European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound)

The XpertHR Group, which includes PersonnelToday.com, is the official UK National Outreach Centre for the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound).

By running the National Outreach Centre, the XpertHR Group is responsible for the UK distribution of the research and information produced by the Foundation.

The European Foundation aims to support the formulation of policies on living and working conditions through the provision of relevant data and knowledge.

The main target groups 'Eurofound' seeks to influence are those involved in the implementation of European social policy and include:

• national governments, regional and local authorities working on social policy
• social partners: trade unions and employer organisations.

If you are interested in receiving information on the work of the European Foundation please contact us by email.
Find out more about the work of the National Outreach Centres here and for the latest press releases and news from the European Foundation follow this link.

---

Web update from Eurofound, 28 March 2008    

Latest articles from the European Foundation

Workers report increasing work intensification Press release on results of the Fourth European Working Conditions Survey for the Czech Republic: Workers report increasing work intensification Global competition and European companies’ location decisions - Background paper This background paper outlines some of the main issues concerning global competitiveness and the location of firms in Europe. It provides some of the fundamental ideas of economic geography, presents some relevant data and defines some key concepts. The conference itself [3-5 June 2008, Poznań, Poland] which brings together representatives from companies, the social partners and policymakers, aims to contribute to a deeper understanding of what is required from all parties to ensure a competitive and socially cohesive Europe. Eurofound News, Issue 5, May 2008 This issue contains the following articles: Director's diary; Job quality matters for older workers; Potential for EU energy 'renaissance'; In brief; and Latest events and publications. Impact of the information and consultation directive on industrial relations This comparative report provides a general overview of the steps taken by the 27 EU Member States and Norway to implement the 2002 Directive on informing and consulting employees in the European Community. The extent of the changes required to existing systems of information and consultation and workplace representation has varied considerably between countries. In some countries, the directive has had few, if any, implications, particularly in those with longstanding statutory works council systems; in others, it has prompted only limited amendments. However, in a number of countries, the directive has driven extensive legislative reform, for example in the UK and Ireland, where a ‘voluntarist’ industrial relations tradition predominates, and in many of the new Member States. Moreover, the transposition process has generated intense debate in some countries, in particular on the workforce-size thresholds above which undertakings or establishments are covered by information and consultation requirements, and on the nature of the employee representatives through which information and consultation takes place; the latter focus is a major issue in those countries where trade unions have traditionally been the sole or main representation channel. However, most EIRO national centres report that national measures which give effect to the directive have, as yet, had little or no impact on industrial relations practice in their countries, or that it is too early for their effects to be fully assessed. Considerable variations in the situation of part-time workers A study based on findings from the French Labour Force Survey, which looks at working time and employment status, provides a greater insight into the situation of part-time workers. Dividing part-time workers into six main groups, the study shows that the situations of these workers vary considerably in relation to aspects such as the number of working hours, type of employment contract, number of employers for whom they work and regularity of their working schedules. Lack of qualified childcare staff linked to poor working conditions A recent survey by the Association of Kindergarten Teachers in Finland reveals that the shortage of qualified kindergarten teachers is becoming increasingly acute. Almost a quarter of child day-care centre directors report serious difficulties in finding qualified candidates, even for permanent jobs. It is feared that a deterioration of day-care services will negatively influence the employment of mothers of small children and increase inequality between families.

News

Global competition and European companies' location decisions
How will the location decisions of companies shape the future of industry in Europe? Join us in Poznań (Poland) on 3-5 June 2008, where evidence from research will be combined with the views of company decision makers. Early bird registration now available.

Undeclared work can be defined as work which is in itself legal but is not declared to the authorities for tax, social security and/or labour law purposes. The Foundation has just published a report and 28 case studies showing the different approaches as well as the effectiveness of specific policy measures and their transferability.

Events

Internal events

Eurofound visit to Paris, France, 27-28 March 2008

CLIP conference: European cities integrating migrants - From Amsterdam to Zagreb: Fostering a dialogue about successful policies, 7 April 2008, Brussels, Belgium

Conference on global competition and European companies’ location decisions, Poznań, Poland, 3–5 June 2008

Foundation Seminar Series, 1st session - Developing workers' skills: actors and actions, 23-25 June 2008, Dublin, Ireland

External events

The Foundation participated at the following recent events:

• Risk assessment and ageing of work population, 5 March 2008, Brdo pri Kranju, Slovenia
• Conference on social cohesion and sustainable development,13-14 March 2008, Bruges, Belgium
• BJIR conference on comparative studies of the workplace, 13-14 March 2008, London, UK
• Building social capital for an inclusive society, 14 March 2008, Bruges, Belgium.

