Atypical employment and the role of European PES : an exploratory paper.
Date: 2017-10-12
Institutions: Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion
Subjects: digital technology, employment policy, employment service, impact of information technology, non-standard employment, professional qualifications, vocational training

Atypical Employment and the 
Role of European PES 

An exploratory paper 

Written by ICON-INSTITUT Public Sector GmbH 
John McGrath  

March - 2016 

Social 
Europe 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion 
Directorate B — Employment 
Unit B.1— Employment Strategy 

Contact: Istvan Vanyolos 

E-mail:  EMPL-PES-SECRETARIAT@ec.europa.eu 

European Commission 
B-1049 Brussels 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Atypical Employment and the 
Role of European PES 

An exploratory paper 

Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion 
European Network of Public Employment Services (PES) 

3 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2017 

ISBN: 978-92-79-73303-1 
Doi: 10.2767/245526 

© European Union, 2017 

Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

Table of contents 

Executive Summary .......................................................................................................... 9 

1. Introduction and Background ...................................................................................... 11 
Background ............................................................................................................... 11 
Structure of the report ............................................................................................... 11 
Methodology ............................................................................................................. 11 

1.1 
1.2 
1.3 

2. 

The Drivers of Atypical Employment and the Impact on Skills .................................. 12 
Introduction .............................................................................................................. 12 
Globalisation, intense competition and pressure on productivity ................................ 12 
The impact on occupation-related technical skills ....................................................... 13 
Digital platforms and the emergence of the gig economy ............................................ 15 
Conclusions ............................................................................................................... 17 

2.1 
2.2 
2.3 
2.4 
2.5 

3.  Current PES Services and Atypical Employment ....................................................... 18 
Introduction .............................................................................................................. 19 
3.1 
The classification of registrants .................................................................................. 19 
3.2 
PES Mediation ........................................................................................................... 21 
3.3 
PES course outcomes ................................................................................................. 21 
3.4 
PES client profiles ...................................................................................................... 22 
3.5 
Course curricula ......................................................................................................... 23 
3.6 
Use of IT in delivering training .................................................................................... 24 
3.7 
The availability of training .......................................................................................... 24 
3.8 
3.9 
Methods of identifying skill needs .............................................................................. 25 
3.10  Use of digital platforms .............................................................................................. 26 
Conclusions ............................................................................................................... 27 
3.11 

4.  Conclusions and Recommendations ........................................................................ 28 
Introduction .............................................................................................................. 28 
Conclusions ............................................................................................................... 28 
Recommendations ..................................................................................................... 28 

4.1 
4.2 
4.3 

Annex I ........................................................................................................................... 30 

Annex II .......................................................................................................................... 36 

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 

This  brief  study  contains  an  overview  of  the  way  in  which  the  traditional  employment 

structure  of  full-time,  permanent  work  is  being  replaced  to  a  significant  extent  by 

atypical  forms  of  work.  There  is  a  particular  focus  in  the  study  on  the  radical  new 

working relationships which have emerged in recent years through the creation of digital 

platforms and which are often referred to as the ‘gig economy’. 

An extensive literature has developed around the growth of atypical forms of work. This 

study  explores  one  specific  dimension  of  this  trend  -  namely  the  impact  which  atypical 

forms of work will have on employment and skills. 

One  of  the  core  instruments  utilised  by  the  European  Union  in  its  on-going  efforts  to 

match  job-seekers  with  appropriate  employment  opportunities  is  the  network  of 

European Public Employment Services (PES). This study focuses in particular on how the 

PES  can  equip  job-seekers  with  the  skills  required  to  successfully  engage  in  these  new 

atypical forms of work. 

Based on an extensive literature review, the analysis in chapter two identifies the types 

of  skills,  including  specific  occupation-related  technical  skills,  transversal  skills  and  soft 

skills  which  will  assume  greater  importance  as  a  consequence  of  the  growth  of  atypical 

working structures. 

Some of the skills which will become increasingly important include cognitive skills such 

as  problem  solving  and  the  ability  to  conceptualise  how  technology  can  enhance  the 

quality  of  products  and  services.  Quintessential  human  skills  such  as  emotional 

intelligence  and  teamwork  will  become  important  marketable  personal  assets,  while 

transversal  skills  such  as  digital  literacy  and  language  proficiency  will  be  seen  as 

essential for working in many occupations – especially digital literacy. Digital technology 

will  become  pervasive,  and  a  basic  technological literacy  will  become  a  requirement  for 

everyone as it will become a core competence for engaging in even the most mundane, 

everyday tasks. 

Redundancies and technological displacement of employment will occur more frequently 

as  many  routine  tasks  are  automated.  While  this  process  will  not  necessarily  result  in 

less  employment  opportunities,  it  will  result  in  more  movement  of  workers  within  the 

labour market from tasks which can be performed efficiently by machines to tasks which 

require  inter-personal  skills.  Crucially,  to  successfully  make  these  transitions,  workers 

will have to have intermittent access to vocational training programmes which can equip 

them with the skills to secure decent jobs regularly. 

Chapter three of this report contains an assessment of the extent to which the European 

PES currently have the capacity to meet the training needs of workers in atypical forms 

of  employment.  This  assessment  is  based  on  the  responses  of  the  European  PES  to  a 

structured  questionnaire  which  seeks  answers  to  a  range  of  questions  covering  issues 

such  as  the  availability  of  training,  course  curricula,  client  profiles,  skill  needs 

identification and the use of technology in both the promotion and delivery of training.  

The  responses  to  these  questions  are  for  the  most  part  disappointing.    While  the  PES 

have  to  some  extent  adapted  to  the  requirements  of  a  more  flexible  labour  market, 

much  more  needs  to  be  done.    Training  courses,  for  example,  are  not  available  in  the 

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European Network of Public Employment Services (PES) 

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

evening in 11 out of 26 PES and only nine provide training courses at weekends. This is 

unsatisfactory in view of the fact that workers will require regular up-skilling during their 

career  in  order  to  stay  ahead  of  the  continuously  evolving  process  of  automation  and 

skills obsolescence. Many of these workers will be in employment and may find it difficult 

to attend training courses during the daytime. 

Transversal  skills  such  as  digital  literacy  and  entrepreneurship,  and  soft-skills  such  as 

interpersonal  skills  will  assume  much  greater  importance  as  many  workplace  tasks 

become automated.  However, the responses indicate that the number of PES who  offer 

such training in soft skills and transversal skills to all job-seekers is extremely low. 

It is important that the PES understand the fundamental changes which are occurring to 

the labour market and that this knowledge can only be obtained through research. Some 

PES,  however,  are  still  relying  exclusively  on  employer  surveys  for  skill  needs 

identification. While most PES used new technology to promote training, the use of new 

technology  to  deliver  training  courses  remotely  was  very  low  (9  out  of  28  PES).  This is 

unfortunate because PES-based e-colleges – where they exist  - have been shown to be 

an effective method for updating the digital skills of the workforce.  

In summary, the responses to the questionnaire indicate that the necessary adaptations 

to  the  traditional  PES  model  have  not  been  introduced  by  most  PES.  There  are  five 

adaptations  which  are  identified  in  the  analysis  as  ‘critical’.  They  include  more  flexible 

availability of training; more broad-based course curricula; a more heterogeneous client 

profile;  the  use  of  research  for  skills  needs  identification  and  the  use  of  technology  to 

deliver flexible training remotely. 

The recommendation of this report is that the PES should be encouraged to engage in a 

benchlearning  exercise  in  which  the  PES,  who  have  been  identified  in  this  report  as 

exhibiting  ‘best  practice’  in  one  or  more  of  these  activities,  would  provide  relevant 

information and support to PES who have not as yet introduced the relevant adaptations.  

