Javascript is disabled in your browser. Please, enable it for a better user experience.
Työn laadukkuus
Työn laadulliset tekijät täydentävät kvantitatiivista mittaamista työllisyysstrategian arvioinnissa. Työn laatu on moniulotteinen käsite, jossa eri toimenpideohjelmat ja oppisuunnat painottavat eri näkökantoja.
Suurimmassa osassa Eurofoundin tekemää tutkimusta työn laatua mitataan työpaikan tasolla. Siihen sisältyy objektiivisesta tarkastelukulmasta kerättävää tietoa työn ominaisuuksista, jotka ovat havaittavissa ja jotka koskevat työstä johtuvia tarpeita. Se kattaa kaikki ne työn ja työpaikan osatekijät, joilla on osoitettu olevan syy-yhteys terveyteen ja hyvinvointiin. Mukana on sekä myönteisiä että kielteisiä tekijöitä. Nämä indikaattorit heijastavat työn resursseja (fyysisiä, psykologisia, sosiaalisia tai organisatorisia näkökohtia) ja vaatimuksia tai niihin vaikuttavia prosesseja.
Workers will experience the effects of climate change in many ways: job insecurity, changes to their work tasks and responsibilities, and changes in their workplaces that may involve different work...
There is no one future of work for all jobs – policymakers will have their work cut out to ensure that remote and platform working, artificial intelligence and climate change...
Job quality and its improvement is an important policy concern, as quality jobs are crucial for higher labour force participation, higher well-being and increased economic performance. Job quality is also a key component in making work sustainable and enabling workers to remain motivated to remain in work for longer. It is central to the ILO’s Decent Work Agenda, the OECD’s jobs strategy and to the European Union’s quality of work policies to create more and better jobs. For workers, for the enterprises and organisations that employ them and for societies, there are benefits associated with high-quality jobs, and costs associated with poor-quality jobs.
International Labour Organization (ILO): Decent work
Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD): OECD Jobs Strategy
Job quality can be supported by a wide-ranging set of policies and actions at EU level, by national authorities and social partners, and within companies aimed at addressing the issues raised in the EWCS analysis of job quality indices and profiles and that support workers throughout their working lives.
By bundling practices that increase employee autonomy, facilitate employee voice and promote training and learning, businesses can boost performance while improving job quality.
Job quality can be improved by reducing excessive demands on workers and limiting their exposure to risks – and also by increasing their access to work resources that help in achieving work goals or mitigate the effects of these demands. Each dimension of job quality can also be improved through workplace practices and policies.
Workers and employers and their organisations each have a role to play in improving job quality; social dialogue is critical for devising policies in the workplace and beyond. Public authorities should regulate with the common goal of improving job quality in mind.
Being a manager is challenging for both women and men. To increase the attractiveness of managerial positions, job quality for all managers needs to be improved. Linked to this are difficulties in achieving a satisfactory work–life balance. Addressing the working time and work–life balance needs of managers increases the attractiveness of this function and also makes working as a manager more sustainable.
As some employment statuses are linked to poorer quality jobs, labour market policies aimed at addressing global economic competitiveness and combating high unemployment rates hence need to consider the potential effects for job quality.
Eurofound aims to consolidate the position of its European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) as an important tool for benchmarking job quality in the European Union and beyond, feeding into policy development in the area of quality of work. The data have been used to carry out further research on various topics linked to job quality, including job quality in different work situations, job quality of different groups in the labour market, the impact of job quality on quality of working lives and in-depth analysis of individual dimensions of job quality. The European Company Survey 2019 (ECS 2019) also looks at different dimensions of job quality for workers and employers. Recent research has also looked into job quality in a global perspective.
Eurofound’s EWCS 2015, the sixth edition of the survey, provides an in-depth account of people’s current experience of work in Europe and an overview of working lives through the lens of job quality. The survey gathered detailed data on almost every aspect of working life, from working time to relationships with colleagues to opportunities for training.
