Just transition is becoming an increasingly popular concept to address the social consequences of industrial decarbonization, which EU countries have committed to pursue through the European Green Deal. These consequences include increasing redundancies – especially in carbon-intensive firms – and... Find out more

In France, the legal obligation for private-sector companies to have, under certain conditions, one or two employee representatives on their boards goes hand in hand with the possibility for the company to decide to have its European Works Council (EWC) or SE Works Council (SE-WC) appoint the second... Find out more

This study examines the development and implementation of judicial strategies by the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) over the last fifteen years. Firstly, the author shows that this strategy was born in the wake of the Viking and Laval cases, with the aim of using the standards and... Find out more

This paper’s analysis of working conditions in Europe compares several aspects of job quality and wages, rather than relying on earnings as a sole indicator of workers’ well-being. We use a micro-level database of workers from 22 European countries to assess how global value chains (GVCs) and... Find out more

This paper assesses how well national recovery and resilience plans (NRRPs) aim at jointly tackling the social and climate/environmental challenges of recovery from the crisis and the transition to a net zero carbon socioeconomic model. Drawing on the conceptual frameworks proposed by Mandelli... Find out more

The spread of Covid-19 and the ensuing adoption of lockdown measures have had severe consequences for European labour markets. All EU governments quickly made unprecedented economic and social support available to tackle the consequences of the pandemic. However, these measures – introduced by EU... Find out more

In view of the formidable challenges ahead related to recovery from the Covid-19 crisis and to the green and digital transitions, the EU social governance toolbox should urgently be strengthened. This paper discusses the conditions for and added value of setting up an EU Social Imbalances Procedure... Find out more

Labour provisions in trade agreements have been criticised for minimal effectiveness in improving employment conditions. Five recent cases point to some benefits and to the lessons on when and how labour provisions can be effective. They make a difference in particular economic and political... Find out more

This paper describes the evolution of collective bargaining coverage in European countries during 2002-2018 and links it to changes in the evolution of the pay premia received by workers covered by collective bargaining. It uses evidence from the European Structure of Earnings Survey (ESES) to map... Find out more

Pension policy has gone through an intense period of reform over the past few decades. However, further changes are likely to take place in the near future. Major global trends, not only population ageing but also globalisation, technological innovation and climate change, are going to shape socio... Find out more