Examples of the PES who exhibit ‘best practice’ in these activities is provided in chapter 

four of this report. 

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

1. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND 

1.1  Background 

This brief report is one of a suite of studies commissioned by the European Commission 

which  are  designed  to  assist  the  EU  Public  Employment  Services  (PES)  to  benchmark 

their  performance,  both  in  terms  of  their  own  labour  market  and  in  respect  of  the 

performance of other PES.  

This particular study explores the emergence of atypical forms of employment including 

the  so-called  gig  economy;  their  impact  on  employment  structures  and  skills  and  the 

current  and  future  capacity  of  the  PES  to  equip  job-seekers  with  the  competences  and 

skills which are needed to engage successfully in this new employment landscape.   

1.2  Structure of the report 

There  are  many  ways  in  which  these  new  working  relationships  will  impact  on  the 

European  labour  market.  This  brief  study,  however,  is  concerned  solely  with  exploring 

the impact on employability and skills. Specifically, it seeks answers to four questions: 

  How  will  the  ‘technological  drivers’  underpinning  new  atypical  forms  of  work 

impact on and reshape traditional employment structures and relationships? 

  What are the skills and competences required for workers to survive and prosper 

in these new employment structures and relationships?  

  What  are  the  European  Public  Employment  Services  (PES)  currently  doing  to 

equip workers and job-seekers with these skills and competences? 

  What  more  does  the  PES  need  to  do  to  prepare  job-seekers  and  workers  for 

successfully engaging in atypical forms of employment?  

The  analysis  in  chapter  two  attempts  to  provide  answers  to  the  first  two  questions.  An 

assessment  of  the  current  capacity  of  the  PES  to  equip  job-seekers  with  these  skills  is 

undertaken  in  chapter  three.  The  final  chapter  recommends  a  bench-learning  approach 

to  assist  more  PES  to  introduce  five  core  adaptations  which  the  analysis  shows  are 

necessary to prepare workers for the new forms of employment, and which have not as 

yet been introduced by all PES. 

1.3  Methodology 

The  methodology  consists  essentially  of  three  components.  These  include  an  extensive 

review  of  the  recent  literature  on  the  new  technological  developments  which  are 

underpinning the emerging atypical employment structures and their expected impact on 

skills  demand.  It  also  includes  the  responses  to  a  structured  questionnaire  which  was 

completed by virtually every PES in Europe.     

The  contrast  between  the  emerging  critical  skills  and  the  current  PES  skills  delivery 

paradigm  –  as  outlined  in  the  response  to  the  questionnaire  -  is  the focus  of  extensive 

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

analyses  in  chapters  three  and  four,  and  the  findings  form  the  basis  of  the  ‘bench-

learning’ recommendation in the report. 

2.  THE  DRIVERS  OF  ATYPICAL  EMPLOYMENT  AND  THE  IMPACT  ON 
SKILLS 

2.3  Introduction  

In  this  chapter,  we  explore  the  main  ‘technological  drivers’  underpinning  the  growth  of 

atypical  employment  in  Europe  in  recent  years  and  the  impact  on  the  relative  demand 

for different skills. Our focus is on understanding the capacity of these new technologies 

to radically alter traditional working relationships and skills hierarchies. We examine this 

evolving skills hierarchy through the prism of soft skills and transversal skills as well as 

the  technical  skills  associated  with  particular  occupations.  Our  aim  in  this  chapter  is  to 

build a profile of the type of skilled worker who will be best placed to successfully exploit 

the opportunities which this new technological revolution is creating.  

2.4  Globalisation, 

intense  competition  and  pressure  on 

productivity  

Before  focusing  on  the  ‘technological  drivers’  of  atypical  employment,  however,  it  is 

necessary to consider the wider economic context in which these technologies are being 

developed and introduced into business models. 

One of the defining characteristics of the current economic context is the globalisation of 

markets.  The  reduction  in  transport  costs  and  the  widespread  availability  of  cheap 

communication  channels  has  opened  up  a  huge  global  market  to  companies  in  Europe. 

These markets contain resources such as relatively inexpensive but skilled labour which 

have  the  potential  to  reduce  costs  and  increase  productivity  for  European  companies. 
This potential is being exploited by companies through offshoring1 activities which can be 
more  efficiently  performed  in  other  countries,  and  by  Governments  in  their  quest  to 
attract international talent.2 

The  impetus  to  reduce  costs  has  also  gained  momentum  in  recent  years  through 

changes in the cost of substituting capital for labour in the developed world. The cost of 

capital – particularly information and computer related technologies (ICT) – has declined 

significantly  over  the  period  1995-2005  and  this  has  made  it  cheaper  to  substitute 

capital  for  labour.  At  the  same  time,  the  performance  of  these  new  technologies  has 

increased  exponentially  through  dramatic  improvements  in  artificial  intelligence,  3D 

printing  and  robotics.    While  it  has  been  possible  for  some  time  to  automate  relatively 

routine  tasks,  recent  technological  developments  enable  machines  to  learn  complex 

tasks such as navigating transport through heavily populated urban areas. 

1  Blinder (2009)  for example estimates that 22% to29% of jobs in the United States have either 
been  ‘offshored’  or  will  be  offshored  within  a  decade  or  two.  Such  jobs  do  not  have  to  be 
performed at a specific location nor do they require face to face personal communication. 
2  See  for  example  “The  Global  Competition  for  Talent:  Mobility  of  the  Highly  Skilled”  OECD, 
September 2008  

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

The  capacity  of  machine  learning  to  perform  complex  tasks  has  been  further  enhanced 

by  developments  in  big  data  analytics.  The  creation  of  powerful  algorithms,  with 

analytical and predictive capacity, means that vast amounts of data can be interrogated 

more  accurately  and  more  efficiently  than  humans  are  capable  of  doing.  Using  this 

technology,  patterns  can  be  detected  in  human  behaviour  which  have  both  commercial 

and security applications. The detection of fraud and the ability to predict the incidence 

and approximate location of crime are some examples of the latter. It is anticipated that 

over  the  next  few  years  sensors  will  replace  closed  circuit  television  and  will  be 

commonplace  on  our  streets  and  in  buildings  making  the  prevention  and  detection  of 

crime much more efficient. 

Major  increases  in  efficiency  will  occur  in  many  sectors.  For  example,  in  the  retail  and 

wholesale  sectors,  the  capacity  of  data  analytics  to  accurately  monitor  consumers’ 

revealed  preferences  will  enable  a  more  accurate  management  of  inventory;  reducing 

waste and storage space while responding effectively to the consumers’ needs. 

Big data analytics will make a significant impact in all sectors where the efficient analysis 

of  very  large  amounts  of  individual  records  can  improve  the  quality  of  the  services 

provided.  The  healthcare  sector  and  the  legal  profession  are  expected  to  experience 

major  improvements  in  efficiency  over  the  next  few  years  as  it  becomes  possible  to 

easily access the outcomes of hundreds of thousands of medical and legal cases. 

2.5  The impact on occupation-related technical skills 

There is considerable agreement among experts on what the impact of machine learning 

will  be  on  skills  demand.  In  general,  it  will  not  result  in  the  elimination  of  entire 

occupations  -  the  exception  being  white  collar  clerical  and  administrative  functions. 
Millions of jobs in these occupations are expected to be lost within the next five years. 3 

However, for most occupations, the impact of machine learning will be the automation of 

a significant number of tasks within occupations rather than the elimination of the entire 

occupation. However, the skill hierarchy within at least a third of occupations will change 

radically.  Indeed,  most  of  the  skill  sets  which  will  assume  critical  importance  for  best 

practice  in  most  occupations  over  the  next  few  years  are  skills  sets  which  are  not 

considered important today. 

