A common understanding of labour market segmentation is necessary to tackle poor quality jobs with lack of opportunities, affecting especially young people, women, immigrants and lower-educated individuals on the labour market. A new ambitious report explores why segmentation is problematic and identifies policy approaches which could be helpful in tackling this phenomenon.
As Romania celebrates its national day on Sunday, we mark the occasion by sharing our research and analysis to provide a snapshot of current living and working conditions.
The number of people in Poland struggling to make ends meet has halved to 39% since the country’s membership of the EU and the share of people at risk of poverty has decreased to 18.9% in 2018 – below the EU average of 21.7%.
The high levels of reliance on informal care across EU Member States - with 15% or more of care being provided on an informal basis in countries such as Belgium, France, Latvia and Romania – comes with significant social and economic costs for both carers and society, including loss of employment, social protection expenditure, social isolation and the healthcare needs of informal carers.
Austria has one of the highest female part-time rates in the EU. This is linked largely to a heavy reliance on informal care where 80% of those in need of long-term care are being cared for informally by a family member. The high level of part-time work (47.9% of women compared to just 8.1% of men) has significant consequences for Austria’s gender pay gap.
Contrary to a generalised concern about a ‘crisis of trust’ in the aftermath of the financial crisis, trust in national and EU institutions has bounced back to pre-crisis levels, while civic engagement has increased, and perceived social exclusion has decreased.
Levels of trust and social cohesion have recovered overall in the EU since the financial crisis, perceived social exclusion has declined and there has been an increase in active citizenship and civic engagement, according to Eurofound’s flagship report ‘Challenges and prospects in the EU: Quality of life and public services’.
Eurofound ha estado monitoreando e informando sobre las condiciones de vida y trabajo en España, en comparación con otros Estados miembros de la UE, desde antes de su adhesión a la UE en 1986.
This week Spain celebrates the Fiesta Nacional, and we mark the occasion by sharing our research data, findings and analysis to provide a snapshot of the country’s living and working conditions. Eurofound has been monitoring and reporting on living and working conditions in Spain, in comparison to other EU Member States, since before its accession to the EU in 1986.
Germany this week celebrates 29 years since reunification, and next month will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. To mark this significant time, we share our research data, findings and analysis to provide a snapshot of Germany’s living and working conditions.
With a new European Parliament in place, and a new Commission imminent, it's all change at European level. Eurofound's upcoming research for the rest of 2019 reflects both established priorities under its work programme, as well as ongoing developments in work and life in Europe.
Strong upward convergence in employment and socioeconomic conditions has emerged between EU Member States over the past 20 years despite the negative effects of the economic crisis, according to new research from Eurofound.
Platform work across the European Union can facilitate better access to the labour market for disadvantaged groups, encourage participation among those with other responsibilities and foster self-employment and entrepreneurship. Eurofound’s new policy brief highlights the main opportunities and challenges of platform work and illustrates some of the first attempts at addressing them.
As Malta celebrates its Independence Day, we mark the day by sharing our research data, findings and analysis to provide a snapshot of living and working conditions in Malta today. Eurofound has been monitoring and reporting on the improvement of living and working conditions in Malta, in comparison to the other EU Member States, since before accession to the EU.
As Slovakia tomorrow celebrates Slovak National Uprising Day, we mark the day by shining a spotlight on the ever-improving living and working conditions in Slovakia.
Motivated workers have higher levels of engagement, better health and are able to work longer. Improving motivation at work is therefore a key component in meeting the challenges of Europe’s ageing workforce and improving the EU’s long-term competitiveness on a global scale. This means that fostering motivation at work isn’t just about personal or business success, it's about Europe’s success.
We want to thank you for your support and wish you and your family a peaceful Christmas and a happy New Year.
Quality of life is improving in Ireland, particularly in relation to social cohesion, with the country recording some of the highest levels optimism in the EU and lowest reported levels of tension between racial and ethnic groups. However, a number of challenges remain, notably in public transport, childcare services, and social housing – all of which are rated below EU averages.
Eurofound Director Juan Menéndez-Valdés will present to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on EU Affairs at 14:00 GMT on Wednesday 12 December. The presentation will look at Ireland-specific data from the European Quality of Life Survey and European Working Conditions Survey.
Platform work is neither good nor bad – it just is. We need to adapt to this reality by finding ways to capitalise on the positive while at the same time counteracting the negative. This needs to be done in a differentiated way, taking account of the great variety in platform work. One-size solutions simply will not fit all.
