Unemployment is falling more slowly. There is a marked increase in mergers between enterprises. Employment issues 4. Since 1983, real wages have grown more slowly. Labour costs by unit of output vary much less between Member States than average wages.
Productivity is the key to real wage and employment growth.
The environment and employment Environmental problems are imposing new constraints on economic development in terms of the pattern of growth, the type of goods produced and the methods used to produce them. The future growth of jobs in this sector will be highly dependent on government policies and the public expenditure allocated to it. A large proportion of its workforce is employed in jobs with a low skill content and it is essential to ensure a significant increase in the number of skilled employees and improve the extent and quality of training. The Community will undoubtedly lose markets if its products are not environmentallyfriendly and are not based on sophisticated pollution techniques. Women's access to employment The participation of women in the labour market is still small.