It  is  possible  to  catalogue  existing  work,  particularly  work  that  is  routine  and  as  such  

likely to be replaced or reconfigured by digital tools, and conversely to identify those skill 

sets which will be of critical importance in future years.  

Frey and Osborne4, for example, apply certain statistical techniques to the US Bureau of 
Labour  Statistics  ONET  classification  of  occupations  to  rank  hundreds  of  occupations  in 

terms of their relative susceptibility to automation.   

3  The  report  on  the  ‘Future  of  Jobs’  published  by  the  World  Economic  Forum  in  January  2016 
expects  7.1  million  jobs  to  be  lost  by  2020  in  the  countries  covered  by  the  report,  two thirds  of 
which are expected to be in clerical and administrative roles.  
4 Carl Benedict Frey and Michael Osborne “the Future of Employment; How Susceptible are Jobs to 
Computerisation” Oxford Martin School Working Paper, September 2013 

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

The  2016  World  Economic  Forum  report  commissioned  an  in-depth extensive  survey  of 

three  hundred  and  seventy  one  leading  global  employers  representing  over  thirteen 

million  employees  in  an  attempt  to  identify  the  skills  and  competences  which  would  be 

considered  most  valuable  in  this  new  employment  landscape.  The  skills  sets  which  the 

respondents  cited  as  being  of  most  importance  were  data  analysts  and  specialist 

technical  sales  representatives,  although  there  was  also  considerable  mention  of  media 

and entertainment related skills. 

The  need  for  data  analysts  is  obvious.  The  sheer  volume  and  complexity  of  the  data 

which is, and will continue to be, generated on a daily basis means that workers with the 

capacity  to  manage  and  interrogate  large  data  sets  will  be  very  much  in  demand.  The 

ability  to  perceive  the  commercial  potential  latent  in  large  data  sets,  and  to  generate 

innovative  marketable  services  and  products 

through  creating  socially  useful 

applications,  will  be  greatly  valued  by  the  marketplace  and  will  command  a  high 

premium in terms of remuneration. 

The  selling  occupations  refer  specifically  to  specialised  products  and  services  where 

excellent  persuasive  skills  and  language  proficiency  are  required  to  effect  successful 

transactions.  In  contrast,  cashiers  who  are  employed  in  outlets  which  retail  mass-

produced  products  are  already  being  displaced  by  barcode  technologies  applied  by  the 

customer. 

The  most  important  skill  sets  mentioned  by  the  respondents  to  the  survey  –  with  the 

exception of data analysts – all require quintessential human skills.  Virtually every study 

conducted recently on the skills needs generated by the current technological revolution 

stress the increasing importance of soft skills. 

For  example,  many  commentators  have  mentioned  the  importance  of  skills  such  as 

emotional intelligence. These skills are critical in sectors such as healthcare, which, due 

to  demographic  changes,  will  expand  its  employment  share  in  Europe  over  the  next 

decades.  

In  general,  while  all  routine  tasks  –  and  to  an  increasing  extent  even  one-off  complex 

tasks  –  will  be  performed  by  machines,  the  role  of  workers  will  be  to  configure  the 

technology  to  produce  and  market  products  and  services  which  have  commercial 

viability.  Typically,  this  will  involve  multi-disciplinary  project  teams  working  together  to 

successfully conceptualise and deliver these products and services to the marketplace. 

A recent innovation introduced on a pilot basis in a number of American cities illustrates 

how  these  technologies  are  coming  together  to  provide  solutions  to  difficult  problems. 

For  example,  the  consumer  using  ‘smart  glasses’  would  contact  a  driverless  electronic 

car to pick him/her up at a specific location to be driven to a destination.  The customer 

is automatically billed for the  cost  of the transfer by one  of the  ride-sharing companies 

operating  from  a  digital  platform  such  as  Uber,  Lyft  or  Blablacar.  By  sharing  safe  non-

polluting  vehicles,  it  is  expected  that  this  initiative  will  result  in  major  reductions  in 

traffic congestion, pollution and road accidents in just a few years without compromising 

either privacy or comfort. 

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This example illustrates one of the most dramatic consequences of the combined impact 

of  new  technologies  on  employment  structures  -  the  speed,  where  certain  job  profiles 
(e.g. taxi drivers) will disappear and new profiles will emerge, is accelerating rapidly.5   

Thus  one  of  the  most  urgent,  major  challenges  confronting  the  European  vocational 

training  system  is  to  identify  and  deliver  the  skill  sets  which  will  be  marketable  in  this 

new  employment  landscape.  While  the  acquisition  of  in-depth  knowledge  and  technical 

expertise  will  continue  to  be  fundamentally  important,  in-depth  expertise  in  itself  may 

not be enough to avoid job loss in the future if the tasks associated with such expertise 

are susceptible to automation.  

The  type  of  technical  expertise  which  will  sustain  employment  in  the  future  will  be 

expertise which  is associated with potentially numerous different horizontal applications 

(the  so  called  T-shaped  skills).  Such  expertise  allows  the  worker  to  switch  to  emerging 

niche  markets  if  and  when  traditional  markets  become  automated.  It  does  assume, 

however,  that  there  is  a  continuous  training  infrastructure  available  to  the  worker  to 
update his or her skills throughout their working life.6 

2.6  Digital platforms and the emergence of the gig economy 

There  is  mounting  evidence  that  the  structure  of  employment,  and  in  particular  the 

nature of employment contracts, is undergoing radical change. Specifically, the share of 

temporary contracts is increasing.  

This  is  not  obvious  from  an  analysis  of  the  total  employment  stock  in  Europe;  it  has 

remained relatively modest and static at roughly 12% of all employee contracts over the 

last few years. 

But  an  analysis  of  the  contracts  of  younger  workers  shows  a  much  higher  share;  the 

ratio  rising  to  one  in  five  for  those  aged  under  40  years  and  to  one  in  three  for  those 

aged under 25 years.  

Furthermore,  an  analysis  of  movements  from  unemployment  and  inactivity  into 

employment in recent years shows that the share of temporary contracts of new recruits 
is very high and rising.7 

This trend is probably due to a combination of factors. It may reflect a reluctance on the 

part  of  many  employers  to  carry  permanent  and  costly  overheads  as  a  result  of  their 

experience in the recent severe recession in Europe. 

Developments in technology, which have  occurred in recent years, have  resulted in  the 

transfer  of big data analytics to the  ‘cloud’. This development  has created the potential 

to develop electronic marketplaces for the purpose of buying and selling a vast array of 

products  and  services,  which  can  be  assessed  by  billions  of  customers  remotely.  In 

recent years, a wide range of companies have been set up with the purpose of exploiting 

5  The  World  Economic  Forum  report  cites  the  widely  used  estimate  that  65%  of  the  children 
entering primary education today will ultimately end up in entirely new jobs that don’t as yet exist. 
6 For example, many electricians, in response to the emergence of modular housing developments 
with in-built circuitry, have learnt how to install and maintain smart homes technology. 
7  For example, the analysis of transitions in Ireland in 2015 showed that only 45% of those  who 
transitioned from unemployment to employment obtained a permanent job. 

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

the  commercial  potential  of  these  digital  platforms.  This  commercial  potential  can  take 

many  different  forms.  In  some  cases,  the  companies  act  essentially  as  intermediaries, 

bringing  people  together  for  selling  a  product  (e.g.  Airbnb)  or  providing  a  service  (e.g. 

Uber),  and  they  take  payment  for  making  the  marketplace  available  to  those  who 

undertake transactions in it. In other cases (social networks), the commercial potential is 

more  indirect  as  companies  gather  vast  amounts  of  data  on  potential  customers, 

creating valuable resources for the world-wide advertising market.  

