Publications

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Mehtap Akgüç, Albena Azmanova, Pierre Bérastégui, ...

Benchmarking Working Europe 2023

The central questions and main contextual background explored by this year’s issue of Benchmarking are, at their core, fairly straightforward. Europe is at a crossroads, painfully navigating four transitions at once: a (perhaps less than obvious) economic policy transition best exemplified by the debates surrounding the EU economic governance... Find out more

Juggling online gigs with offline jobs

Online labour platforms are redefining the world of work, but little is known even now about the drivers of worker engagement in this type of activity. Earlier studies focused on individual preferences and job characteristics such as flexibility or low entry barriers, but the relative role of such pull factors is limited given widespread worker... Find out more

Tommaso Pardi

Heavier, faster and less affordable cars

Between 1990 and 2019, the European transport sector was expected to reduce its CO2 emissions by 40 per cent to keep track with the 100 per cent CO2 reduction target on the 1990 level set by the European Commission for 2050. But, in fact, the transport sector has increased its CO2 emissions by 32 per cent during these last 30 years, with passenger... Find out more

Mariagrazia Lamannis

Collective bargaining in the platform economy

This paper presents the results of a mapping of social dialogue and collective bargaining experiences in the European platform economy. Building on a descriptive analysis of the initiatives, the report provides insights into collective bargaining strategies and factors that have led platforms to negotiate. It focuses on empirical and legal... Find out more

Federico Fabbrini, David Bokhorst, Sebastiano Sabato, ...

Social policy in the European Union: state of play 2022

At the beginning of 2022, hopes were high that the Covid-19 pandemic was on the ebb and that the European Union (EU) would be able to focus again on the main challenge of this century: how to proactively tackle the green and digital transition in a socially fair and inclusive way. But the Russian invasion of Ukraine dashed these hopes. Realpolitik... Find out more

The EU recovery strategy

This paper explores the EU recovery strategy with a specific focus on its potentially transformative aspects vis-à-vis European integration and on its implications for the social dimension of the EU’s socio-economic governance. It aims, in particular, to provide a reflection on whether the established measures put forward sufficient safeguards... Find out more

The 2022 Country Specific Recommendations in the social field: quo vadis, EU recovery?

This report provides an analysis of the 2022 Country Specific Recommendations (CSRs) made by the Council, on a proposal by the Commission, concerning social and labour policies. Account is taken of the main new features of this Semester cycle, notably the integration of the European Semester in the NextGenerationEU strategy and the ongoing energy... Find out more

Martin Myant, Branko Bembič, Adam Sumichrast, ...

Are multinational companies good for trade unions?

Multinational companies dominate much of the economies of the new EU member states of central and eastern Europe. They usually claim to respect trade unions at home and many have signed global agreements with international union organisations. It could be hoped that they would play a positive role, bringing better employment relations practices... Find out more

Elena Verdolini

Interlinkages between the just ecological transition and the digital transformation

Notwithstanding increasing policy and academic debate around the ‘twin’ digital and ecological transitions, there is no systematic assessment of their linkages, potential synergies and trade-offs. Most fundamentally, the full extent of challenges that their interaction poses for the prospects of a ‘just transition’ is not fully understood. This... Find out more

Claudia Narocki

Psychosocial risks in the healthcare and long-term care sectors

Work-related psychosocial risks (PSR) are a major contributor to the burden of disease in Europe. The stress mediated health impacts of PSR are evident in the healthcare and long-term care (LTC) sectors and were brought to everyone’s line of sight by the Covid-19 pandemic. While the effects of these risks manifest at the individual level as... Find out more

Latest news

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March 16, 2023

Agreement to improve working conditions in arts and entertainment sector

After a week of tough negotiations, major international unions, employers, industry bodies, and governments have come to an agreement to advance workers' rights in the arts and entertainment sector... Find out more

March 08, 2023

The threat of the far right: what is the ETUI doing?

Right–wing populist movements and parties are rising almost everywhere in Europe. Recent parliamentary elections across most European countries show a similar picture. A growing number of voters... Find out more

March 07, 2023

Collective bargaining highlights - February 2023

Austria: New collective agreement in the electricity sector The trade union GPA has negotiated a new collective agreement in the electricity sector which delivers pay increases of 8.6%-9.6% along with... Find out more

March 06, 2023

Intersectionality and its importance in creating inclusive and diverse trade union organisations

Have you ever considered how different forms of oppression intersect and interact with each other? Have you ever considered how those forms of oppression create unique experiences of marginalization... Find out more