities. View the publication or read the findings in digital format via the related content.
9 September 2021
Right to disconnect: Exploring company practices
Digital technologies have made it possible for many workers to carry out their work at any time and anywhere, with consequent advantages and disadvantages. Eurofound data show that teleworkers are twice as likely to exceed the 48-hour working time limit, take insufficient rest and work in their free time, with knock-on effects on their physical and mental health. To address this issue, there have been calls for the ‘right to disconnect’. This report is based on case studies that chart the implementation and impact of the right to disconnect at workplace level. It builds on previous Eurofound research that shows an increase in collective agreements providing for a right to disconnect in countries that have enshrined this right in their legislation. With the exponential growth in teleworking brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, the importance of striking a better balance between the opportunities and the challenges associated with teleworking and ICT-based flexible working has become more relevant than ever before.
2 July 2020
Regulations to address work–life balance in digital flexible working arrangements
Developments in information and communication technology (ICT) have been among the key drivers of change in working life over the past two decades. Specifically, telework and ICT-based mobile work (TICTM) exemplifies how digital technology has led to more flexible workplace and working time practices. However, the ability to work anywhere and at any time can lead to greater work intensification, competition and work-on-demand. If this is not explicitly addressed, it threatens to override the advantages that ICT-based flexible working brings to work–life balance. As part of Eurofound’s extensive research into the impact of TICTM on working conditions and on work–life balance, this report aims to provide policymakers with ways to address new challenges in the world of work and to serve as a reference for future initiatives in relation to digitalisation, working time and work–life balance.
2 March 2020
Gender equality at work
Gender inequality at work persists across Europe, despite the long standing attention paid and efforts made to tackle it. This Eurofound report presents a closer look at women’s and men’s working conditions, using data from Eurofound’s European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) and complementing previous Eurofound research on, among other things, working time patterns, work–life balance and workers’ health. Beyond the general differences in the labour market, it highlights many important gaps in men’s and women’s working conditions and job quality which require specific attention. According to the EWCS data, the reduction of gender gaps in those areas showing improvement over the last 5 to 10 years remains limited. European and national strategies aimed at achieving job quality for all, that seek to mainstream gender equality, could help address persistent inequalities between men and women.
16 January 2020
Telework and ICT-based mobile work: Flexible working in the digital age
Advances in ICT have opened the door to new ways of organising work. We are shifting from a regular, bureaucratic and ‘factory-based’ working time pattern towards a more flexible model of work. Telework and ICT-based mobile work (TICTM) has emerged in this transition, giving workers and employers the ability to adapt the time and location of work to their needs. Despite the flexibility and higher level of worker autonomy inherent in TICTM, there are risks that this work arrangement leads to the deterioration of work–life balance, higher stress levels and failing worker health. This report analyses the employment and working conditions of workers with TICTM arrangements, focusing on how it affects their work–life balance, health, performance and job prospects. While policymakers in many EU countries are debating TICTM and its implications, the study finds that only a few have implemented new regulations to prevent TICTM from having a negative impact on the well-being of workers.
7 February 2019
Parental and paternity leave – Uptake by fathers
In the context of ongoing negotiations at EU level on adopting a work–life balance package for families and caregivers, Eurofound was requested by the European Commission to provide an update of the available data regarding paternity and parental leave for fathers. This report presents the currently available national statistics on the uptake of family-related leave by fathers over time across the EU28 and Norway, based on information compiled by the Network of Eurofound Correspondents. It gives a comparative overview of the main features of the various leave arrangements available for fathers, including information on duration, compensation, eligibility and the number of beneficiaries captured in the data. Despite the unevenness and lack of coherent statistics, the report concludes that in several Member States progress has been made in increasing the number and share of fathers who are taking parental or paternity leave.
Eurofounds forskare bidrar med expertkunskap och kan kontaktas med frågor eller förfrågningar från medier.
Jorge Cabrita
Senior research managerJorge Cabrita är senior forskningschef vid Working Life-enheten. Han ansvarar för att formulera, samordna och leda europeisk forskning samt främja spridningen av resultat inom arbetsvillkor och arbetsmarknadsrelationer. Hans huvudsakliga forskningsområden inkluderar arbetsvillkor och arbetskvalitet, arbetstid och balans mellan arbete och privatliv, arbetstagares hälsa och välbefinnande, jämställdhet samt de socioekonomiska effekterna av övergången till en klimatneutral ekonomi. Han leder för närvarande forskning om arbetstidsutveckling samt social dialog och kollektivavtal under COVID-19-pandemin. Tidigare arbetade han som forskare vid Centre for Studies for Social Intervention och vid Research Centre on the Portuguese Economy vid Lissabons ekonomiska skola, samt som utbildare och konsult inom områdena strategisk ledning, organisatorisk kommunikation, ledarskap och teambuilding. Han har en kandidatexamen i ekonomi och en magisterexamen i socio-organisatoriska system för ekonomisk aktivitet från Lissabons ekonomiska skola.
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