europa.eu (05.09.2022) The report examines long-term care systems for people aged 65 or above in the 27 EU Member States. It reveals that long-term care challenges have become increasingly salient in recent decades in EU Member States’ policy and political agendas. At the same time, in many countries long-term care policies and systems are still less developed than other social protection branches.

europa.eu The report explores how 35 European countries monitor social spending through dedicated national frameworks, and investigates the processes assessing the outcomes and effectiveness of public social spending. While these are fairly diverse, the report identifies two broad categories of monitoring practices: within and separately from the overall public spending monitoring framework. The strengths of these frameworks include reliable, timely and precise indicators, mostly on levels of public social spending, as well as comprehensive centralised information systems.

European Commission (02/08/2022)  These new rules  set out minimum standards for paternity, parental and carers' leave and establish additional rights, such as the right to request flexible working arrangements, which will help people develop their careers and family life without having to sacrifice either. These rights, which come in addition to existing maternity leave rights, were achieved under the European Pillar of Social Rights and is a key milestone towards building a Union of Equality.

European Commission (19.07.2022) Amongst other findings, the report shows young people were among the most negatively affected by job losses during the economic crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. It also shows that the recovery was slower for them than for other age groups. Possible explanations are linked to their high share of fixed-term contracts and difficulties in finding a first job after leaving school, university, or training.

etui.org (2022) The spread of Covid-19 and the ensuing adoption of lockdown measures have had severe consequences for European labour markets. All EU governments quickly made unprecedented economic and social support available to tackle the consequences of the pandemic. However, these measures – introduced by EU Member States during the pandemic as regards unemployment benefits, sickness benefits and special leave for parents – have not fundamentally improved formal access to social protection schemes for non-standard workers and the self-employed.

europa.eu (01.04.2022) With the aim of contributing to the ongoing policy dialogue between the European Commission, Member States and (potential) candidate countries, the European Commission asked the 35 country teams of the European Social Policy Network (ESPN) to look at how the eligibility conditions and benefit entitlements of social protection influence the capacity of young people to access the schemes and to highlight the main gaps and obstacles faced by young people in accessing these schemes.

EURACTIV.com (30.03.2022) EU lawmakers quizzed the European Commission executive vice-president, Margrethe Vestager, about new guidelines that would enable self-employed people to seek the protection of collective bargaining agreements, with both sides agreeing that such a right should be guaranteed.

 EURACTIV.com (03.03.2022) the Council gave the final green light to an update on the EU rules on reducing workers’ exposure to carcinogens, mutagens, or reprotoxic substances, addressing the first cause of work-related deaths in Europe.

euronews.com  (05.05.2021) In this episode of Real Economy we ask what happens when job retention schemes come to an end in Europe? Job retention schemes have kept millions of people in work during the pandemic and lockdowns. As these emergency measures are gradually phased out, how does Europe ensure there are enough jobs and that people have the right skills for the jobs of the future?

European Commission (06.07.2021) This review provides an up-to-date economic analysis of the steps the European Union (EU) is taking towards a strong social Europe, particularly in the aftermath of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) crisis. This ESDE report shows that the social impact of the COVID-19 crisis has been uneven and diverse. Regional inequalities that already existed before the pandemic may have widened, according to the review.