To explore what the data say about job quality, Eurofound developed seven indices representing different dimensions of job quality, based on aspects of work that have an independent influence on health and well-being. These are:
Physical environment
Work intensity
Working time quality
Social environment
Skills and discretion
Prospects
Earnings
Those jobs that scored similarly on the seven job quality indices were grouped together in five job quality profiles: High flying, Smooth running, Active manual, Under pressure, Poor quality.
The data show a diverse and heterogeneous labour market, where one in five workers has a 'poor quality' job.
Eurofound's 2021 flagship report on working conditions and sustainable work sums up research on job quality in the past five years. It highlights the relevance of job quality to address challenges in the future: pyschosocial risks at work, ICT-based mobile work, fragmentation of work and the specific challenges in the era of COVID-19.
Company survey: Workplace practices and job quality
The European Company Survey (ECS) looks at workplace practices with regard to work organisation, human resource management and direct and indirect employee participation. These workplace practices are key determinants of the job quality of employees. The ECS 2019 examines job autonomy and complexity, the prevalence of part-time work and permanent contracts, the expectations management has of employees, the motivational drivers that are in place, the training and learning opportunities that are offered to employees, as well as the channels for, and impact of, direct and indirect employee participation. Both the ECS 2013 and the ECS 2019 show that establishments that have workplace practices that ensure good job quality also do better in terms of performance and workplace well-being.
Infographic: How good company practices impact on workplace well-being and performance
Only one-fifth of European companies find secret to combining optimal workplace well-being and business performance.
‘High investment, high involvement’ workplaces have the best outcomes for workers and employers, managing to boost performance and improve job quality.
Using EWCS data, Eurofound has collaborated with the ILO on a pioneering project to provide a comparative analysis of job quality covering approximately 1.2 billion workers in Europe, Asia and the Americas. It analyses the seven dimensions of job quality, finding both important differences and similarities between countries.
How different groups fare on job quality
Eurofound’s policy brief on women in management uses EWCS data to look at the diversity of job quality in management positions, analysing whether the working conditions of managers are better than those of non-managers and whether they are similar for women and men. Analysis of gender equality at work also highlights important gaps in men’s and women’s working conditions and job quality which require specific attention.
Research on working conditions of workers of different ages examines the role of job quality and other work-related factors in workers’ decisions and ability to remain in paid employment. Other research on working time patterns for sustainable work examines from a gender and life course perspective the links between working time patterns and organisation, working time quality and work–life balance, and health and well-being.
The research on working conditions in sectors examines trends in job quality from a sectoral perspective. Findings also reveal that workplace accommodation of the needs of workers with chronic disease can impact their job quality and the sustainability of work.
Determinants of job quality: Employment status, working time patterns
Eurofound’s policy brief on employment status uses EWCS data to investigate the job quality associated with different employment statuses in the EU Member States. The research explores the working conditions of five categories of self-employed and analyses their job quality.
Other research examines the working conditions and job quality associated with ICT-based mobile work and the impact of this form of work on quality of working lives.
Research also looks at human resource management and how employee involvement in decision-making can benefit organisations, helping to improve job quality and working conditions.
Impact of job quality
Research on working conditions and workers’ health examines the interplay between job demands and job resources which support workers in greater engagement and well-being. In terms of reconciling work and life, Eurofound examines the reciprocal relations between working conditions and job quality and people’s lives outside work, and what is most important for people in terms of work–life balance.
The EWCS 2015 demonstrates the positive relationship between each job quality index and worker's experience of the quality of working life in terms of: career and employment security, developing skills and competences, maintaining and promoting health and well-being, reconciling working and non-working life, work sustainability, and meaningful and motivating work.
Labour market change and job quality
Eurofound’s European Jobs Monitor (EJM) tracks structural change in European labour markets. It describes shifts in employment at Member State and EU level, analysing changes in terms of occupation and sector and the implications for job quality.
