Programming document 2021–2024 : towards recovery and resilience : work programme 2024.
Date: 2024-03-01
Institutions: Eurofound
Subjects: EU activity, Eurofound, action programme, activity report, anti-crisis plan, community resilience, economic and social cohesion, economic recession, economic recovery, economic resources, labour market, labour relations, living conditions, social dialogue, staff, working conditions

Programming document 2021–2024 

Towards recovery and resilience

Work programme 2024

Programming document 2021–2024 

Towards recovery and resilience 

Work programme 2024

European Foundation 
for the Improvement of 
Living and Working 
Conditions

 
  
When citing this report, please use the following wording: 
Eurofound (2024), Programming document 2021–2024: Work programme 2024, Dublin. 

Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2024 

PDF: 

ISBN 978-92-897-2387-9

ISSN 2363-3166

      doi:10.2806/293399

TJ-AO-24-001-EN-N 

This programming document and any associated materials are available online at https://eurofound.link/ef23035  

© European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, 2024  

Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged. 

For any use or reproduction of photos or other material that is not under the Eurofound copyright, permission must 
be sought directly from the copyright holders. 

Cover images: © Ndabcreativity, pikselstock, Gorodenkoff/Adobe Stock; Fotoluminate LLC/Shutterstock 

Any queries on copyright must be addressed in writing to: copyright@eurofound.europa.eu 

The European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound) is a tripartite 
European Union Agency established in 1975. Its role is to provide knowledge in the area of social, employment and 
work-related policies according to Regulation (EU) 2019/127. 

European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions 

Telephone: (+353 1) 204 31 00  
Email:
Web:

information@eurofound.europa.eu  
www.eurofound.europa.eu

 
 
Contents  
List of acronyms ...................................................................................................................................... 3 

Foreword ................................................................................................................................................. 5 

Mission statement .................................................................................................................................. 6 

I. 

General context for the period 2021–2024 .................................................................................... 7 

EU Policy context ................................................................................................................................ 9 

Institutional context .......................................................................................................................... 11 

II.  Multiannual and 2024 work programme ...................................................................................... 12 

Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 12 

1.  Multiannual objectives ............................................................................................................. 14 

Performance monitoring ............................................................................................................... 14 

2.  Operational activities ................................................................................................................ 15 

2.1 Activity 1: Working conditions and sustainable work ............................................................. 15 

2.2 Activity 2: Industrial relations and social dialogue ................................................................. 19 

2.3 Activity 3: Employment and labour markets .......................................................................... 23 

2.4 Activity 4: Living conditions and quality of life ....................................................................... 27 

2.5 Activity 5: Anticipating and managing the impact of change ................................................. 31 

2.6 Activity 6: Promoting social cohesion and convergence......................................................... 35 

2.7 Activity 7: Survey management and development ................................................................. 39 

2.8 Activity 8: Reacting to ad hoc information requests............................................................... 42 

3.  Horizontal activities .................................................................................................................. 43 

3.1 Activity 9: Communication ...................................................................................................... 43 

3.2 Activity 10: Management and development .......................................................................... 46 

4. 

Implementation approach ........................................................................................................ 48 

4.1 Methodologies and tools ........................................................................................................ 48 

4.2 Collaboration and partnerships .............................................................................................. 49 

4.3 Strategy for relations with third countries and international organisations .......................... 50 

5.  Human and financial resources outlook: Resource programming 2022-2026 ......................... 51 

5.1 Financial resources .................................................................................................................. 51 

5.2 Human Resources ................................................................................................................... 53 

5.3 Development of tasks and efficiency gains ............................................................................. 53 

Annex I: Organisation chart .................................................................................................................. 55 

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Annex II: Resource allocation per activity ......................................................................................... 56 

Annex III: Financial resources ........................................................................................................... 57 

Annex IV: Human resources quantitative ......................................................................................... 66 

Annex V: Human resources qualitative ................................................................................................. 71 