However,  these  companies  do  not  employ  the  people  who  use  their  digital  marketplace 

for  engaging  in  commercial  or  social  activity.  Furthermore,  the  contracts  which  are 

transacted  with  third  parties  on  the  digital  platform  are  generally  of  a  very  short 

duration.  The  term  which  has  become  synonymous  with  this  type  of  work  –  the  gig 

economy – comes from the word ‘gigabyte’. 

For  some  people,  the  type  of  work  which  can  be  secured  through  digital  platforms  is 

attractive because it is very flexible. Indeed, in some cases, the employment structure is 

more akin to the type of arrangements which were offered in bygone days when workers 

would assemble in specific places in the morning hoping to be selected for a day’s work. 
It  is  also  reminiscent  of  the  quasi-feudal  ‘putting-out  economy’  that  existed  before 
factories,  when  companies  would  ship  materials  to  people  to  assemble  items  such  as 
shoes, clothing, or firearms in their own homes.8 

However,  there  are  significant  disadvantages  associated  with  earning  income  from 

contracts  obtained  on  the  digital  platform.  The  traditional  employee  job  not  only 

guaranteed  a  regular  salary,  it  also  provided  paid  holiday  leave,  maternity  leave  and 

sickness  entitlements.  Perhaps  most  significantly,  the  traditional  employment  contract 

provided a regular contribution towards the employees’ pension. 

Typically, the contracts for work obtained through the digital platform do not contain any 

such entitlements. A worker whose income is largely based on work secured through the 

digital  platform  will  have  to  make  his  or  her  own  arrangements  in  respect  of  pensions, 

sickness cover and the funding of holidays et cetera. 

In  this  sense,  work  obtained  through  the  digital  platform  requires  specific  skills  and 

competencies, such as self-reliance, organisation ability, and personal initiative. 

It is difficult to estimate the magnitude of the gig economy in the European Union (EU). 

The share of self-employment in Europe has only increased for professionals, particularly 

for  associate  professionals  and  technicians,  though  there  have  been  marked  variations 

between  countries.  However,  the  definition  of  self-employment  is  not  synonymous  with 

work in the gig economy. Gig economy workers tend to be engaged in work of very short 

duration. The evidence suggests that the number of short term contracts has increased 
in the EU in recent years.9   

8  See Kenny, Martin and John Zysman  “the  Rise  of the  Platform Economy” Issues in Science  and 
Technology 32, no. 3 (Spring 2016) for a good analysis. 
9 For example there were 3 million employees on contracts of less than 3 months in EU 28 in 2016 
compared to 2.6 million in 2010. However, there was no notable change in the volume of contracts 
of under 1 months duration during this period (see Eurostat web site) 

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

2.7  Conclusions  

There  are  a  number  of  features  of  the  employment  structures  which  are  being  created 

through the application of new technologies which are worthy of note. 

A greater share of employment opportunities will be able to be performed in the home, 

and  a  considerable  share  of  employment  will  be  very  flexible,  facilitating  those  women 

and  men  who  are  seeking  a  better  family  and work  balance  than  is  usually  provided  in 

traditional employment structures. 

The anticipated extensive diffusion of ICT technologies into all aspects of work may also 

increase employment opportunities for the physically disabled. Finally, the availability of 

very short and highly flexible project work  could provide a stepping stone to encourage 

“discouraged” workers to re-enter the workforce. 

A perusal of the type of skill sets which will ascend the skills hierarchy over the next few 

years illustrates the radical change which is about to occur in our understanding of which 

skills  are  important.  A  simple  phrase  contained  in  the  report  of  the  World  Economic 

Forum perhaps embodies the essence of this new skills paradigm; ‘technical skills will 

need to be supplemented with strong social and collaboration skills’. 

Some  of  the  main  skill-sets  which  will  become  increasingly  sought  after  in  the 

marketplace  as  a  result  of  technological  advances  and  subsequent  changes  in 

employment  structures  are  summarised  below.  Just  as  atypical  employment  structures 

will  mark  a  radical  departure  from  the  traditional  employee/employer  relationship,  the 

skills-desirability pyramid which is being created from these technological developments, 

will differ greatly from the current skills hierarchy. 

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

STEM  skills10:  everyone,  whether  their  job  specifically  entails  a  proficiency  in 
computer science, mathematics or engineering will have to have a reasonable level of 
digital  literacy  simply  to  conduct  everyday  actions  or  indeed  to  market  and  sell  their 
products or services. 

Proficiency  in  any  of  the  STEM  disciplines,  but  in  particular  a  capacity  to  configure 
digital tools and envisage their potential to produce marketable products and services, 
will become a much sought after expertise in the labour market in the near future and 
beyond. 

Technical  knowledge  and  expertise  with  multiple  horizontal  applications  in 
niche markets: such skills will protect workers from the automation of specific tasks 
within their occupation and ensure that the demand for their skills will be  sustainable 
–  albeit  through  regularly  augmenting  their  basic  expertise  through  engaging  in 
continuous lifelong learning. 

Language  proficiency:  this  is  becoming  a  key  expertise  in  a  marketplace  that  will 
continue  to  become  more  global  as  emerging markets  with  very  large  populations  of 
potential customers play a larger role in world trade. In general, however, a very high 
level  of  proficiency  will  be  required  –  including  a  knowledge  of  cultural  norms  of 
behaviour. 

Selling  skills:  these  skills  will  be  the  basis  for  a  critical  and  highly  marketable 
expertise.  Selling  skills  combine  knowledge  and  technical  competences  –  including 
language proficiency - with soft skills such as persuasion and charm.  

Personality and charm and creativity: ironically, while many activities will require 
a reasonable level of digital literacy, these technological advances are enabling billions 
of people to build and access their own media creations placing a commercial premium 
on quintessential human attributes such as charm, personality and creativity. 

Entrepreneurial  skills:  technological  advances  are  resulting  in  a  contraction  in  the 
share of traditional employee contracts and a growth in ‘quasi-entrepreneurship’. The 
share  of  permanent  employment  is  expected  to  contract  significantly.  Many  jobs  will 
be project based and of short duration, and many workers will be obliged to regularly 
re-enter  the  marketplace  and  offer  their  expertise  and  in  effect  become  autonomous 
mini entrepreneurs selling their expertise in a world-wide electronic marketplace. They 
will also have to fully fund their own pensions, holidays, maternity leave and so forth 
as entrepreneurs do currently.  

10 Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics  

Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion 
European Network of Public Employment Services (PES) 

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

3. CURRENT PES SERVICES AND ATYPICAL EMPLOYMENT 

3.1  Introduction 

In  this  chapter,  we  present  an  assessment  of  a  range  of  current  practices  among  the 

European Public Employment Services. These practices have been selected because they 

are  considered  to  be  relevant  to  the  issue  of  enhancing  the  employability  of  PES 

registrants  in  a  labour  market  which  is  increasingly  characterised  by  atypical 

employment opportunities. 

A  questionnaire  (Annex  I)  was  circulated  to  a  total  of  thirty-two  European  Public 

Employment  Services.  These  included  the  PES  of  the  twenty  eight  Member  States, 

Iceland, Norway and the three Belgian regions. A total of thirty-one PES responded, but 

this figure includes two regional responses from the Swedish PES. Just two PES did not 

submit a completed questionnaire. 

Four questions in the questionnaire related specifically to training provision, so the three 

PES that are not responsible for the delivery of training did not answer these questions.  

