1. Impact of the crisis on European workers
Assembling national trends and reports
Guy Van Gyes
UNI Europe Post&Logistics Conference, 26 September 2013, Evora (PT)

2. Main sources
Eurofound reports: synthesis of national expert reports & available comparative statistics
Wages and working conditions in the crisis (2011)
Impact of the crisis on working conditions (2013)
Contact person Eurofound:
My reading/interpretation of these reports (not necessarily the view of the European agency)
CAWIE study (TURI-network; wage&CB trends in the Euro-zone

3. Overview What has changed in the world of work? Employment conditions
Career development and mobility
Working time and work-life balance
Work organisation and psychosocial risks
Health and well-being at work
Policy role/reaction
Flexibilisation of labour regulation
Reforms of industrial relations system
Alternative agenda – Strategic levers

4. What has changed in the world of work?

5. Employment conditions
Job insecurity bites everywhere
Strong increases in countries hard hit by crisis
EL: 31% convinced they will loose their job within the next six months (EQLS, 2012)
Job insecurity trend less dramatic in Nordic countries;
flexicurity DK: % job insecure only increased from 9 to 11%; unemployment with 3.8% to almost 8%
Trends in temporary employment diverge
High start rate = decrease (ES, PL)
Reforms facilitating temporary contract: CZ, EE; LT, RO
Involuntary
Wage freezing (not the first cost to cut)
Bail out countries: cuts => EL: 6.4% drop in average

6. Career development and mobility
Training:
Less career, more functional
State training investment => less polarisation; diminished ‘training gap’
Less job mobility: People stick or have to stick to their job
Migration patterns changed
Emigration in Eastern Europe again on the rise
South + Ireland: again migrating
Migrant more hit by crisis in receiving countries
Male more than female

7. Working time and work-life balance
Less work - lower average working hours - more part-time work - decline in overtime
Effect of short-time work schemes (saved jobs)
Involuntary part-time; unpaid overtime
No expansion of working at unsocial hours
Work-life balance only under pressure in countries hit hard by the crisis (ES, IE)
Gender gaps changing: male more hit by the crisis

8. Work organisation and psychosocial risks
Increase of stress-at-work
Insecurity factor
Work intensification ‘balanced’ by more job control in restructuring workplaces
Conflict, bullying and violence rising problem (but crisis the cause?)
No crisis-related policies

9. Health and well-being at work
Drop in absenteeism – Drop in accidents-at-work rate
Job insecurity: effect on general health (suicide rates)
Job satisfaction on the rise: ‘people more satisfied with what they have’

10. Job insecurity and well-being

11. Conclusion
Need to continue monitoring (new results coming from various countries not
Influenced by the crisis
Possible influence of the crisis – only in some sectors or some countries or some period of time – composition effect to be considered
Megatrends which “seems” to be fostered by the crisis
Job insecurity
Wages
Involuntary conditions of employment
Intensification of work
Lower rate of accidents
Overall job satisfaction
Increase of undeclared work
Temporary employment
Average weekly working hours
Work-life balance
Part-time work
Psychological risks (Stress)
Complexity in terms of impact and country / sectors variations.
It is not always possible to clearly link crisis to changes in working conditions.
Need to continue monitoring (new results coming from various countries not captured in this CAR and working conditions identified)
This CAR do not cover those more affected (unemployed people)

12. To conclude: trends
Less work – more insecurity and stress – less choice and opportunities
Positive findings on other indicators (job satisfaction, absenteeism, accidents, active jobs)
Reality or lowered expectations or composition effect (‘bad’ jobs cut)?
More ‘scars’ to come
Career penalty of a difficult entry in the labour market
Effect of enduring job insecurity on well-being
What kind of new jobs? Jobs cut in industry: what will be the replacement jobs
Not all in it together
Particular countries
Particular groups (low-skilled, young, migrants)

13. Changes in GDP and uneployment
Changes in regulations
about working
conditions and/or
employment reforms
Countries:
Changes in GDP and uneployment
Very strong economic
change
Strong economic
change
Better economic
situation

14. - ++ = na + - na -- --- Job insecurity Temporary involuntary work
Job insecurity
Temporary involuntary work
Involuntary part-time
Intensity at work (various indicators)
Work-life balance
Absenteeism
Job satisfaction
Poland - ++ = na +
Germany
Austria  -
Italy
 na
Estonia
Portugal --
Spain
Ireland
---
Lithuania
Greece

