European employment regulation has been repeatedly identified by policymakers as too stringent resulting in policy recommendations aimed at a more flexible labour market. This diagnosis has been reaffirmed, particularly by international policymakers, in the post-2008 economic and jobs crisis with... Find out more

As part of the European Semester, the main pillar of Europe's new economic governance, the Commission puts forward every year the 'country-specific recommendations' (CSRs). This background analysis provides an overview of the 2016 specific recommendations to the EU Member States in the field of... Find out more

This working paper gives an overview of minimum wage policies in Central and Eastern Europe. It shows that minimum wages are an effective tool for reducing inequality by raising the lowest incomes. Minimum wages can have some, albeit limited, role in increasing aggregate productivity and promoting... Find out more

This working paper discusses the use of unit labour costs (ULC) by the European Commission as a measure of competitiveness of exports, especially in central and Eastern Europe (CEE). It shows the flawed nature of the European Commission’s argument that increasing wages ahead of measured productivity... Find out more

The aim of the present paper is to provide a basis for an in-depth discussion of the European Commission’s initiative for a ‘European Pillar of Social Rights’ by briefly examining its context. The content of the Commission’s Communication is reviewed and followed by a more detailed analysis of the... Find out more

This working paper argues with extensive statistical analysis that the rise of far-right parties in Europe has less to do with the economic crisis and unemployment levels as such but more with specific labour market policies and institutions. The authors show that the deregulation of employment... Find out more

In 2009, Europe launched a Recast Directive on European Works Councils (EWCs) aiming to improve (1) the effectiveness of EWCs and (2) increase the amount of EWCs. In 2016, this Recast Directive will be evaluated by the European Commission. This report feeds into this, building on data of EWC... Find out more

This working paper looks at the views of managers responsible for European Works Councils (EWCs) within multinational companies on the operation of the institution. It also examines the policies of Business Europe on EWCs vis-à-vis the views of these managers.The findings of structured interviews... Find out more

The objective of this project is the identification of substances toxic to reproduction (in short: reprotoxins) which are relevant for workers’ exposure via inhalation at a considerable number of workplaces in Europe and, thus, for which an indicative occupational exposure limit value (IOELV) under... Find out more

In the context of the announced revision of the directive on carcinogenic substances, this publication reviews the limitations of the existing legislation and outlines the priorities for its reform.It considers the key aspects of this issue: the setting of threshold limit values for workplace... Find out more