3.2  The classification of registrants  

The  first  two  questions  on  the  questionnaire  assess  the  extent  to  which  the  European 

PES record whether registrants had worked in atypical employment or if they aspired to 

work in atypical employment 

Figure 3.1 Number of PES who record if registrants previous work  experience involved 

specific forms of atypical employment 

The  responses  show  that  most  PES  record  whether  the  employment  experience  was 

part-time,  temporary  or  indeed  self-employment.  Thus,  of  the  thirty-one  PES  who 

responded, twenty four said that they recorded part-time employment, while twenty-two 

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European Network of Public Employment Services (PES) 

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

said  that  they  record  temporary  employment,  and  twenty-six  said  they  recorded 

previous work experience which was self-employment. 

However,  the  situation  is  reversed  when  the  PES  were  asked  about  recording  previous 

employment which was linked to digital platforms or other forms of atypical employment 

such as zero contracts or mini-jobs. 

This  pattern  was  repeated  when  the  PES  were  asked  if  they  recorded  cases  where  the 

registrant aspired to work in atypical employment (Figure 3.2). While the great majority 

of European PES recorded the employment aspirations of registrants in the case of part-

time, temporary work and self-employment, very few PES classified the employment if it 

was linked to digital platforms or zero-hours or other forms of mini-jobs. 

Many PES commented that atypical forms of employment, such as zero hours contracts, 

were  illegal  in  their  country  and  the  PES  were  consequently  excluded  from  any 

involvement  which  could  be  construed  as  legitimising  such  activity.  Some  PES 

emphasised  that  they  were  only  permitted  to  mediate  on  behalf  of  the  registered  job-

seeker  in  respect  of  jobs  which  had  a  minimum  number  of  regular  hours  and 

remuneration. 

It  was  also  pointed  out  by  a  number  of  PES  that  a  knowledge  of  a  job-seeker’s 

employment history and their career aspirations, even where they involved new forms of 

atypical employment, would invariably emerge during the counselling process, even if it 

was not formally recorded during the registration process.  

Figure 3.2 Number of PES dealing with registrants seeking atypical employment 

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European Network of Public Employment Services (PES) 

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

3.3  PES Mediation  

The  legal  constraints  mentioned  by  many  PES  in  respect  of  the  information  they  could 

formally  record  is  reflected  in  the  type  of  atypical  employment  opportunities  (i.e.  in 

vacancies notified to the PES) where the PES is willing to mediate between the employer 

and  the  job-seeker.  Virtually  all  PES  would  mediate  in  the  case  of  part-time  jobs  but 

interestingly  significantly  less  would  mediate  in  the  case  of  temporary  employment 

contracts.  Only  five  PES  said  that  they  would  engage  in  such  mediation  in  cases  where 

the  job  was  associated  with  a  digital  platform,  while  eight  PES  said  that  they  would 

mediate for other forms of atypical employment. 

Figure 3.3 Number of PES mediating in atypical employment 

While  it  is  accepted  that  many  forms  of  atypical  employment  contracts  are  currently 

illegal  in  many  European  countries,  this  situation  might  change  in  the  future.  For 

example,  it  has  recently  changed  in  Denmark.  In  May  2017  the  Danish  government 

agreed  on  a  new  unemployment  benefit  system  for  self-employed  and  atypically 

employed, giving greater security to all - no matter how they are employed.  

This  agreement  may  enable  the  Danish  PES  to  engage  in  the  type  of  initiatives 

introduced  recently  by  the  Finnish  PES.  A  pilot  has  been  launched  in  May  2017  in  the 

digital job market platform of the Finnish PES in order to offer (voluntary) opportunities 

of the new forms of work and entrepreneurship to clients (through a linkage to invoicing 

companies and digital job mediation platforms). This is one of the few examples of a PES 

actively  exploring  the  job  possibilities  inherent  in  atypical  forms  of  employment. 

(http://tyomarkkinatori.fi/fi). 

3.4  PES course outcomes  

In  question  five,  the  PES  were  asked  what  data  they  took  into  account  when  assessing 

their performance in terms of employment outcomes. Specifically, they were asked if the 

personal  characteristics  of  job-seekers  (i.e.  age,  gender,  and  educational  attainment 

were recorded) and if the nature of the employment contract was recorded.  

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

Figure 3.4 Data used to measure outcomes (number of PES)  

Neither, 1 

Job seeker data 
only, 7 

Contract data 
only, 0 

Both, 23 

This question was asked to assess if data was potentially available from the PES on the 

characteristics of those who enter atypical employment contracts. 

A  total  of  twenty  three  out  of  thirty-one  PES  said  that  they  took  both  the  personal 

characteristics of job-seekers and the nature of the contract of employment into account 

when assessing employment outcomes. 

3.5  PES client profiles 

Figure 3.5 Number of PES by client profile 

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

3 

24 

4 

3 

18 

10 

3 

23 

5 

3 

24 

4 

6 

20 

5 

Enterprise

Women

Young persons Persons with

Other

disability

No

Yes

No response

In  question  six,  the  PES  were  asked  about  the  extent  to  which  they  provided  training 

courses for certain categories of job-seeker; specifically persons ready to start their own 

business, women, young people and the disabled.  

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

While  the  responses  to  the  question  were  relatively  positive  in  respect  of  entrepreneurs 

(twenty-four out of twenty-eight respondents), young people (twenty-three out of twenty 

eight  respondents)  and  persons  with  a  disability  (twenty-four  out  of  twenty-eight 

respondents),  the  response  was  notably  weaker  in  the  case  of  courses  specifically 

designed for women (eighteen out of twenty-eight respondents). 

While the course provision should not be necessarily gender specific, it is important that 

all PES provide adequate training opportunities for women returning to the workforce. .  

The anticipated pervasive presence of new technology across the occupation spectrum is 

also expected to attract more  people with a physical disability into the workforce.  While 

only four PES are currently not providing training for disabled job-seekers, these four PES 

should  review  their  lack  of  provision  in  this  area  in  view  of  the  anticipated  increase  of 

persons with a physical disability in the labour force. 

3.6  Course curricula 

Perhaps  the  most  striking  finding  of  the  review  of  the  literature  on  new  forms  of 

employment is the increasing importance of transversal and soft skills, in sharp contrast 

to the increasing vulnerability to automation of many technical skills. 

For  this  reason,  the  PES  were  asked  about  the  extent  to  which  critical  transversal  and 

soft  skills  were  included  in  their  portfolio  of  training  courses.  The  results  give  cause  for 

concern.  

Figure 3.6 Inclusion of transversal/soft skills in course curricula (number of PES) 

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

6 

10 

14 

1 
Enterpreneurial skills

3 

8 

18 

2 

4 

6 

15 

6 

10 

7 

12 

2 

Digital skills

Soft skills

Career planning skills

All courses

Some courses

Specific courses

No response

While the number of PES who offered training in these transversal and soft skills on some 

courses was quite high (an average of fifteen out of an average of twenty five PES) the 

number  of  PES  which  provided  such  training  as  an  integral  component  of  every  course 

was very low. Thus, while all  twenty-five PES  provided training in entrepreneurial skills, 

only  one  provided  this  training  as  part  of  every  course.  Only  two  PES  provided  digital 

skills training or training in career planning on every course.  While the provision of soft 

skills  training  was  higher,  nevertheless  only  six  PES  provided  such  training  on  every 

course. 

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

While  the  inclusion  of  modules  on  transversal  and  soft  skills  will  increase  both  the 

duration and cost of training programmes, the requirement for these skills is expected to 

rapidly embrace large sections of the European workforce within the next few years.   

Consequently, there is a compelling case for the PES to make  such training available to 

every job-seeker. 

3.7  Use of IT in delivering training 

The  literature  review  of  the  impact  of  technological  developments  on  the  structure  of 

employment  pointed  to  the  increasing  incidence  of  short-term  employment  projects. 

