News archive

25 June 2021 07:00

Almost three quarter of people in Croatia are struggling financially during COVID-19 pandemic, but minimum wage increases slightly

74% of people in Croatia report difficulties making ends meet, according to Eurofound’s large-scale Living, working and COVID-19 online survey. This is the highest figure among EU Member States, where the average was 45.1%. For Croatia, this number remained consistently high throughout the pandemic at 73.5% in April 2020 reporting a difficult personal financial situation.

10 June 2021 11:30

EU minimum wages grew cautiously amid COVID-19 economic uncertainty

The economic uncertainty created by the COVID-19 pandemic slowed, but did not stop, overall minimum wage growth in the EU in 2021. Minimum wages were raised cautiously in most Member States, with the median country recording an increase of 3%. Only a few Member States froze their minimum wage rates, marking a very different approach to that taken in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis.

Trust in various institutions in Sweden remain high compared to other EU countries, however, trust in national government has decreased since the onset of the pandemic.

6 June 2021 07:00

Trust in national government has declined in Sweden throughout the COVID-19 pandemic

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, trust of people in Sweden in their national government has declined from 6.4 to 5.1. Respondents rated their trust levels at the onset of the pandemic (data collection April 2020) at 6.4 on average, which decreased to 5.5 during the summer months of last year and then to 5.1 in February and March of this year.

5 June 2021 07:00

Denmark only EU country where trust in national government increased since summer 2020

Trust in the national government in Denmark ranked highest among EU countries at 7 out of 10, according to Eurofound’s large-scale Living, working and COVID-19 online survey. This marked an increase of 0.5 points compared to the summer of last year. This pattern goes against the trend observed in all other EU Member States, where the average trust rating fell to just 3.9 from 4.6.

The most recent figures for Italy on the financial situation is in line with the EU average of 22.1% and marks a positive development, one which occurred in just six other EU Member States (Croatia, Spain, Romania, Denmark, Sweden and France).

2 June 2021 11:00

Reduced feeling of financial strain in Italy

Pessimism about one’s future financial situation has decreased in Italy compared to summer 2020, according to Eurofound’s large-scale Living, working and COVID-19 online survey. In February 2021, over one fifth (22.5%) of people in Italy expected a worsening of their situation compared to 27.6% in June/July of last year.

25 March 2021 11:00

Short-time working schemes could be paramount for Europe’s long-term pandemic response

Short-time work or similar measures were implemented in all EU Member States during 2020 and contributed greatly to limiting the rise in unemployment that resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic. However, further success was hampered by varying levels of income protection between countries, as well as limitations in coverage.

11 March 2021 07:00

COVID-19 costs 6 million jobs as Europe slides into inactivity

There were 5.7 million fewer people in employment in the EU by spring 2020 than at the end of 2019, and 6.3 million fewer compared with the trend growth that could have been expected before the COVID-19 pandemic.

29 October 2020 09:34

Fewer than 10% of EU businesses offer comprehensive learning opportunities critical to employee performance and well-being, new survey says

According to the recently published European Company Survey 2019 by EU agencies Eurofound and Cedefop, almost all managers (96%) agree training is important for employees to do their current job and most workplaces in the EU offer at least some training, yet only a small number – 9% – offer comprehensive training and learning opportunities to most of their employees.

A special #AskTheExpert webinar at 09:00 am (IST)/10.00 am (CET) today will look at European Company Survey 2019 findings on employee involvement

20 October 2020 07:00

Just 31% of companies capitalise fully on direct employee involvement to enhance performance and well-being

Fewer than one-third (31%) of companies in the EU27 facilitated the regular direct participation of employees in organisational decision-making and accorded them a high degree of influence last year.

13 October 2020 07:00

Only one-fifth of European companies find secret to combining optimal workplace wellbeing and business performance

One in five companies in the EU-27 succeed in providing the optimal workplace environment, according to the new European Company Survey, This report is based on the fourth edition of the European Company Survey (ECS), which was carried out jointly by Eurofound and Cedefop in 2019.

21 May 2020 11:00

COVID-19 EU PolicyWatch: New tool for tracking measures to mitigate social, economic impact of COVID-19

Eurofound has this week launched COVID-19 EU PolicyWatch, a database collating and mapping the policy responses introduced in Member States, along with the UK and Norway, to alleviate the social and economic impact of COVID-19 restrictions.

22 April 2020 07:00

COVID-19 could expose shortcomings in employment and social protection in Europe

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) could expose existing shortcomings in employment arrangements and social protection in Europe, particularly for some workers in non-standard employment and vulnerable self-employed groups – who are more likely to be at risk of poverty and the impacts of economic shocks.

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