15. Policy role/reactions

16. Policy reactions 1 ( )
Short working-time measures as positive reaction to counter the employment shock in the first crisis period
Focus on employment measures (cf. training)
Social partners discussions: very polarised and not in driving position
Employers: flexibilisation; too high labour costs; Unions: fear of precariousness; wages/income as driver

17. Explanation: Policy conclusion: Crisis is a crisis of competitiveness
Policy reaction 2: re-installment neo-liberal mantras Mainstream explanations and policy conclusions
Explanation:
Crisis is a crisis of competitiveness
Wages are the main variable for competitiveness
Labour market rigidities hamper adaptation and increase unemployment
Policy conclusion:
Structural reforms at the labour market and in the wage-setting systems
Dr. Thorsten Schulten 17

18. Policy reactions 2a: flexibilisation strategies

19. Reforms of collective bargaining 2009-2013:
1. Analysis: Most significant changes in industrial relations practices:
Reforms of collective bargaining :
Termination/Abolition of national collective bargaining
More possibilities for companies to derogate from sectoral agreements
Priority for company agreements; abolition of the favourability principle
Stricter rules for extension of collective agreements
Reduction of the after-effect of collective agreements
Company agreements signed by non-union representatives
Dr. Thorsten Schulten

20. Beyond? Inclusive growth, flexicurity, sustainable work, …
No reports (yet) of ‘spectacular’ innovations
Deriving from the report
Continued and increased attention to psychosocial risks key
Segmentation between a core and peripheral workforce is enforced in recent years at many places. Flexibilisation means ‘more’ for the first and ‘less choice’ for the latter.
The different gender effect of the crisis – males are hit harder by the crisis - leads to new challenges, but maybe also to new solutions to improve gender equality.
Restructuring and downsizing is a fact of stress and insecurity, but it creates also opportunities to make transformations in job design and work organisation in order to strive for ‘active, smarter, sustainable work’ instead of ‘passive, strained, stressful work’.
Beyond? Inclusive growth, flexicurity, sustainable work, …

21. To conclude: policy perspective
Crisis policy reforms in East and South => flexibilisation effect => more to work?
Easing of dismissal procedures
Removing barriers for temporary contracts
Liberalisering working time regulation
More strict rules sickness leave
Where is the ‘security’ aspect? Where are ‘quality of work measures’ to promote ‘sustainable work’

22. Crisis context Less work = less choice = more insecurity = less reward
Definite breakthrough – European level of socio-economic governance
Beggar-thy-neighbour policies
German wage dumping leadership
Dismantling (?) of Southern model of social dialogue
Flexibilisation policies are on the rise again (East & South), not flexicurity
Easing of dismissal procedures
Removing barriers for temporary contracts
Liberalisation working time regulation
More strict rules sickness leave

23. 3. Wages and the Euro Crisis Alternative Agenda for European Wage Policy
International Labour Organisation (ILO)
Collective bargaining as a core instrument for economic, industrial, employment and social policy
Strengthening of collective bargaining at all levels
strengthening of mechanism to extend sectoral agreements and to increase bargaining coverage
strengthening of minimum wages which should guarantee decent wage levels
promoting not wage competition but (real) wage developments in line with productivity
Dr. Thorsten Schulten

24. 3. Wages and the Euro Crisis Alternative explanations and policy conclusions
Wages are not the main reason for lack competitiveness or economic imbalances in Europe
Real wage developments lagging behind productivity growth dampen domestic demand and a produce deflationary spiral of downward wages competition
Current EU policy of austerity and structural reforms accelerate deflationary wage competition and promotes economic stagnation
Dr. Thorsten Schulten 24

25. Collectively agreed wages and labour productivity in the Euro area 2000 = 100
Dr. Thorsten Schulten 25

26. Transnational wage policy
Coordination exist already (only without the union and narrow-based; German wage leadership)
Taking wages out of competition = solidaristic wage policy
“uses a deliberate, centrally force to counteract … the centrifugal force of the market, i.e. its tendency towards wage differentiation
Demand-driven economic growth= income of the middle classes is driving the world economy  growing inequality

27. Crisis context Less work = less choice = more insecurity
Definite breakthrough – European level of socio-economic governance
Beggar-thy-neighbour policies
German wage dumping leadership
Dismantling (?) of Southern model of social dialogue
Flexibilisation policies are on the rise again (East & South), not flexicurity
Easing of dismissal procedures
Removing barriers for temporary contracts
Liberalisering working time regulation
More strict rules sickness leave