A. Recruitment policy ........................................................................................................................ 71 

B. Appraisal and reclassification/promotions ................................................................................... 75 

C. Gender representation ................................................................................................................. 79 

D. Geographical Balance ................................................................................................................... 80 

E. Schooling ....................................................................................................................................... 81 

Annex VI: Environment management ................................................................................................... 83 

Annex VII: Building Policy ...................................................................................................................... 84 

Annex VIII: Privileges and immunities ................................................................................................... 86 

Annex IX: Evaluations ............................................................................................................................ 87 

Annex X: Strategy for the organisational management and internal control systems ......................... 90 

Annex XI: Plan for grants, contribution or service-level agreements ................................................... 94 

Annex XII: Strategy for cooperation with third countries and/or international organisations ............ 95 

Annex XIII: Overview of projects in 2024 taking into consideration the rise of refugees and cost-of-
living in the wake of the war in Ukraine ............................................................................................... 96 

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List of acronyms  

AI 

CATI 

Artificial intelligence 

Computer-assisted telephone interviews 

Cedefop 

European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training 

CEOS 

CSRs 

ECS 

EEA 

EFC 

EFTA 

EGF 

EIGE 

EJM 

ELA 

EMAS 

EMCO 

EPMS 

EPSO 

EPSR 

EQLS 

ERL 

ERM 

Conditions of employment of other servants 

Country-specific recommendations 

European Company Survey 

European Environment Agency 

Economic and Financial Committee 

European Free Trade Association 

European Globalisation Adjustment Fund 

European Institute for Gender Equality 

European Jobs Monitor 

European Labour Authority 

EU Eco-Management and Audit Scheme 

Employment Committee  

Eurofound performance monitoring system 

European Personnel Selection Office  

European Pillar of Social Rights 

European Quality of Life Survey 

Electronic reserve list  

European Restructuring Monitor 

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ESF 

ETF 

European Social Fund 

European Training Foundation 

EU-LFS 

EU Labour Force Survey 

EU-OSHA 

European Agency for Safety and Health at Work 

EU-SILC 

European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions 

Eurofound 

European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions 

EWCS 

European Working Conditions Survey 

EWCTS 

European Working Conditions Telephone Survey 

FRA 

FTE 

ICT 

ILO 

JRC 

KPI 

MFF 

NGEU 

OECD 

SLA 

SME 

SPC 

TFEU 

European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights 

full-time equivalent 

Information and communications technology 

International Labour Organization 

Joint Research Centre 

Key performance indicator 

Multiannual financial framework 

NextGenerationEU 

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development 

Service level agreement 

small- and medium sized enterprise 

Social Protection Committee 

Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union 

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Foreword 
In 2024, European citizens will give a new impetus to the EU policy agenda. After the elections, a 
new European Parliament and a new European Commission will shape new and existing EU 
priorities. There is no doubt that the issues related to digital transformation, a fair green transition 
and further building on the strategic autonomy will remain at the top of the agenda. Europe will 
continue to experience the repercussions of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine in the coming 
year, with implications for the quality of life and work of Europeans. There are also now substantial 
risks for further global destabilisation by a renewed Middle East conflict. This may contribute to 
increased energy prices, additional migration pressure and divisions in European societies. While the 
efforts of policymakers to reign in spiralling energy prices and tackle inflation have started to pay off, 
the European Commission forecasts subdued economic growth and the persistence of inflation for 
2024. Citizens continue to feel the squeeze of rising prices on their living standards, and low-income 
households are likely to continue to struggle to meet the daily cost of living. The damage of a 
prolonged military conflict at the edge of the Union to the hopes and optimism of Europeans across 
the continent cannot be ignored. Neither can the toll that more frequent extreme weather events 
are taking, the result of rising global temperatures. 

