Informal meeting of employment and social policy ministers (EPSCO)

On 19 and 20 July 2018, in Vienna, the Informal meeting of employment and social policy ministers (informal EPSCO) will gather all respective EU ministers, the European Commission, the European social partners and others to discuss upcoming challenges from new forms of work, based on an increasing digitalisation on European labour markets. These new forms of work – such as platform or click work – imply new chances for workers and employers, but also uncertainties for social protection and labour standards.

With the emergence of platform work, labour markets all over Europe are experiencing fundamental changes in terms of access, employment, and regulations. During the Austrian Presidency of the Council of the EU, the Federal Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs, Health and Consumer Protection will focus on discussing solutions for workers and employers as well as on new technological developments, such as robotics, which is predicted to further influence daily work routines.

To address the above described matters, the informal EPSCO 2018 in Vienna will address two main topics:

• New forms of work with a focus on platform work – social and legal protection (19 July) with contributions from Beate Hartinger-Klein (Austrian Federal Minister of Labour, Social Affairs, Health and Consumer Protection),  Marianne Thyssen (EU Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs, Skills and Labour Mobility), Matthias Horx, (futurologist, trend researcher and management consultant), Juan Menéndez-Valdés (Director of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions) and Isabel Caño Aguilar (Vice-President of the European Economic and Social Committee)

• Robotics: impact on quantity and quality of work (20 July) with additional contributions from Horst Pichler (Head of Research Group on Cognitive Robotics, Joanneum Research), Marianne Thyssen (EU Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs, Skills and Labour Mobility), Stefano Scarpetta (Director for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs of the OECD), Christa Sedlatschek (Director of the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work) and Beate Hartinger-Klein (Austrian Minister of Labour, Social Affairs, Health and Consumer Protection).

• Presentation: Platform work and employment conditions, Juan Menéndez-Valdés, Director, Eurofound

• Austrian Presidency: Informal meeting of employment and social policy ministers

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