More workers will find themselves regularly looking for new work assignments, and may 

be obliged to upgrade their skills to secure the projects on offer.  

In summary, continuous training will feature much more prominently for both employed 

and unemployed job-seekers in the new employment landscape which is emerging. Such 

training  will  be  particularly  important  for  workers  who  need  to  upgrade  their  digital 

literacy skills. 

In recent years, there have been significant advances made in the capacity of technology 

to deliver quality, certified training to persons in their homes  – especially training in the 

application of information and communication technologies.  

Figure 3.7 Use of internet to deliver courses (number of PES) 

No response, 3 

Yes, 9 

No, 19 

Question  eight  was  designed  to  elicit  information  on  the  number  of  PES  who  have 

embraced this technology to provide continuous training opportunities - especially in ICT. 

The  response  is  disappointing.  A  total  of  nineteen  out  of  twenty-eight  PES  do  not  use 

technology to provide e-learning opportunities.  

3.8  The availability of training 

As  already  stated,  continuous  training  will  become  more  important  over  the  next  few 

years  as  the  share  of  permanent,  life-time  employment  contracts  and  the  share  of 

project-based  work  of  relatively  short  duration  expands.  Unlike  with  initial  vocational 

training,  those  who  participate  in  continuous  training  are  often  in  employment,  and 

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

engage  in  continuous  training  to  obtain  higher  quality  employment  or  because  their 

current job is temporary or both. 

The extent to which the PES can currently facilitate continuous training opportunities was 

explored by eliciting information on the availability of their training courses. The  results 

are disappointing. Of twenty-six PES currently provide training courses, only nine provide 

training courses at the  weekends while only eleven provide it during the evenings. Only 

thirteen of twenty-seven PES provide part-time training courses.  

Figure 3.8 Flexible training delivery (number of PES) 

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

4 

13 

14 

5 

11 

15 

5 

9 

17 

Part-time

Evening

Weekends

No

Yes

No response

3.9  Methods of identifying skill needs 

One  of  the  important  findings  from  the  literature  review  is  that  the  type  of  skills  which 

are becoming important in the new, emerging employment landscape  – with the notable 

exception of digital skills - are not widely understood. 

This is not surprising. The traditional education and training paradigm is built around the 

concept of imparting a technical skill or a specific quantum of knowledge. The student or 

trainee  is  then  assessed  on  the  extent  to  which  they  can  execute  a  technical  task  or 

demonstrate that they possess specific knowledge of a subject. 

The employment structures which will emerge in the next few years will significantly alter 

our  perception  of  which  skills  and  knowledge  are  valuable.  In  general,  interpersonal, 

creative  and  cognitive  skills  will  assume  much  greater  importance,  while  at  least  some 

forms  of  knowledge  will  become  redundant  as  machines  will  embody  the  knowledge 

required to execute many tasks. 

This  radical  change  in  the  skill  hierarchy  requires  an  equally  radical  change  in  how  skill 

needs  are  identified.  The  traditional  method  used  by  the  PES  were  employer-based 

surveys. The answers to the questionnaire show that this is still the case. Of the twenty-

six  PES  who  responded  to  this  question,  twenty-five  of  them  based  their  knowledge  at 

least partly on what employers were telling them through surveys and other means. 

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European Network of Public Employment Services (PES) 

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

This method, while useful, will not be sufficient to identify the range of skills which will be 

required to ensure that job-finders can regularly access decent employment. Fortunately, 

there  is  some  evidence  from  the  survey  that  many  PES  are  aware  of  the  limitations  of 

employer surveys as twenty-one of the twenty six PES who responded said that they also 

used research findings as a means of identifying skills needs. 

Figure 3.9 Source of information on skills needs (number of PES) 

Other

3 

Research

Job seeker needs

Employer needs

21 

22 

25 

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

3.10  Use of digital platforms 

The  use  of  technology  to  promote  the  services  of  the  European  Public  Employment 

Services  online,  and  to  engage  interactively  with  clients  and  stakeholders,  is  quite 

pervasive with only two out of the thirty-one PES surveyed stating that they did not use 

new technology in this manner. 

Indeed,  the  examples  of  the  use  of  digital  platforms  presented  by  many  PES  such  as 

Austria,  Denmark  and  Sweden  are  very  impressive.  However,  the  number  who  used 

digital  platforms  to  enhance  their  knowledge  of  their  local  labour  market  was  low  as 

eighteen  out  of  thirty  PES  said  that  they  did  not  engage  in  scraping  the  internet  for 

labour market intelligence. 

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

Figure 3.10 Use of digital platforms (number of PES) 

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

29 

2 

1 

12 

18 

On-line interactions

Labour market
information web-
scraping

11 

14 

6 

Other

29 

2 

On-line PES
advertising

No

Yes

No response

This  relatively  low  usage  by  the  European  PES  may  reflect  the  fact  that  the  digital 

platforms  with  the  most  valuable  labour  market  intelligence  such  as  LinkedIn  cater 

mainly  for  professional  and  associate  professional  occupations.  In  addition,  in  some 

countries,  there  are  data  protection  and  legal  issues  involved  in,  scraping  for  example 

vacancy data from specific company sites. 

3.11  Conclusions 

Some  of  the  activities  which  many  European  PES  are  not  currently  involved  in,  such  as 

the  recording  of  certain  types  of  atypical  employment  (e.g.  zero  hour  contracts;  jobs 

linked to digital platforms) or the scrapping of web sites may have associated legal issues 

and as such it would not be appropriate to recommend that the PES become involved in 

such activities. 

However,  when  the  responses  to  the  questionnaire  are  contrasted  with  the  skills  profile 

which  emerges  from  the  analysis  in  chapter  two,  it  is  clear  that  there  are  many 

adaptations  which  are  clearly  required  to  the  PES  traditional  structure  to  assist  job-

seekers  and  indeed  the  employed  to  engage  successfully  with  the  new  atypical 

employment contracts.  

There  are  five  such  adaptations  which  are  critical.  These  are:  greater  availability  of 

training  courses;  a  broader  based  course  curriculum;  a  more  heterogeneous  client 

profile;  the  flexible  on-line  remote  delivery  of  training  courses  and  a  greater  use  of 

research in the identification of skills needs. 

A process of the introduction of these adaptations to all European PES forms the basis of 

the recommendations in chapter 4. 

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Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

4.  CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 

4.1  Introduction 

The focus of this brief study is identifying the employment structures and skills which are 

associated  with  the  emergence  in  recent  years  of  various  forms  of  atypical  employment 

contracts  –  especially  those  associated  with  digital  platforms  and  the  so-called  ‘gig 

economy’.  An  extensive  literature  review  has  been  undertaken  to  identify  the  key 

technological developments which underpin the spread of atypical employment structures 

and which create radical changes in the relative importance of different types of skills. 

A  detailed  assessment  -  using  a  structured  questionnaire  –  of  the  capacity  of  the 

European  PES  to  equip  job-seekers  with  the  skills,  which  are  assuming  greater 

importance  in  this  new  and  emerging  employment  landscape,  has  been  conducted  in 

thirty European PES.  

4.2  Conclusions 

The  response  of  the  European  PES  to  the  questionnaire  shows  that  for  the  most  part, 

they are ill prepared for the task of equipping job-seekers with the skills which they will 

require to engage successfully in these atypical forms of employment. In the case of not 

maintaining records on the number of registrants who either have engaged in, or wish to 

engage in, atypical forms of employment, their response is justified.  For the most part, 

the  reasons  why  specific  PES  do  not  engage  in  this  activity  is  because  the  contracts  in 

question are illegal in their country. 

In addition, the PES in general score very well on some critical activities, such as the use 

of new technology to promote training and to interact with clients and stakeholders.  