But while the economic, political and environmental pressures remain, the EU continues to prosper 
in many respects: employment remains strong, unemployment has fallen to a record low and wages 
have increased. There is no doubt that the focus on preserving jobs facilitated a faster than usual 
economic recovery. The challenge will be to further increase employment levels by attracting the 
inactive population to the labour market and improve job quality as the twin transitions of green and 
digital change transform the economy. Much of the continued strength of the EU depends on 
collectively progressing the vision for future growth along a path to carbon neutrality, one that 
leaves no-one behind.  

It is against this background that Eurofound presents its work programme for 2024. Developed with 
its partners at EU and national levels, the projects planned for the year are tailored to provide 
policymakers with the evidence to deliver effective policies that tackle the challenges facing citizens. 
We trust this work programme will serve as a positive contribution to those shaping the policy 
agenda to improve the lives and work of all Europeans. 

Ivailo Kalfin 

Executive Director 

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Mission statement  
The European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound) is a 
tripartite Agency of the European Union. 

Its Founding Regulation1 states that the objective of the Agency shall be to provide the EU 
institutions and bodies, Member States and social partners with support for the purpose of shaping 
and implementing policies concerning the living and working conditions, devising employment 
policies and promoting the dialogue between management and labour. To that end, Eurofound shall 
enhance and disseminate knowledge, provide evidence and services for the purpose of 
policymaking, including research-based conclusions, and shall facilitate knowledge sharing among 
and between the European Union and national actors.  

Eurofound´s mission is to provide knowledge to support the development of better informed social, 
employment and work-related policies. 

Our vision is to be Europe’s leading knowledge source for better life and work. 

1 Regulation (EU) 2019/127 of 16 January 2019 of the European Parliament and the Council establishing the 
European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound) and repealing 
Council Regulation (EEC) 1365/75. 

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I. 

General context for the period 2021–2024  

The drafting of this programming document takes place in the aftermath of an unprecedented 
context. The EU, along with the rest of the world, has been severely affected by the COVID-19 
pandemic and Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. More than 14 million Ukrainians have 
been displaced, unfolding suffering and an unparalleled humanitarian and refugee crisis in Europe 
since the second World War. While the unprecedented response to COVID-19 from the EU and EU 
Member States prevented millions of deaths and a fully-fledged recession – with headline figures 
returning to the levels of pre-COVID-19 at the beginning of 2022 – the war in Ukraine led, inter alia, 
to an important surge in the prices of energy, food and other commodities, as well as the disruption 
of many established supply chain links, thereby exacerbating already existing headwinds on growth. 
Despite the strong headwinds, the European Commission’s Summer 2023 Economic Forecast 
reported that the performance of the economy is expected to remain subdued with a growth rate of 
around 0.8% in 2023 and 1.4% in 2024. Inflation has decreased, although it is expected to be 6.5% in 
2023 and decrease to just around 3.2% in 2024. While the rise in the cost of living is hitting low-
income families disproportionally as they spend a higher fraction of their income on consumption 
and energy, a large majority of EU citizens will feel their purchasing power substantially weakened 
over the next period. And while energy prices have dropped since the peak mid-2022 period, 
companies in the EU remain confronted with this extremely challenging internal and external 
context with higher production costs, supply bottlenecks and higher financing costs leading to a 
sharp decrease in the business confidence. The high uncertainty linked to the economic 
environment, the outfall from the war in Ukraine, and the subdued global growth, especially the 
deceleration of growth in the US, is having a dampening effect on investments as well as spending 
and is leading to a stronger negative impact on the EU economic outlook with ensuing social 
consequences as the cost of living increases, the labour market situation remains challenging and 
social protection systems are put under pressure. In addition, EU member states are faced with the 
unprecedented challenge of hosting and integrating the millions of Ukrainian refugees fleeing the 
war.2 There can be no doubt that the EU will be facing an uncertain and challenging context in the 
coming years. 