Mary McCaughey speaks with Eurofound Research Manager Jorge Cabrita about new research that highlights poor job quality - including high emotional demands, working at high speed and to tight deadlines...
Hallitusten vuonna 2020 covid-19-pandemian hallitsemiseksi käyttöön ottamat tiukat kansanterveysrajoitukset muuttivat äkillisesti työelämää ja muokkasivat sitä edelleen kahden seuraavan vuoden ajan. Maaliskuun ja marraskuun 2021 välisenä aikana puhelinkyselynä toteutetussa Euroopan työolotutkimuksessa...
Tässä lippulaivaraportissa on yhteenveto keskeisistä havainnoista, joita Eurofound on tehnyt ohjelmakauden 2017–2020 aikana työoloista. Siinä kartoitetaan eteneminen työolojen parantamisessa vuoden 2000 jälkeen ja selvitetään, ovatko kaikki työntekijät hyötyneet myönteisestä muutoksesta...
Tämä raportti perustuu neljänteen Euroopan yritystutkimukseen, jonka Eurofound ja Cedefop toteuttivat yhdessä vuonna 2019. Siinä kuvataan erilaisia käytäntöjä ja strategioita, joita eurooppalaisissa yrityksissä on toteutettu työn järjestämisen, henkilöstöhallinnon, osaamisen käytön...
Megatrends, such as digitalisation, globalisation, demographic change and climate change, are transforming the world of work, with knock-on effects for working conditions and job quality. Against this background, this report...
The number of workers living with chronic health conditions is rising in the EU. Such conditions affect people’s ability to work to varying degrees. While some are unable to continue...
15 lokakuu 2019
Publication
Policy brief
Ongoing work
Eurofound aims to consolidate the position of its European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) as an important tool for benchmarking job quality in the European Union and beyond, feeding into policy development in the area of quality of work. The data have been used to carry out further research on various topics linked to job quality, including job quality in different work situations, job quality of different groups in the labour market, the impact of job quality on quality of working lives and in-depth analysis of individual dimensions of job quality. The European Company Survey 2019 (ECS 2019) also looks at different dimensions of job quality for workers and employers. Recent research has also looked into job quality in a global perspective.
Eurofound’s EWCS 2015, the sixth edition of the survey, provides an in-depth account of people’s current experience of work in Europe and an overview of working lives through the lens of job quality. The survey gathered detailed data on almost every aspect of working life, from working time to relationships with colleagues to opportunities for training.
To explore what the data say about job quality, Eurofound developed seven indices representing different dimensions of job quality, based on aspects of work that have an independent influence on health and well-being. These are:
Physical environment
Work intensity
Working time quality
Social environment
Skills and discretion
Prospects
Earnings
Those jobs that scored similarly on the seven job quality indices were grouped together in five job quality profiles: High flying, Smooth running, Active manual, Under pressure, Poor quality.
The data show a diverse and heterogeneous labour market, where one in five workers has a 'poor quality' job.
Company survey: Workplace practices and job quality
The European Company Survey (ECS) looks at workplace practices with regard to work organisation, human resource management and direct and indirect employee participation. These workplace practices are key determinants of the job quality of employees. The ECS 2019 examines job autonomy and complexity, the prevalence of part-time work and permanent contracts, the expectations management has of employees, the motivational drivers that are in place, the training and learning opportunities that are offered to employees, as well as the channels for, and impact of, direct and indirect employee participation. Both the ECS 2013 and the ECS 2019 show that establishments that have workplace practices that ensure good job quality also do better in terms of performance and workplace well-being.
See European Company Survey 2019 infographic.
Working conditions in a global perspective
Using EWCS data, Eurofound has collaborated with the ILO on a pioneering project to provide a comparative analysis of job quality covering approximately 1.2 billion workers in Europe, Asia and the Americas. It analyses the seven dimensions of job quality, finding both important differences and similarities between countries.
