Letterbox companies are legal entities set up by businesses to benefit from a regulatory framework in a jurisdiction in which they have little or no material operations. They enable ‘regime shopping’ for lower taxes, wages, labour standards and social contributions, as well as for different legal... Find out more

The European Commission published a consultation document with a view to take legislative action to establish fair minimum wages in Europe. In this policy brief, the researchers argue for a pragmatic approach of taking the ‘in-work-poverty-wage’ threshold of 60 per cent of the national full-time... Find out more

The development of a European minimum wage policy is back on the political agenda. While in the past the debate about a European minimum wage policy was largely detached from developments at national level, more recently the debate has been based on various national-level initiatives to ensure a... Find out more

This working paper provides data confirming that workers in lower-skilled health and social care assistant positions earn considerably less than the national average wage in their country. The publication argues that the wage penalty for working in female-dominated sectors and occupations such as... Find out more

This policy brief details the necessary amounts for dignified living according to official EU figures and the perceptions of Europeans, as well as the actual disposable income of families in the lower part of the income distribution across EU member states. The research shows that households not... Find out more

This report details shifts in trade union membership and density in 32 European countries since 2000, with a particular focus on the age structure within trade unions. The report uncovers substantial variations in unionisation rates, with the least unionised countries in the 2000s having largely... Find out more

The course programme for 2019-2020 is now available. For more details, please consult our training website You can download the programme or view it online Find out more

This Working Paper addresses the issue of ‘fair’ wage growth over the last few decades. It assesses whether growth in real compensation is systematically associated with labour productivity growth and, if so, whether the two have ‘decoupled’ in recent years. The paper examines country-specific... Find out more

Benchmarking Working Europe, the annual stock-take of European economic, labour market and social affairs is published today by the European Trade Union Institute. This year’s report calls for action to stimulate investment, as well as reforms to fiscal rules to allow policy to play a more active... Find out more

This paper presents a case study of the food delivery platform, Deliveroo, in Belgium in 2016-2018. The case offers insights on the nature of platform work, the workers who perform it, the preferences of workers, the strategy of the platforms, and the role of local regulations. Interestingly... Find out more