In light of the above, the implementation of the national Recovery and Resilience Plans under the 
NextGenerationEU (NGEU) will continue to play a major role in responding to the current challenges 
to the economy and society, while preparing Europe for the transition to a more competitive, green 
and digital economy. There can be little doubt that the waves of crisis and the twin transition will 
bring structural changes to the labour market and its functioning, as well as to how we live and 
work, and bring many challenges, including financial ones, forcing enterprises to adapt accordingly. 

The continued restraining of households purchasing power, the aftermath of the COVID-19 crisis as 
well as Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine could compound the marked rise in perceptions of 
insecurity and concerns about prospects for the future, not only among the most marginalised but 

2 Eurofound has included and adapted a series of projects to monitor and analyse the impact of the war in 
Ukraine – the list of projects can be found in Annex XIII. 

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also among larger parts of society, leading to expressions of division, disenchantment and distrust 
with the establishment, not least in relation to EU integration.  

In parallel, the mega-drivers of structural change in Europe remain related to demography, 
technology, globalisation and climate change. Technological change continues apace. Automation, 
not least as enabled by artificial intelligence (AI), will both eliminate and create jobs and change the 
nature of work and how tasks are allocated, performed and assessed. With the rise in energy prices 
and the need to source energy from alternative sources, the energy transition has taken centre 
stage. Eurofound showed that while the transition to a carbon-neutral economy can be expected to 
create more jobs than it destroys, it also alters the structure of employment.3 This transition poses 
broader challenges to life and work in light of the ambitious targets set by the EU and should be 
added to the challenges linked to the outfall from the war in Ukraine as well as the recovery from 
the COVID-19 crisis. 

Demographic change will intensify many current challenges. An ageing population, such as in 
Europe, accentuates labour shortages and skills mismatches and poses challenges to (long-term) 
health care and the sustainability and adequacy of pensions. The integration of the millions of 
refugees from Ukraine brings both opportunities and challenges in the short-term, as the needs for 
housing and public services will rise. The population of Africa is projected to double by 2050 (UN 
World Population Prospects 2017), while other regions are also likely to remain a source of migrants. 
This combination of demographic shortages in the EU and a demographic boom in neighbouring 
areas, combined with a potential food shortage in the latter areas, is likely to continue to place 
severe pressure on migration flows and the integrative capacity of societies and workplaces in 
Europe, which may in turn create challenges for the cohesion of the EU. Structural change brings 
many challenges for employment and living and working conditions, but it can also be an 
opportunity to advance towards a more inclusive, innovative and sustainable Europe. 

To understand and hence influence these important issues, it is first necessary to monitor their 
development regularly. As highlighted by the Porto summit on the 7 May 2021, and reiterated at the 
Porto Summit on the 27 May 2023, the focus is likely to continue on issues related to social cohesion 
and convergence towards better living and working conditions. This attention becomes more salient 
in the light of the current rising cost of living and the looming recession. Attention should also be 
placed on ensuring that labour market adjustment to forthcoming structural change not only 
improves competitiveness and increases employment but also, as stated in the International Labour 
Organization (ILO) Centenary Declaration of June 2019, leads to ‘a just transition to a future of work 
that contributes to sustainable development in its economic, social and environmental dimensions’.4 
It is clear that the impact of the pandemic as well as the war in Ukraine, the consequent recovery 
measures and various transitions are bound to have some level of asymmetric distributional effect; 
however, it is critical that these effects are fair.  

3 Eurofound (2019), The future of manufacturing in Europe, Publications Office of the European Union, 
Luxembourg. 
4 The ILO Centenary Declaration for the Future of Work was adopted at the 108th session of the International 
Labour Conference, Geneva, 21 June 2019. 

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EU Policy context 
2024 will be the last year of the European Council, Commission and Parliament’s mandates, and the 
year in which the European Parliament elections will take place, the first one since Brexit has come 
into force. It will be the last year of the implementation of the European Council Strategic Agenda 
for 2019–2024 that includes four key priorities: protecting citizens and freedoms; developing a 
strong and vibrant economic base; building a climate-neutral, green, fair and social Europe; and 
promoting European interests and values on the global stage. It will also be the last year of the 
implementation of President von der Leyen’s Commission and the implementation of her political 
guidelines 2019–2024 that include six headlines: a European Green Deal; an economy that works for 
people; a Europe fit for the digital age; protecting our European way of life; a stronger Europe in the 
world; and a new push for European democracy.  

