Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση

This report examines flexible working arrangements and their effects on working time quality, work–life balance and health, and related regulations. Since 2015, the take-up of flexible working arrangements, accelerated by the pandemic and digitalisation, has increased significantly, with one in five EU workers engaged in telework or having working time autonomy in 2024. Overall, flexible working is associated with improved working time quality and a better work–life balance.

Close to one in five jobs in the EU (19%) could be classified as vulnerable – a multidimensional phenomenon encompassing income inadequacy, employment insecurity and lack of workplace rights. Eurofound’s new report, Employment and working conditions of the most vulnerable workers: Addressing an ongoing policy challenge analyses the prevalence of vulnerability from 2009 to 2021.

The 2026 European Semester Spring Package presents new guidelines regarding employment and social policies, with recommendations on human capital (investing in people and their skills), improving job quality and reducing poverty.

Minimum wage growth remains real and substantial for 2026. Many EU Member States with a statutory or national minimum wage have continued to apply more structural uprates, with the aim of reaching a higher percentage value of actual (average or median) wages. The most likely driver of this is the Minimum Wage Directive and its stipulation that countries must adhere to ‘indicative reference values that guide their assessment of adequacy’. At the same time, in a few Member States, progress on reaching targets previously set has been slower.