The Foundation will participate at the following events:

• Workshop on the emerging psychosocial risks in the changing world of work, 8-9 April 2008, Bussels, Belgium
• Seminar on Improving access to the labour market for people at its margins with a special focus on people with a migrant or minorities background, 29 April 2008, Brussels, Belgium
• Corporate social responsibility and occupational risk prevention, 14 May 2008, Coruna, Spain
• Fourth dialogue between France and the ILO on the social dimensions of globalisation – The internationalisation of labour markets, 15 May 2008, Paris, France.

New publications

Eurofound News, Issue 3, March 2008

To receive the email version of Eurofound News with links to the full text articles on the web, sign up here.

European Works Councils in practice: Key research findings - Background paper

Working longer, living better – Europe’s coming of age

Working longer, living better – What companies can do

Working longer, living better – Who cares?

Working longer, living better – Focus on all phases of life

Working longer, living better – Women at work

Tackling undeclared work in the European Union

EMCC company network - Managing change in EU cross-border mergers and acquisitions
Case example: Danske Bank and Irish National Bank: Viking raider is knight in shining armour

EMCC company network - Managing change in EU cross-border mergers and acquisitions
Case example: Schneider Electric: Acquiring to grow

EMCC company network - Managing change in EU cross-border mergers and acquisitions 
Case example: Air France-KLM: Combining strengths for sustainability

EMCC company network - Managing change in EU cross-border mergers and acquisitions
Case example: Impress: Meeting company goals through strategic acquisitions

EMCC company network - Managing change in EU cross-border mergers and acquisitions
Case example: Santander and Abbey: Expansion enabling access to new markets

Trends and drivers of change in the biomedical healthcare sector in Europe: Mapping report

EMCC case studies - Biomedical healthcare sector: Biogen Idec, Denmark

EMCC case studies - Biomedical healthcare sector: Q-Med AB, Sweden

EMCC case studies - Biomedical healthcare sector: Unimed, Czech Republic

The future of the European biomedical healthcare sector: Four scenarios

EMCC case studies - Biomedical healthcare sector: Berlin-Brandenburg cluster, Germany

EMCC case studies - Biomedical healthcare sector: Western cluster, Ireland

Restructuring and employment: The impact of globalisation in the EU – Résumé

Capacity building for social dialogue at sectoral and company level in the new Member States, Croatia and Turkey

Codes of conduct and international framework agreements: New forms of governance at company level - Report

Codes of conduct and international framework agreements: New forms of governance at company level - Case study: IKEA

Codes of conduct and international framework agreements: New forms of governance at company level - Case study: Unilever

Codes of conduct and international framework agreements: New forms of governance at company level - Case study: Chiquita

Codes of conduct and international framework agreements: New forms of governance at company level - Case study: LEONI

Codes of conduct and international framework agreements: New forms of governance at company level - Case study: Securitas

Codes of conduct and international framework agreements: New forms of governance at company level - Case study: EDF

Codes of conduct and international framework agreements: New forms of governance at company level - Case study: Arcelor

Codes of conduct and international framework agreements: New forms of governance at company level - Case study: BASF

Codes of conduct and international framework agreements: New forms of governance at company level - Case study: Bosch

 

European Industrial Relations Observatory (EIRO)

News updates

71 articles have been published in March 2008

See also the February articles here.

 

European Monitoring Centre on Change (EMCC)

Sectoral dossier

EMCC dossier on the European biomedical healthcare sector

Comparative information

Perceptions of globalisation: attitudes and responses in the EU

Company network seminar report

Managing change in EU cross-border mergers and acquisitions

 

European Working Conditions Observatory (EWCO)

Survey data report

Work–life balance attitudes and practices in British workplaces, 2007

Latest information updates

Lithuania - Factors determining rate of employee turnover in companies

Norway - Occupational differences in incidence of conflicts and bullying

Romania - Rise in proportion of workers on minimum wage or less