While the above priorities will come to an end in 2024, others will only be halfway through. This 
longer timeframe reflects the longer-term policy objectives shared by the EU, its Member States and 
social partners to address long-term challenges and their ambition to maintain and improve living 
and working standards in Europe. The temporary Recovery and Resilience Facility which entered into 
force in 2021 and lasts until the end of 2026 will reach its midway point in terms of the use of the 
€723.8 billion made available to Member States (€385.8 billion in loans and €338 billion in grants). 
Within the Facility, the funds are spent around six pillars: (1) green transition; (2) digital 
transformation; (3) economic cohesion, productivity and competitiveness; (4) social and territorial 
cohesion; (5) health, economic, social and institutional resilience; (6) policies for the next 
generation. Member States have to spend 37% of the funds for climate-related activities and 20% for 
digital priorities.  

In May 2021, the EU adopted their long-term climate and digital objectives. The European Climate 
Law sets into law the objective of a climate-neutral EU by 2050, and a collective, net greenhouse gas 
emissions reduction target (emissions after deduction of removals) of at least 55% by 2030 
compared to 1990. In July 2021, the Commission presented a comprehensive legal package ‘Fit for 
55’ to provide the instruments to support the implementation of the climate law objective, including 
the Social Climate Fund. In June 2022, the Council Recommendation on ensuring a fair transition 
towards climate neutrality was adopted. Regarding the digital strategy, the Commission proposed a 
2030 Digital Compass: the European way for the digital decade in March 2021, laying out key targets 
to be reached by the end of the decade. Among these are: that 80% of adults will have at least basic 
digital skills, 20 million ICT specialists will be employed and public services will be digitalised. In 
December 2022, the Council adopted the 2030 policy programme ‘Path to the Digital Decade’, which 
ensures that the EU meets its objectives for a digital transformation in line with EU values including 
the strengthening of digital skills and education. In 2023, the Commission will propose a Council 
Recommendation on improving the provision of digital skills. 

Accompanying  the  digital  and  climate  objectives,  the  European  Pillar  of  Social  Rights  Action  Plan 
(EPSR), presented on 4 March 2021, will be in the first half of its implementation to reach the EU social 
decade objectives.  

9 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The Action Plan includes three headline targets as well as several sub-targets to be reached by 2030: 

1.  At least 78% of the population aged 20 to 64 should be in employment by 2030.  
2.  At least 60% of all adults should participate in training every year. 
3.  The number of people at risk of poverty or social exclusion should be reduced by at least 15 

million by 2030.  

In June 2021, the EPSCO agreed to include new headline indicators alongside the existing ones in the 
Social  Scoreboard  for  use  in  the  Joint  Employment  Report.  The  EPSR  Action  Plan  is  of  central 
importance for Eurofound’s work programme.  

These priorities are being implemented in a changing context of geo-politics and pressure on prices. 
On  20–21  October  2022,  the  European  Council  adopted  conclusions  on  Ukraine/Russia,  critical 
infrastructure,  energy  and  economy,  and  external  relations,  setting  out  a  framework  to  tackle  the 
current crisis. 

Several  EU  instruments  will  have  been  presented,  adopted  or  have  entered  into  force.  Thus, 
Eurofound will also include in its work the following implications of these new instruments. 

•  The entry into force since 2022 of the directives on transparent and predictable working 

conditions and on work–life balance for parents and carers, as well as the adoption of the 
Adequate Minimum Wages Directive and the Pay Transparency Directive. 

•  The European Commission proposals for EU legal instruments such as the proposed directive 

improving the working conditions of platform workers. 

