1. www.policy-network.net Employment and the workplace Analysis of unique comparative polling prepared by YouGov plc for Policy Network Fieldwork was undertaken 18-22 March 2011. Total sample size for the online survey was 1063 British, 1086 US, 1010 Swedish and 1184 German adults. Full poll available at www.policy-network.net Olaf Cramme Director of Policy Network

2. www.policy-network.net Political context Unemployment - Employment aftershock of the crisis: in the two years to Q1 2010, employment fell by 2.1% in the OECD area; unemployment rate increased by just over 50%, to 8.5% (17 million additional unemployed persons) - Structural unemployment: prevalent in many countries pre-crisis - High youth unemployment: Spain 37.9%, France 22.4%, UK 18.9%, Germany 11% (2009) Stagnant wages for low- & middle-income families E.g. in the US, from 1973 to 2010, annual incomes of the bottom 90% of families rose by only 10% in real terms; in Germany real monthly incomes fell between 2000 and 2009. Polarisation between good quality, high-pay and poor quality, low-pay jobs Persistent gender pay gap (UK: 10.2% for full-time employees) and pressures on family life Stalled progress on social mobility (Intra- vs inter-generational)

3. www.policy-network.net Polling results The following 3 sets of data show the extent of public pessimism in relation to some of these employment challenges: - The market’s capacity to create jobs and opportunities - Perceptions of the reality of equal opportunities - The promise of higher education => This plays out in people’s priorities for the workplace

4. www.policy-network.net Low estimation of the market’s capacity to provide jobs and opportunities “Competition keeps prices down” Britain50% United States45% Sweden52% Germany45% “The market economy is the best way of providing jobs and opportunities to individuals” Percentage selecting as one of the ADVANTAGES of the market economy: Britain21% United States35% Sweden24% Germany15%

5. www.policy-network.net Pessimism about fair opportunity

6. www.policy-network.net The broken promise of education?

7. www.policy-network.net The primacy of job security

8. www.policy-network.net “Job security matters more to me than any other benefits” Job security is more important to women than men FemaleMale Britain46%34% US41%30% Sweden32%23% Germany46%32% Higher basic pay is more important to men FemaleMale Britain29%39% US29%32% Sweden27%31% Germany25%30%

9. www.policy-network.net Key political challenges 1.Is flexicurity still the right approach? 2.Is there a (new) trade-off between full employment and job security? 3.Is job quality as much of a problem as unemployment? Is polarisation an unavoidable characteristic of the knowledge economy? 4.Has the promise of higher education proved unviable?