How different groups fare on job quality
Eurofound’s policy brief on women in management uses EWCS data to look at the diversity of job quality in management positions, analysing whether the working conditions of managers are better than those of non-managers and whether they are similar for women and men. Research on working conditions of workers of different ages examines the role of job quality and other work-related factors in workers’ decisions and ability to remain in paid employment. Other research on working time patterns for sustainable work examines from a gender and life course perspective the links between working time patterns and organisation, working time quality and work–life balance, and health and well-being.
Determinants of job quality: Employment status, working time patterns
Eurofound’s policy brief on employment status uses EWCS data to investigate the job quality associated with different employment statuses in the EU Member States. The research explores the working conditions of five categories of self-employed and analyses their job quality. Other research examines the working conditions and job quality associated with ICT-based mobile work and the impact of this form of work on quality of working lives.
Impact of job quality
Research on working conditions and workers’ health examines the interplay between job demands and job resources which support workers in greater engagement and well-being. In terms of reconciling work and life, Eurofound examines the reciprocal relations between working conditions and job quality and people’s lives outside work, and what is most important for people in terms of work–life balance.
The EWCS 2015 demonstrates the positive relationship between each job quality index and worker's experience of the quality of working life in terms of: career and employment security, developing skills and competences, maintaining and promoting health and well-being, reconciling working and non-working life, work sustainability, and meaningful and motivating work.
Labour market change and job quality
Eurofound’s European Jobs Monitor (EJM) tracks structural change in European labour markets. It describes shifts in employment at Member State and EU level, analysing changes in terms of occupation and sector and the implications for job quality.
Research continues in this topic on a variety of themes, which are outlined below with links to forthcoming titles.
Agnès Parent-Thirion is a senior research manager in the Working Life unit at Eurofound, tasked with the planning, development and implementation of working conditions research...
This report gives an overview of working conditions, job quality, workers’ health and job sustainability in the industrial cleaning sector (NACE 81). The findings are based mostly on the fifth European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS), which gathers data on working conditions and the quality of work
This report describes surveys in 15 EU Member States that meet two conditions: they are national, covering all or most of the working population; and they relate at least primarily to working conditions issues, such as health and safety at the workplace, work organisation, quality of working life
This report examines the evidence and policy lessons that can be drawn from the findings of the fifth European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) carried out in 2010. The focus is on the links between working conditions and labour market participation in the light of the EU’s longstanding policy
This report gives an overview of working conditions, job quality, workers’ health and job sustainability in the textiles and clothing sector (NACE13 and 14). It is based mostly on the fifth European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS), which gathers data on working conditions and the quality of work
This report gives an overview of working conditions, job quality, workers’ health and job sustainability in the public administration sector (NACE 84). The findings are based mostly on the fifth European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS), which gathers data on working conditions and the quality of
Job quality indexes are constructed on the basis of such aspects of working conditions as earnings, prospects, working time, and intrinsic job quality. Occupations where job quality is consistently low are labelled ‘occupations with multiple disadvantages’. This report uses data from the fifth
The first Zanzibar Working Conditions Survey, 2010, found that the incidence of physical risks, namely exposure to vibrations, noise and high temperatures, is high. The survey was based on the Global Module for Working Conditions Survey, developed jointly by the ILO and Eurofound to provide a
This report gives an overview of working conditions, job quality, workers’ health and job sustainability in the residential care sector (NACE 87). The findings are based mostly on the fifth European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS), which gathers data on working conditions and the quality of work
This report gives an overview of working conditions, job quality, workers’ health and job sustainability in the food and beverage service activities sector (NACE 56). It is based mostly on the fifth European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS), which gathers data on working conditions and the quality
