The new von der Leyen Commission took office on 1 December 2019. Having adopted its first work programme on 29 January 2020, the Commission sets out its plans for a transition to a fair, climate-neutral and digital Europe. It outlines six top priorities. Eurofound’s work directly feeds into a number of these key areas aimed at creating a strong social Europe.
Europe’s economy, and particularly the economy of rural Europe, may have it all to gain from a low-carbon transition, but getting everyone on board could turn out to be the greatest challenge.
Manufacturing is set to be core to Europe’s future. More jobs will be created and growth will increase if certain economic and industrial changes are well managed over the coming years, according to new research from Eurofound.
This graph shows the projected impact of an immediate and significant increase in global trade tariffs on the GDP of each Member State in 2030, compared to a ‘no new tariffs’ baseline forecast.
The EU, China, the US, Mexico and Canada, are projected to suffer economically from the re-emergence of economic protectionism, and a significant increase in trade tariffs. In the case of the EU, the bloc would experience a 1% contraction in GDP, a 0.3% lower rate of employment, and a 1.1% decrease in imports by 2030, compared to a ‘no new tariffs’ baseline scenario.
This graph shows the projected impact of fully implementing the Paris Climate Agreement on the GDP of different countries in the EU by 2030, compared to a ‘business as usual’ baseline forecast. Latvia, Malta and Belgium will experience the largest boost to their GDP.
The successful transition towards a low-carbon economy, as defined by the Paris Climate Agreement, is projected to result in a 1.1% growth in GDP, and a 0.5% growth in employment, in the EU between now and 2030. This is compared to a ‘business as usual’ baseline forecast.
Apprenticeships are long established in manufacturing and are attractive for both employers and young people because of the balance between theoretical and practical education that they offer. However, in several countries in Europe and beyond, apprenticeships are lagging behind changes in manufacturing.
The importance of physical tasks in manufacturing is generally declining due to automation; with more intensive use of digitally controlled equipment, and the increasing importance of quality standards, resulting in a growing amount of intellectual tasks for manual industrial workers.
The new report Game changing technologies: Exploring the impact on production processes and work summarises the findings of five case studies on the likely impact of game changing technologies on production and employment in the manufacturing sector in Europe up to 2025.
The pilot project on the Future of Manufacturing in Europe was launched in 2015 to explore the prospects for a globally competitive future in manufacturing and the associated implications for employment in terms of the number of jobs, workforce composition, skill needs and geographical dispersion throughout Europe.
Eurofound (European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions) is a tripartite EU body, whose mission is to provide knowledge to assist in the development of better social, employment and work-related policies.
