In a new episode of Eurofound Talks Mary McCaughey speaks with Eurofound Research Manager Carlos Vacas about the situation of the middle class in Europe. Together, they explore a more nuanced picture to the one that is commonly expressed; different patterns are emerging across European regions, for instance between the Member States that joined the EU after 2004 and older Member States.
Human capital - defined as the knowledge, skills and other attributes that enable people to be productive - played a role in EU convergence in respect of national income over 2014–2021. Specifically, highly educated individuals have helped central and eastern EU Member States and regions to catch up with their western counterparts in terms of gross domestic product (GDP) per capita.
In a special edition of Eurofound Talks, Mary McCaughey is joined by Eurofound Executive Director Ivailo Kalfin and Ivan Krastev, Chairman of the Centre for Liberal Strategies and permanent fellow at the Institute for Human Sciences in Vienna, to look at the political, social and economic drivers in Europe and how they might influence voters at the ballot box in June.
Eurofound’s 2023 yearbook, Living and working in Europe, provides a snapshot of the latest developments in the work and lives of Europeans as explored in the Agency’s research activities over the course of the year.
Unemployment is a predominant catalyst for lower political engagement in Europe, with the higher the unemployment rate, the higher the levels of non-voting. This was particularly apparent during the COVID-19 pandemic with the unemployed, as well as those residing in rural and disadvantaged areas, much less likely to vote.
While some environmental indicators have improved across the EU, there are large inequalities between people at different income levels in Europe, with low-income populations drastically worse off in terms of the quality of their neighbourhood and housing.
The Directors and senior staff of Eurofound and the Institute of European Affairs (IIEA) met at Eurofound, Dublin this week, following the recent appointment of David O’Sullivan as the Director General of IIEA. It was an opportunity to review ongoing collaboration between the two organisations, as well as discuss latest research; including on the economic, employment and social impacts of the COVI
Between 2008 and 2019, reported unmet medical needs in Bulgaria declined from 22.4% to 2.4%. One year after the country’s accession to the EU in 2007, Bulgaria had ranked last among the group of Member States but caught up by 2019 to perform above the EU average at 3.1%. Similarly, the AROPE rate, which is the number of people who are at risk of poverty, severely materially deprived, or living in
Eurofound welcomes European Year of Youth 2022 #EYY2022. The situation of young people in the EU has long been an important focus for Eurofound’s work. Eurofound remains committed to continuing its work to provide policymakers with the most timely, relevant and reliable data and research to address the challenges facing young people.
Eurofound’s management met with Irish social partners, Patricia King, General Secretary, ICTU and Danny McCoy, Chief Executive Officer, Ibec, at Eurofound in Dublin, on Wednesday, 15 December 2021, to discuss some of the Agency’s most recent research findings on changes in workplace practices, work organisation, hybrid working, gender, labour market dynamics and the role of collective bargaining.
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed structural inequalities in healthcare capacity across EU Member States threatening convergence in healthcare - where central and eastern Member States with lower health indicators had been catching up with more affluent Member States in a number of areas. This could have serious consequences for economies, labour markets and cohesion across the Union.
The social and economic impacts of the COVID-19 crisis threaten to roll back recent progress in gender equality, including an overall trend of upward convergence.
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.