This report examines four scenarios of social partner cooperation in the hairdressing sector, aimed at improving the quality of work and employment. The scenarios are based on trends that reveal high impact and high uncertainty qualities, such as the re-evaluation of the sector as a craft sector
The report Decent work - Safe work (1.2Mb pdf) [1] by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) [2], presented at the 17th World Congress on Safety and Health at Work in Orlando, analyses occupational accidents and work-related diseases worldwide. The study gives an overview of the most recent
In March 2005, a team of two independent experts carried out a study on the Romanian textiles, clothing and footwear sector, with the financial support of the International Labour Organisation (ILO). The investigation sought to assess the sector in light of the removal of trading quota restrictions
A study by the Danish National Institute of Occupational Health [1], in collaboration with the Department of Manufacturing, Engineering and Management [2] at the Technical University of Denmark [3], focuses on differences in work environment factors, depending on size and ownership characteristics
The Research Institute of Labour and Social Affairs [1] carried out an analysis on motivations for good work performance under a project entitled ‘Measuring the Quality of Working Life’ (CZ0502SR01 [2]). The results are based on an extensive employee survey, which was conducted in October 2004. [1]
A survey conducted by Forschungs- und Beratungsstelle Arbeitswelt (FORBA) focuses on the quality of work, corporate strategies and institutional frameworks of call centres. The results are based on responses of managers of 96 call centres, inhouse as well as subcontracting companies, and represent 9
During 2002-2005, the employment conditions and health of nurses, as well as premature exit from healthcare work, were the subject of an extensive survey in 10 European countries (European NEXT-Study [1]). Among the study’s findings were that a considerable number of nurses will be retiring in the
In 2004, self-employed people accounted for 16.2% of all employment in the Czech Republic. Since 1993 - when regular monitoring of labour statistics using sample surveys of the labour force began - the proportion of self-employed people has doubled (see Table 1). At the start of 2004, a package of
A team of Bulgarian experts, headed by Professor Ivanovich, department head at the National Centre of Public Health Protection [1], conducted a survey on working conditions in the banking sector, aimed at determining risk levels based on employees’ self-evaluation. A case study was carried out in
The 2005 publication, /Il lavoro che cambia/ (/Changing work/ ), edited by Carrieri, Damiano and Ugolini, summarises the results of an enquiry launched in 2002 by Democratici di Sinistra (DS), the main centre-left Italian party, by means of its local organisations, newspaper and related websites
One of the main trade unions in Spain, Comisiones Obreras [1] (CCOO), published a study in 2004, ‘ Jóvenes: la nueva precariedad laboral (600Kb pdf; in Spanish) [2]’ (Young people: The new precariousness in work). The report examines the labour situation for young people aged less than 30 years, and
Motivated workers have higher levels of engagement, better health and are able to work longer. Improving motivation at work is therefore a key component in meeting the challenges of Europe’s ageing workforce and improving the EU’s long-term competitiveness on a global scale. This means that fosterin
After more than 60 years of European policy on the equal treatment of women and men, men still outnumber women in management positions by almost two to one. The women who do make it into management are more likely to be in non-supervising management roles where they manage operational responsibiliti
Manual jobs in European manufacturing are being transformed as blue-collar workers take on more intellectual tasks. This is a consequence of the increasing use of digital tools and the growing importance of quality control in production. The severe losses of middle-paying jobs in the manufacturing s
The workings of industrial relations are constantly evolving. In this blog piece, Eurofound authors Christian Welz and Ricardo Rodriguez Contreras discuss a tool that Eurofound has developed to enable this process of change to be monitored and analysed, enabling stakeholders in Member States to asse
Dr Erika Mezger, Eurofound's Deputy Director, outlines what the European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) says about working conditions among German workers and how they compare to those of the rest of Europe.
Even in the confused and contentious context of the new US President-elect as well as the EU’s post- Brexit deliberations, it is hard to argue otherwise. But, while having a job in the first place is clearly of paramount importance to people - and society at large – there is also a more sophisticate
This policy brief investigates how organisations are adapting their work organisation and practices to hybrid work. Based on case studies and on data from the European Working Conditions Survey 2024, the policy brief examines how hybrid work is being managed in organisations and profiles t