However, there are at least five major areas of activity where the PES for the most part 

are  not  prepared  for  the  radical  changes  in  the  workplace  which  atypical  forms  of 

employment  will  give  rise  to..  These  areas  of  activity  are  course  curricula;  PES  client 

profiles; the availability of training; the identification of skills needs and the use of new 

technology for remote training delivery - especially of ICT training modules.  

4.3  Recommendations 

The  recommendation  in  this  report  is  that  those  PES,  which  are  not  involved  in  one  or 

more of the five core activities, should engage with  those PES that currently do provide 

them  to  gain  an  understanding  of  both  the  costs  and  the  benefits  of  introducing  these 

activities. 

The list of activities and the PES who - according to the responses of the questionnaire – 

exhibit  good  practice  in  these  activities  are  outlined  in  Table  4.1.  It  is  emphasised, 

however,  that  this  list  is  not  exhaustive.  Instead,  it  provides  examples  of  the  kind  of 

activities  PES  are  involved  in  to  support  job-seekers  who  are  entering  a  new  labour 

market.  While  less  secure  than  the  traditional  labour  market,  the  new  labour  market 

offers many potentially interesting and lucrative atypical employment opportunities.  

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28 

 
 
Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

Table 4.1 PES services for atypical labour markets – examples of best practice 

PES  should  offer  a  broad  course  curricula  embracing 
soft  skills,  entrepreneurship,  technical  skills  and 
career development on most courses 

VDAB  have  commenced  a  course  in  partnership  with 
the  Ministry  of  Education  which  is  designed  to 
enhance the digital skills of the most disadvantaged. 

UK  PES  has  modules  on  soft  skills,  career  planning 
and digital literacy on all courses. 

Portugal PES provides basic skills training  – including 
digital literacy – for adults 

PES  should  use 
technology  more  extensively 
particularly  to  provide  modularised,  certified  training 
in digital skills remotely. 

Spanish  PES  provides  an  extensive  range  of  on-line 
training which is available outside of standard hours. 

Ireland  has  national  VET  e-college  facility  which 
provides  certified,  modularised  training  to  employed 
and unemployed. 

Luxemburg  and  Le  Forem  PES  provide  a  range  of 
courses  on-line  targeting  roughly  5%  and  9%  of 
trainees respectively. 

Employers’ surveys should be augmented by research 
as  the  new  skill  requirements  are  qualitatively 
different from the type of skills which have dominated 
the  workplace  to  date.  For  that  reason,  an  exclusive 
reliance  on  employers’  surveys  may  not  provide  the 
PES with an understanding of the type of adaptations 
it  needs  to  introduce  to  support  job-seekers  working 
in,  or  seeking  work 
in,  atypical  employment 
structures.  

The  Spanish  PES,  responding  to  recent  legislation, 
has  developed  an  observatory  of  skills  needs 
identification  which  provides  both  quantitative  and 
qualitative information on skills needs. 

The  Irish  PES  also  informs  training  providers  (i.e. 
employment  and  education  boards)  of  the  results  of 
research on emerging skills needs. 

Training courses  should be available outside standard 
hours, including at weekends, evenings and part-time.  

The Finnish PES offers training courses on a part-time 
basis, during the evenings and also at weekends.   

that 

should 

ensure 

adequate 

PES 
training 
opportunities  are  available  for  specific  job-seeker 
groups,  such  as persons  returning  from  home duties, 
the  disabled  and  formerly  ‘discouraged’  workers. 
Research shows that such groups may be attracted to 
aspects of the new forms of atypical employment. 

VDAB  offer  training  at  weekends  and  during  the 
evening but currently only for employed clients 

An  initiative  organised  by  the  Croatian  PES  could 
assist marginalised groups to successfully reintegrate 
to  the  world  of  work.  The  PES  organises, 
in 
partnerships  with  other  stakeholders,  different 
professional  rehabilitation  programmes  and  activities 
–  so  called  “Work  Centre“and  “Virtual  workshops“. 
is  a  six-month  vocational 
The  Work  Centre 
rehabilitation  programme  aimed  at 
improving 
knowledge,  professional  and 
transferable  skills 
needed in certain occupations. 

Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion 
European Network of Public Employment Services (PES) 

29 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

ANNEX I 

Questionnaire on atypical employment and the European PES 

The  emergence  of  big  data  and  cloud  computing  has  created  a  new  industry  structure  which  is 
radically changing our traditional employer and employee working relationships.  
The  development  of  new  algorithms  with  powerful  explanatory  and  predictive  capacities  has 
dramatically  enhanced  the  efficiency  with  which  businesses  can  be  managed,  while  cloud 
computing has created platforms where transactions between potential sellers and buyers can be 
conducted more effectively and efficiently than ever before.  
The combination of powerful software tools providing the possibility of more direct communication 
from  any  location  between  millions  of  people  for  business  and  social  purposes  has  both  positive 
and negative dimensions. On the positive side, it should enhance productivity as costly permanent 
overheads  and  intermediate  agencies  are  dispensed  with,  and  a  vast  increase  in  knowledge 
sharing  (e.g.  Wikipedia)  is  created  for  the  common  good.  However,  there  are  also  potential 
negative  consequences  which  reflect  the  fact  that  the  ‘protective  envelope’  (e.g.  pensions, 
healthcare, holiday entitlements, standard working hours etcetera) provided through the standard 
employer/employee  working  contract  will  disappear  from  many  service  and  manufacturing 
activities.  Some  industries  will  be  particularly  adversely  affected  (e.g.  hotels  from  AirBNB)  while 
many routine jobs will be automated.    
The worker of tomorrow will have to be much more self-reliant, incorporating skills which protect 
him/her  from  being  displaced  by  the  new  technologies  (e.g.  problem-solving;  conceptual 
reasoning;  emotional  intelligence  etcetera).  Ironically,  the  security  of  their  income  stream  will 
depend  less  on  a  particular  company  or  even  a  particular  industry;  rather  they  will  depend  on  a 
strong entrepreneurial capacity capable of exploiting the new technologies to offer quintessentially 
human  skills  to  a  world-wide  electronic  marketplace.  Working  arrangements  will  become  much 
more flexible and project-based – hence the new buzz word to describe these new relationships – 
the GIG economy.  
The European Commission has been to the forefront in commissioning studies on many aspects of 
the new economy and EUROFOUND in particular has published many studies on this subject in the 
last couple of years. The focus is now moving to the PES – their role in matching the competences 
of job-seekers with the requirements of an evolving marketplace give the PES a critical and pivotal 
role in preparing the worker of tomorrow for the skill needs of tomorrow. 
This  initial  study  is  relatively  short.  It  is  designed  to  assess  the  extent  to  which  the  PES  is  in  a 
position  to  respond  to  the  emergence  of  these  new  working  relationships.  The  questionnaire 
attached is very simple; comprising exclusively of closed questions with yes/no answers and a PES 
officer  with  knowledge  of  PES  activities  should  complete  it  in  10  minutes.  Your  co-operation  in 
completing this questionnaire is greatly appreciated.   

Queries: For any queries that may arise while completing the questionnaire, please contact John 
McGrath  by  email  at  Kilboy@indigo.ie  or  by  telephone  on  +353  872754620  or  through  the  PES 
functional e-mail address.   

Deadline: Please send the completed questionnaire by Tuesday 16th May 2017 at the latest to: 
PES-BL-team@icon-institute.de,  
Completed questionnaire should also be copied to:  
EMPL-PES-SECRETARIAT@ec.europa.eu 

Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion 
European Network of Public Employment Services (PES) 

30 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

Questionnaire on the approach of PES to atypical employment 

Question  1:  Do  you  formally  record  if  the  previous  employment  (where 
relevant)  of  those  registering  with  your  PES  was  other  than  the  standard  full-
time,  permanent  employment  contract  (please  tick  appropriate  box  and  add 
comments if you consider it useful)? 