•  The implementation of the Council recommendations establishing a European Child 

Guarantee; on early childhood education and care; and on affordable, high-quality long-term 
care, as well as the Council Recommendation on strengthening social dialogue in the EU and 
on minimum income ensuring active inclusion. 

•  The implementation of EU strategies such as the Strategic Framework on Health and Safety at 
Work  2021–2027,  the  European  Care  Strategy,  the  EU  skills  agenda  2020–2025,  the  2030 
Digital Compass: the European way for the Digital Decade, the EU Gender Equality Strategy 
2020–2025; the LGBTIQ Equality Strategy; a Roma strategic framework for equality, inclusion 
and participation; the Disability Strategy; and Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan;  

•  The European Commission presentation of an update of the interpretative communication on 
the implementation of the Working Time Directive and the revision of the Barcelona targets, 
and the Communication on ‘The distributional impact of Member States’ policies’ and how to 
better assess it’. 

•  The  European  Commission  has  announced  that  2024  will  be  the  European  Year  of  Mental 

Health. 

Last but not least, the social partners’ role in devising solutions which meet the needs of employers 
and workers is a crucial consideration for the work of Eurofound. The ILO Centenary Declaration of 
June 2019 proclaimed that ‘the experience of the past century has confirmed that the continuous and 
concerted action of governments and representatives of employers and workers is essential to the 
achievement  of  social  justice,  democracy  and  the  promotion  of  universal  and  lasting  peace’.  To 
achieve this objective, a newly adopted EU Social Dialogue Work Programme 2022–2024 is crucial. 
10 

 
 
 
 
 
 
The EU Social Partners have chosen six priorities for their joint work: telework and right to disconnect, 
Green Transition, youth employment, work-related privacy and surveillance, improving skills matching 
in Europe and capacity building. The social partners are negotiating an autonomous agreement on 
telework and the right to disconnect which, if signed, is to be implemented via a directive. The social 
partners also propose a Framework of Actions (Green Transition), as well as three seminars leading to 
signing a joint statement (youth employment), joint guidelines (work-related privacy and surveillance) 
and a joint research project (the skills priority). 

Institutional context  
The European Council adopted the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) 2021–2027 on 17 
December 2020, in which Eurofound’s subsidy was frozen in real terms (allowing only for 
compensation of modest annual inflation) until 2027. Due to the significant rise of the Irish country 
coefficient since 2020, an additional compensatory subsidy increase of €650,000 has been granted 
for 2023 and will be requested from there on. Additionally, and to tackle the extraordinary pressure 
on the salary-related budget, an annual increase of the subsidy of €453,000 from 2023 on has been 
granted. The total subsidy request amounts to €24,054,000 for 2024. The additional funding will only 
partly offset the actual cost increases which requires Eurofound to continue actively seeking and 
implementing opportunities to further reduce costs, increase efficiency and achieve stronger 
synergies. Over the planning years, it will be increasingly challenging for Eurofound to fulfil its 
mandate at the expected standards, particularly as regards the data collection and monitoring of 
trends in living and working conditions. In this context, Eurofound will have to invest further in 
alternative measures to achieve its tasks, such as selecting a limited number of priorities and looking 
for collaboration and partnerships, primarily with other EU agencies and institutions.  

More generally, Eurofound actively pursues long-term ecological, social and financial sustainability.  

11 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
II. 

 Multiannual and 2024 work programme 

Introduction 
Eurofound´s priorities for 2021–2024 are shaped by the key challenges for social cohesion and just 
transitions in a changing environment in the context of the impact of the uncertain economic 
outlook, the war in Ukraine and the aftermath of the COVID-19 crisis as outlined in the previous 
chapter. The Agency focuses on issues where it can draw on its core expertise in the areas of 
working conditions, industrial relations, employment, and living conditions to support its 
stakeholders, by providing evidence that can assist their policy action. 

The Programming document 2021–2024 has six strategic areas that will be implemented through the 
following operational activities. 

