The employment toll of COVID-19 has been stark in Europe, and it could have been even greater had it not been for the adoption of unprecedented assistance measures in all Member States, supported by the European Union. But have these policies benefited different groups in the labour market equally, or have they cemented existing inequalities in access to support?
Eurofound has focused on Europe's immediate social, economic and labour market priorities and its developing role over the coming four years with the publication of its Programming document 2021-2024.
Young people are overrepresented in the sectors hit hardest by COVID-19 restrictions, such as retail, travel and hospitality. According to Eurofound’s ‘Living, working and COVID-19’ survey of people in Europe, 11% of respondents aged 18–29 lost their jobs during the pandemic, compared to 8% of workers over 30.
Trust in the European Union was significantly higher among respondents in the July wave of Eurofound’s Living, working and COVID-19 survey than in April, with average trust in the EU exceeding trust in national governments.
Mental well-being among people in Europe improved between the April and July waves of Eurofound’s Living, working and COVID-19 surveys, with the largest increases among those aged 50 and over.
Approximately 40% of paid hours worked by employees were performed from home during the COVID-19 crisis, showing the magnitude of change that has taken place with regards to working life in just six months, and the now paramount importance of telework to Europe’s broader economy.
Continued dominance of large non-EU service and work platforms could result in an oligopolistic market situation in the EU in the future. This could hamper the market entry of new players, endangering healthy competition and economic and labour market innovation to the detriment of platform workers and consumers, as well as the broader economy.
COVID-19 has left many people jobless, furloughed and financially vulnerable, often feeling isolated and pessimistic. It has become clear that the status quo is no longer sustainable or desirable. The political and economic response needs to take these changed attitudes into consideration.
Eurofound’s analysis of the labour market in Europe shows that just over four out of ten (41%) of employees in the EU work in direct contact with clients, customers, users, patients or other service recipients. This ‘interactive service work’ is female dominated, with women accounting for 61% of workers.
The second wave of Eurofound’s pan-EU Living, working and COVID-19 survey is now open. As people across Europe emerge from confinement measures, the second wave of the survey will be more targeted and track changes since the initial confinement period and will seek to provide an even deeper analysis in order to further contribute to Europe’s policy response.
Minimum wage workers around Europe are in the simultaneous position of being increasingly called upon to provide essential services during COVID-19 confinement and response measures; as well as being more likely to be made redundant or furloughed due to their concentration in highly impacted sectors.
The latest Living and working in Europe yearbook provides a snapshot of life and work in Europe before the onset of the Coronavirus (COVID-19).
First findings from Eurofound's Living, working and COVID-19 online survey show that, despite comparatively high overall levels of life satisfaction and optimism in Ireland, women aged 18-34 in the country report being the loneliest in the EU. The first wave of Eurofound’s survey was carried out in April, with 85,000 participants – 16,599 of which were aged 18-34.
People in the EU aged 18-34 report being more likely to feel depressed, lonely, and anxious than those aged 35 and over. They also indicate lower levels of resilience in dealing with problems in life.
Nearly half of people surveyed in Spain report that their financial situation is worse now than three months ago, and a similar proportion expect the situation to get worse in the future. Spain also reports above EU average job loss as a result of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
People in Italy reported both the third lowest optimism for the future, and fourth lowest mental well-being, in the EU in Eurofound’s Living, working and COVID-19 online survey. The survey amassed over 85,000 responses in April, including 2,676 from Italy.
Trust in institutions such as the news media, national government, European Union, healthcare system and Gardaí has remained comparably high in Ireland during the COVID-19 pandemic, despite dropping levels of trust across Europe.
The first results from Eurofound’s Living, working and COVID-19 online survey show a Europe grappling to respond to the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic with many respondents reporting high levels of loneliness coupled with low levels of optimism about their future.
The Coronavirus (COVID-19) could expose existing shortcomings in employment arrangements and social protection in Europe, particularly for some workers in non-standard employment and vulnerable self-employed groups – who are more likely to be at risk of poverty and the impacts of economic shocks.
Eurofound's analysis of the 2016 European Quality of Life Survey shows that in many countries decline in trust in institutions was a temporary phenomenon during the recession that followed the 2008 financial crisis.
