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.
Prolonged labour shortages in the EU affect growth, innovation and the bloc’s ability to achieve its digital and green targets, as around 80% of EU employers struggle to recruit workers with the right skills. Currently, the skills of one in three employees in the EU are mismatched with their job, with 17% overqualified and 13% underqualified.
National minimum wage rates were substantially raised in almost all EU countries in 2024, reversing the loss of purchasing power that minimum wage workers experienced between 2021 and 2023, according to relevant calculations.
Minimum wages in Romania and the EU were analysed in an information session on Towards adequate minimum wages and strengthening of collective bargaining at Eurofound on 26 April. These exchanges, known as Virtual Visits, take place in the context of Eurofound’s ongoing efforts to reach out to the national level and ensure widespread dissemination and dialogue with respect to its research findings.
Labour shortages in Luxembourg were analysed in an information session on National policy and company approaches to addressing shortages at Eurofound this week. These exchanges, known as Virtual Visits, take place in the context of Eurofound’s ongoing efforts to reach out to the national level and ensure widespread dissemination and dialogue with respect to its research findings.
In a new episode of Eurofound Talks Mary McCaughey speaks with Eurofound Research Manager Tina Weber about the evolution of the right to disconnect in Europe, the reasons why legislative and procedural actions are being called for, the impacts that effective right to disconnect policies can have, and what the debate indicates about the post-pandemic world of work.
The proportion of self-employed workers in the EU has not increased over the past two and a half decades, and fell from 15.4% to 13.7% between 2010 and 2022. This reduction was primarily driven by falling self-employment among men and the imbalance between labour market exits among older self-employed workers and the creation of new self-employment.
In a new episode of Eurofound Talks, recorded for International Women’s Day 2024, Mary McCaughey speaks with Eurofound researchers Carlos Vacas and Barbara Gerstenberger about the gender pay and employment gaps in Europe.
While the prospects for minimum wage workers in early 2023 looked gloomy – with rates in many EU Member States struggling to offset rising prices – the new year brings better news. National minimum wages were raised significantly in most countries, both in nominal and real terms, and also when examined in the context of the entire period since 2022, when inflation rates started to surge.
The latest episode of Eurofound Talks, recorded shortly before Eurofound publishes its harmonised analysis of 2024 minimum wage developments, looks at the changes to minimum wages in Europe in 2023.
Over 80% of workers in a Eurofound-commissioned survey of employees in Belgium, France, Italy and Spain report receiving work-related communications outside their contractual working hours during a typical working week.
How to address this skills gap in Ireland was at the centre of a ‘Skills for Jobs’ seminar and panel discussion organised by the European Commission Representation in Ireland and Eurofound, the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, which took place at Europe House in Dublin today.
Workers in Member States that joined the European Union after 2004 have, on average, longer normal annual working time. Workers in these countries also generally have a lower amount of statutory minimum days of leave.
The rural–urban income gap has increased by nearly 20% over the past decade, with higher incomes in urban areas than in rural areas. This, alongside the employment gap and the relatively poorer provision of public services in rural areas has contributed to a rise in rural communities expressing feelings of being mistreated, disrespected or ignored by their government.
Poor job quality, including high emotional demand, working at high speed and to tight deadlines, is widespread among several of the sectors and professions deemed essential, key or critical during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Eurofound has just published a new episode of the Eurofound Talks podcast on skills in Europe. In the episode Mary McCaughey speaks with Eurofound Research Manager Tina Weber, Eurofound Senior Research Manager Gijs van Houten, and Giovanni Russo, Senior Expert at CEDEFOP – the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training.
While an initiative such as the European Year of Skills is welcome, and improving skills can certainly go some way to help to address labour shortages, it is not a silver bullet. To address these challenges effectively, what is needed is a clear grasp of the drivers behind shortages in specific sectors and occupations and the policy context.
Eurofound’s new report looks at measures implemented at national level to tackle labour shortages in the health, care, and information and communication technology sectors, as well as those arising from the twin green and digital transition, to assesses what works and the contextual factors supporting or hindering effective policy implementation and outcomes.
Eurofound has published a special episode of the Eurofound Talks podcast to look at the work-life challenges of women and men, and in particular how gender segregation on the labour market, and gender inequalities in the division of paid and unpaid work, impede progress towards gender equality in Europe.
The new episode of Eurofound Talks looks at the issue of job quality in the modern workplace. Mary McCaughey speaks with Eurofound Head of Unit for Working Life Barbara Gerstenberger about what the EWCTS reveals about job quality, the implications of poor-quality jobs on well-being and broader society, and what policymakers can do to improve the working lives of people in 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.
