The European Green Deal sets out very ambitious goals for the EU. Carbon neutrality should be reached in 2050. The intermediate goal is a reduction in CO2 emissions of 55 per cent by 2030 compared with the 2005 level. In July 2021, the European Commission delivered the ‘Fit for 55’ package, which... Find out more

Following the adoption of Council directive 94/45/EC (the EWC directive) more than 1,250 EWCs were established. This industrial relations institution was intended to ensure transnational information and consultation were available to worker representatives within MNCs that met the thresholds of the... Find out more

Rising wage inequality is disproportionately driven by widening differences in pay between firms. This can reflect that firms’ workforces are increasingly homogenous but also that the pay of similar workers increasingly differs depending on firm productivity and the way that is shared with the work­... Find out more

The Covid‑19 pandemic has disproportionately affected women, threatening to reverse progress towards gender equality. It has made the need to address long‑standing structural disadvantages affecting women even more evident and pressing, including the fact that women continue to perform a greater... Find out more

The employment impacts of the transition to a post-carbon economy are gaining increasing attention. The post-carbon transition implies fundamental changes in the economy followed by significant changes in the structure of labour demand. Industries with the highest carbon footprint are of utmost... Find out more

Key points Psychosocial risks (PSR) are increasingly impacting all industries in every Member States. The effects of psychosocial risks can be longlasting and have both physical and psychological impacts on workers’ lives (such as depression, musculoskeletal disorders or burnout). Employers are... Find out more

In this issue, our main aim has been to illustrate and document the impact of Covid-19 on workers and the experience of the pandemic as an occupational health and safety issue around Europe. As a starting point, Berta Chulvi takes us to the working-class district of El Besòs i el Maresme in... Find out more

It has almost become a cliché to say that the Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated pre-existing inequalities while also generating new ones. However, the following pages of this year’s Benchmarking Working Europe clearly reveal that, far from being a platitude, the nexus between the pandemic and rising... Find out more

In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, major financial support has been pledged to Member States. This funding draws on the EU’s multiannual financial framework and the ‘NextGenerationEU’ with, at its core, the temporary ‘Recovery and Resilience Facility’ (RRF). While some reporting templates have... Find out more

Policy recommendations Unpaid labour should be recognised as a systemic feature of platform work, inherent in its current model of work organisation. Its prevalence and magnitude render it a pressing regulatory issue. Introducing minimum standards regarding working time and wages is a key step... Find out more