The first four are those as mandated in the Founding Regulation of the Agency.5  

2. 

1.  Working conditions and sustainable work: providing comparative data and analysis that can 
be used to improve job quality and promote sustainability of work over the life course in a 
labour market characterised by transformative changes. The data and analysis will inform 
policy makers on developments and highlight opportunities and challenges.  
Industrial relations and social dialogue: functioning as a centre of expertise for monitoring 
and analysing developments in industrial relations and social dialogue, and promoting 
dialogue between management and labour. The activity responds to the need to support 
social dialogue and provide comparative data on national institutional settings and 
developments, as well as European social partner actions, thereby reflecting the importance 
of social dialogue in responding to the policy priorities, and contextual challenges and 
opportunities highlighted in the previous chapter. 

3.  Employment and labour markets: providing knowledge to identify changes in the labour 
market and inform employment policies to improve its functioning and inclusiveness in a 
rapidly changing labour market. 

4.  Living conditions and quality of life: mapping and analysing key elements for the 

improvement of living conditions of people, including information on their perception of 
quality of life and society. The activity will provide evidence and research-based conclusions 
for understanding the challenges faced by the population, in particular in relations to the 20 
principles of the EPSR and the twin green and digital transition. 

In addition, Eurofound will address the policy challenges in two transversal thematic activities. 

5.  Anticipating and managing the impact of change: providing evidence on structural changes, 
driven largely by digitalisation and climate change, but also by the COVID-19 crisis and the 
impact of the war in Ukraine that can be of use in ensuring just transitions which promote 
employment, good working conditions, social protection and workers’ rights, while also 

5 Article 1(2): ‘The objectives of the Agency shall be to increase and disseminate knowledge to assist the 
Commission, other EU institutions and bodies, Member States and social partners in shaping and 
implementing policies aimed at the improvement of living and working conditions, in supporting employment 
policies and in promoting the dialogue between management and labour.’ 

12 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
improving labour productivity, competitiveness and prosperity as set out in the EU policy 
agenda. 

6.  Promoting social cohesion and convergence: contributing to the policy debate on fairness 
and informing policies aimed at improving social cohesion and promoting convergence 
toward better living and working standards in the EU. The activity will provide both 
qualitative and quantitative evidence to support linked to the EPSR and ensuing actions.  

Analysis in these strategic areas will make use of Eurofound´s monitoring tools. This includes the 
Eurofound surveys that will provide valuable information across the previous operational activities. 
Moreover, as the policy context is changing, Eurofound will reserve some flexible capacity to be able 
to respond to ad hoc requests and new stakeholders’ needs during the programming period. It is in 
this context and for the implementation of the programme that two additional operational activities 
are included: 

7.  Survey management and development 
8.  Reacting to ad hoc information requests 

Finally, two horizontal activities complement this programming document: 

9.  Corporate communication 
10. Management and development 

13 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
1.  Multiannual objectives 

Eurofound’s strategic objective for the programming period 2021–2024: 

To provide scientifically sound, unbiased, timely and policy relevant knowledge that contributes to 
better informed polices to improve living and working conditions and strengthen cohesion in a 
changing Europe.  

Eurofound’s contribution in each of the strategic areas aims to inform policymakers to: 

• 

improve job quality and promote sustainability of work over the life course (Working conditions 
and sustainable work)  

•  promote dialogue between management and labour (Industrial relations and social dialogue) 
• 
improve labour market functioning and inclusiveness (Employment and labour markets) 
• 
improve quality of life and society (Living conditions and quality of life) 
•  ensuring just transitions that promote employment, good working conditions, social protection 
and workers’ rights, while also improving labour productivity, competitiveness and prosperity 
(Anticipating and managing the impact of change) 
improving social cohesion and promoting convergence toward better living and working 
standards (Promoting social cohesion and convergence) 

• 

As a high-performing organisation, the Agency will make effective and efficient use of human and 
financial resources through sound management and continuous development of staff.  

