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Employment relationship

Individual employment relations are the relationship between the individual worker and their employer. This relationship is shaped by legal regulation and by the outcomes of social partner negotiations over the terms and conditions governing the employment relationship. Regardless of the type and duration of the employment relationship, workers have the right to fair and equal treatment regarding working conditions, access to social protection and training.

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Eurofound expert(s)

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Gijs van Houten is a senior research manager in the Employment unit at Eurofound. He has specific expertise in cross-national survey methodology and the analysis of workplace...

Senior research manager,
Employment research unit
Publications results (47)

This report presents Eurofound’s research on telework during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021. It explores changes in the incidence of telework, working conditions experienced by employees working from home and changes to regulations addressing issues related to this working arrangement.

08 December 2022

Technological change is accelerating as the capacity of electronic devices to digitally store, process and communicate information expands. Digitalisation is transforming the EU economy and labour markets: nearly one-third of EU workplaces are categorised as highly digitalised. What are the implicat

15 December 2021

The rapid rise of the platform economy has led to a marked transformation of European labour markets, and existing regulatory frameworks and voluntary initiatives have yet to catch up. While platform work offers opportunities for workers and employers and potentially contributes to innovation, econo

02 December 2021

Digital technologies have made it possible for many workers to carry out their work at any time and anywhere, with consequent advantages and disadvantages. Eurofound data show that teleworkers are twice as likely to exceed the 48-hour working time limit, take insufficient rest and work in their free

09 September 2021

This flagship report summarises the key findings of Eurofound’s research on working conditions conducted over the programming period 2017–2020. It maps the progress achieved since 2000 in improving working conditions and examines whether all workers have benefited equally from positive change. It hi

26 February 2021

The long-term care (LTC) sector employs a growing share of workers in the EU and is experiencing increasing staff shortages. The LTC workforce is mainly female and a relatively large and increasing proportion is aged 50 years or older. Migrants are often concentrated in certain LTC jobs. This report

14 December 2020

Around three-quarters of the EU workforce is employed in the service sector, and a sizeable portion of service workers interact directly with the recipients of the services they provide, such as clients, patients, pupils and so on. This can be demanding work as it routinely places emotional demands

15 July 2020

Although a small proportion of the EU workforce holds down more than one job, it is worth understanding the phenomenon better, not only because it is growing by degrees, but also because of the impact it can have on workers’ health and well-being and what it can tell us about the labour market

22 June 2020

What have been the major trends and policy developments regarding the flexibilisation of employment in recent years? Eurofound’s work programme for 2017–2020 set out to document and capture these changes in the world of work. This flagship publication provides an overview of developments in Europe

16 April 2020

Advances in ICT have opened the door to new ways of organising work. We are shifting from a regular, bureaucratic and ‘factory-based’ working time pattern towards a more flexible model of work. Telework and ICT-based mobile work (TICTM) has emerged in this transition, giving workers and employers th

16 January 2020

Online resources results (89)

Portugal: latest working life developments Q2 2018

The new tripartite action plan to combat job insecurity and new measures to promote collective bargaining are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on one of the latest developments in working life in Portugal in the second quarter of 2018.

Norway: latest working life developments Q2 2018

A settlement on pensions, amendments to the Working Environment Act, plans for a survey of foreign tour bus companies and a new report on working environments and occupational health are the main topics of interest in this article. This country update reports on the latest developments in working

Portugal: Innovative social dialogue to combat precarious work in the public sector

A programme to combat precarious work in the public sector was launched in 2015 by the Portuguese Socialist government. Various features of the PREVPAP scheme reveal an innovative approach to participation and social dialogue. This article details the programme, its implementation, and the role and

France: New rules on working time enter into force

The new labour law was adopted by parliament in July 2016 after lengthy discussions and much campaigning by the trade unions. Several subsequent decrees implement the law’s main provisions, including important new rules on working time which give precedence to company-level agreements over branch

Czech Republic: Transformations in the quality of working life

Findings from a recent survey aim to capture national developments in the Czech Republic in the quality of working life. Results from the survey on the nature of work, job security, workers’ experiences of stress and its intensity, and the evaluation of different aspects of work are highlighted in

Croatia: New provisions in the case of employer insolvency adopted

The Amendment to the 2008 Act on Guarantees of Rights of Employees has been adopted, ensuring employee rights in cases of employer insolvency and where the employer’s account is frozen.

Romania: New labour law provisions for temporary-agency workers

New legislation introduced in Romania at the start of 2015 grants temporary agency workers the same pay and conditions as permanent employees of client companies they work in.


Blogs results (6)
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Whether it is couch surfing, baby-sitting, pizza delivery or getting Ikea furniture assembled by somebody who can do it better, platforms can mediate all kinds of voluntary or professional services. Platform work is at the heart of the ‘sharing economy’. But while this may sound like a new form of

31 March 2022
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Standard employment is not simply being replaced by non-standard work; employment is becoming more diverse, and policy must accordingly become more tailored. The last decade has seen much public and policy debate on the future of work. Standard employment – permanent, full-time and subject to labour

15 December 2020
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​​​​​​​With remote working becoming the new normal for many workers, it is surely the case that many employers are anxious to ensure that their employees are putting in full working days. Companies are likely to be investing in and deploying digital technologies for tracking employee performance muc

9 December 2020
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According to the dictionary, an organisation is an organised group of people with a particular purpose. To achieve this purpose, tasks are divided between the members of the group, and the task of some of those people is to manage the others. Interestingly, whereas most tasks are allocated based on

27 November 2020
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Digital technologies are transforming work, but the implications have not yet been fully grasped. In a recent Eurofound report, we focus on three main vectors of change to discuss the effects of digital technologies on work and employment and the policy responses such change demands.

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Research Manager Isabella Biletta looks at fraudulent practices in the contracting of work. Such practices involve the abuse of legitimate employment relationships with the aim of sidestepping labour and social regulations and with the effect of undermining workers’ rights and fair competition in

1 June 2018

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