A ‘nearly’ gender-balanced Commission isn’t good enough. It’s actually an ominous omen for advancing gender equality in the EU
During these frantic days at the beginning of a new mandate, at a time when the new College of Commissioners is being formed, Ursula von der Leyen’s commitment to achieve full gender balance – shown as being important to her since the very beginning of her first mandate – is not being realised. Despite her […]
Exploring the context, challenges and possible solutions in relation to the quality of traineeships in the EU
The 2023 evaluation of the 2014 QFT and the 2023 Eurobarometer survey both point to improved quality of traineeships across the EU since 2014, after the adoption of the Recommendation. However, concerns persist regarding trainees’ working conditions, which have not been adequately addressed by national legislation, and the significant variations across Member States and types […]
Studying poverty and income inequality in the context of the digital transformation
As European labour markets become increasingly digitalised, concerns about inequality and poverty are increasing. This study, completed for the European Commission, seeks to investigate these concerns further. Part A focuses on how prepared EU Member States are to manage the digital transformation in a socially fair manner. It develops 27 country fiches assessing the current […]
Lessons learned from the implementation of crisis response tools at EU level
As the EU grapples with successive crises, there is mounting pressure to develop swift and robust crisis response mechanisms. This study, divided into two parts, aims to enrich this discourse by examining four instruments – SURE, CRII, CRII+ and REACT-EU – introduced as a response to the pandemic. This paper forms the output of the […]