Type of work  

Yes 

No 

Temporary contract  
Part-time (including marginal employment)11 
A job linked to the so called ‘digital platform’12 

Other atypical contracts (e.g. zero hours) 

Self-employment 

Comment 

No 

Question  2:  Do  you  formally  record  if  the  job  which  the  registrant  is 
seeking  is  other  than  the  standard  full-time  permanent  employment  contract 
(please tick appropriate box and add comment if you consider it useful)?  

Yes 

No 

Type of work 

Temporary contract 

Part-time (including marginal employment) 

A job linked to the so called ‘digital platform’ 

Other atypical contracts (e.g. zero hours) 

Self-employment 

Comment 

11 There are a significant number of workers in the EU labour market who are employed for very 
few hours. These are often referred to as ‘mini-jobbers’. 
12 Jobs linked to the digital platform are those where transactions are not based on the traditional 
employer/employee  relationship  but  rather  occur  directly  between  potential  buyers  and  sellers  in 
the  ‘cloud’  sometimes  through  an  intermediary  (e.g.  Airbnb;  UBER).  Such  transactions  do  not 
occur within the ‘envelope’ of standard employer/employee contractual relationships.  

Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion 
European Network of Public Employment Services (PES) 

31 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

Question  3:  Do  you  attempt  to  match  job-seekers  with  vacancies  for  atypical 
jobs if and when such vacancies are notified to your PES? 

Yes 

No 

Vacancies for jobs on; 

Temporary contracts  

Part-time (including marginal employment) 

Jobs linked to the ‘digital platform’ 

Other atypical contracts (e.g. zero contracts) 

Comment 

Question  4:  If  the  answer  with  respect  to  any  contract  in  question  3  above  is 
no,  please  explain  why  you  don’t  engage  in  matching  activities  to  fill  such 
vacancies (e.g. zero contract jobs are illegal in our country) 

of 
Type 
temporary 
hour’s contract etcetera) 

contract 
contract; 

(e.g. 
zero 

Comment on why your PES does not seek to match job-seekers 
with vacancies based on such contracts (e.g. zero contracts are 
illegal in our country) 

Question  5  When  your  PES  measures  the  effectiveness  of  their  placement 
outcomes, (i.e. clients finding employment) what type of information is recorded 
(more than one box may be ticked)? 

Type of information recorded 

Yes 

No 

The  main  characteristics  of  job-seekers  who  found  employment  (i.e. 
women; young job-seekers; long-term unemployed etcetera)  

The  type  of  employment  contracts 
employment etcetera) associated with the work the job-seekers found.  

(part-time;  temporary;  self-

Both  the  characteristics  of  job-seekers  and  the  type  pf  contract  are 
recorded  so  that  the  main  job-seeker  groups  may  be  cross-referenced 
with the type of contracts (e.g. number of women who found part-time 
jobs; number of young people who found temporary jobs etcetera) 

Other relevant information (please specify) 

Comment 

Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion 
European Network of Public Employment Services (PES) 

32 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

Question 6: Does your PES provide the following training courses on an annual 
basis? 

Type of training course 

Yes 

No 

Enterprise type courses (e.g. Start your own Business) 

Courses to assist women who wish to return to the workplace 

Courses designed to assist young people who are inactive to integrate 
into the workforce 

Courses to assist disabled persons to acquire a marketable skill 

Other courses designed to assist marginalised groups to integrate into 
the workforce (please specify) 

Comment 

Question  7:  Are  modules  on  ‘entrepreneurial  skills’  or  ‘digital  literacy’  (e.g. 
European  Computer  Driving  License)  or  ‘soft  skills’  or  ‘career  planning’  an 
integral component of the training courses offered by your PES? 

Type of competencies 

Yes;  such  modules 
are  included  on    all 
training courses 

Yes;  such  modules 
on 
are 
included 
some 
training 
courses 

Yes;  but  only  on 
specific    computer 
or 
related 
or 
enterprise 
personal 
development 
courses 

Entrepreneurial skills 

Digital literacy 

‘Soft Skills’ (e.g. teamwork; 
communication skills) 

Career 
planning 
(information  on  pensions, 
personal healthcare)  

Comment 

Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion 
European Network of Public Employment Services (PES) 

33 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

Question 8: Does your PES have an extensive e-college facility (i.e. use internet 
technologies to deliver training courses to remote locations (e.g. the job-seekers 
home) with on-line access to tutors etcetera…). If yes, roughly what percentage 
of trainees participate on such courses annually? 

Method of delivery 

Yes  No 

If yes, roughly what % of trainees participate on 
such courses annually 

(e.g. 

Courses are provided to remote 
locations 
job-seekers 
residence) via the internet, with 
tutors 
electronic  access 
etcetera) 

to 

Comment 

Question  9:  Does  your  PES  deliver  a  significant  number  of  courses  to  job-
seekers  outside  normal  working  hours  such  as  on  a  part-time  basis;  or  during 
evenings or at weekends 

Method of delivery 

Yes 

No 

Some training Courses are provided on a part-time basis 

Some training courses are provided in the evenings 

Some training courses are provided at weekends 

Comment 

Question  10:  The  portfolio  of  skills  training  courses  offered  by  your  PES  may 
have  to  change  somewhat  in  response  to  the  emergence  of  jobs  related  to  the 
digital platform and increasing automation. Therefore we would like to know how 
you  currently  identify  the  type  of  skills  training  (e.g.  welding;  carpentry;  java 
programming  etcetera.)  you  offer  to  job-seekers  (you  may  tick  more  than  one 
answer) 

Method of identification 

Yes 

The  choice  of  skills  training  courses  is  based  on  the  needs  of  employers  as  reflected  in  enterprise 
based surveys conducted by our PES or by a third party or both  

The choice of skills training courses is based on the preferences expressed by job-seekers (e.g. waiting 
lists) during registration or during interviews with PES councillors 

The choice of skills training courses is based on the type of occupations which research has shown are 
associated with decent, sustainable employment. 

Other criteria (please specify) 

Comment 

Question 11 The technology associated with digital platforms can also assist in 
a  more  general  way  in  enhancing  the  effectiveness  of  the  services  provided  by 
your PES. Do you for example use digital platforms (e.g. Linked-In; Facebook) in 
the  following  ways  to  enhance  the  performance  of  your  PES.  Please  use  the 

Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion 
European Network of Public Employment Services (PES) 

34 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

‘comment’ section  to refer  to  any  other  ways  in  which  your  PES  exploits  digital 
platforms. 

Use of digital platforms 

Yes 

No 

Does your PES have a webpage where you invite job-seekers and employers 
to interact with you in respect of a range of issues? 

Do  you  use  digital  platforms  as  a  qualitative  source  of  labour  market 
intelligence (e.g. Linked-In)? 

Do  you  use  the  internet  as  a  platform  for  advertising  PES  services  (e.g. 
training courses)? 

Other uses of digital platforms? 

Comment 

Finally, we finish not with a question, but with an invitation to you to make any 
comments you wish regarding the approach of your PES to the growth in atypical 
employment contracts. 

Thank  you  for  taking  the  time  to  complete  this  questionnaire  –  I 
look forward to reading your responses. 

John 

Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion 
European Network of Public Employment Services (PES) 

35 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Atypical Employment and the Role of European PES 

ANNEX II 

Figure A1 Percentage of employees on temporary contracts by age, EU 28  

Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion 
European Network of Public Employment Services (PES) 

36 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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doi: 10.2767/245526