The digital age: Implications of automation, digitisation and platforms for work and employment

To ensure that Europe does not fall behind other world regions and reaps the benefits of digitalisation, policymakers should explore pathways to further support the digitalisation of European businesses. They should consider, for example, financial support, the exchange of use cases on digital deployment, and facilitating cooperation on the development and implementation of technologies. An opportunity for doing so is the state support linked to the European Commission’s Recovery and Resilience Facility.

Specific attention should be paid to supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (in line with the vision for Europe’s Digital Decade), as well as specific sectors and Member States that need to increase their pace of digitalisation.

Tools to anticipate skills needs, such as Cedefop’s Skills Panorama at EU level or similar instruments in the Member States, should be maintained and, if needed, developed further to focus on skills needs in the digital age.

Pathways to equip vulnerable groups (such as older workers and those with low formal educational attainments) with relevant skills should be explored, in line with the Action Plan for the European Pillar of Social Rights and the EU Skills Agenda. At the same time, managers need to be trained in the particularities of work organisation and people management in the digital age. For workers affected by redundancies, the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund for Displaced Workers can play a role in supporting their reskilling or upskilling.

Early warning tools should be used to alert policymakers to any indications of decreasing employment quality arising from the adoption of digital technologies, including potential misclassification of employment status. Policymakers should explore the causes of such developments and their impact on businesses and workers, as a basis for informed policymaking.