Performance monitoring 
Eurofound uses various instruments to monitor, analyse and report on its performance towards 
achieving the expected results.6 

Key performance indicators (KPIs) measure how well Eurofound performs in aspects that are 
specifically relevant for achieving its corporate strategic objective. These KPIs are supplemented 
with metrics on inputs, outputs and results. The analysis of the performance data supports 
management in implementing the programme of activities efficiently and effectively. 

Regular stakeholder feedback and evaluations, including external evaluations carried out by the 
European Commission, deepen the understanding of the extent to which the quality and relevance 
of Eurofound’s work and expertise is used and valued by its stakeholders (see also Annex IX) 

Key performance indicators  
Result indicators 
Policy relevance (and timeliness) of contributions to policy development and debate through: 

•  uptake of Eurofound’s expertise in European level-policy documents  
•  Eurofound’s engagement with stakeholders in meetings and events 
•  uptake of Eurofound knowledge through the media  
•  uptake  of  and  engagement  with  Eurofound’s  knowledge  through  its  website  and  other 

corporate platforms 

6 Its selection of KPIs and monitoring tools is also used for the performance of the Executive Director as per 
Commission Staff working document (2015). 

14 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Reliability and independence of the knowledge provided:  

• 

recognition of the scientific quality of Eurofound’s research 

Input and output indicators 

Effective and efficient use of human and financial resources indicated by: 

•  budget implementation  
•  efficient use of posts available in the establishment plan  
•  programme delivery 

Most of these KPIs are also applied at Activity level as explained in Annex IX. 

2.  Operational activities  

2.1 Activity 1: Working conditions and sustainable work 

Multiannual perspective 

Overview  
In the programming period 2021–2024, the Agency will continue to monitor developments in 
working conditions. Change over time and progress achieved in the various dimensions of job quality 
will be assessed, as far as is feasible, and findings for different countries and groups of workers 
compared. This will include an analysis of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on working 
conditions and job quality, especially in relation to changes in work organisation such as telework, 
shift work and adapted workplaces. Non-standard forms of employment and the self-employed will 
be a specific focus. Building on the concept of sustainable work developed by Eurofound, the Agency 
will also provide evidence of the factors that allow more workers to stay in employment longer, 
which circumstances need to be improved, and how this can be achieved.  

At the beginning of the programming period, Eurofound collected new data through conducting a 
European Working Conditions Telephone Survey (EWCTS). As a consequence of the COVID-19 crisis, 
this data was gathered using computer-assisted telephone interviews (CATI). Despite this change 
from face-to-face interviews used in the previous waves of the survey, Eurofound will be in a 
position to present comparative data on the job quality experienced by workers in Europe in 2021 
using the established framework of seven dimensions of job quality.7 The possibilities to analyse 
trends over time will be limited given the change of mode in conducting the survey but they will be 
explored.  

Secondary analyses of the 2021 dataset will also be conducted. Further analysis of working 
conditions may use data from the European Company Survey (ECS) 2019. Appropriate cooperation 
with other agencies and organisations will be sought for the next wave of the ECS. 

7 The seven dimensions of job quality are physical environment; work intensity; working time quality; social 
environment; skills and discretion; prospects; and earnings. 

15 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The analysis of working conditions and job quality will have a specific focus on the longer-term 
structural impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. This will include exploring whether types of work 
organisation or work patterns that substantially increased during 2020 – such as telework, 
adaptation of workplaces, shift work and redeployment, but also attention to health and safety 
standards at work – have been temporary phenomena limited to the lockdown situations or whether 
these natural experiments have resulted in these structural changes sustainably affecting workers’ 
well-being. Cooperation will continue with EU-OSHA with regard to occupational health and safety. 

Self-employment will be investigated with a focus on the job quality experienced, while issues such 
as economic dependency and autonomy, representation, and social protection will also be explored. 
Non-standard forms of employment will be considered in areas where they are growing or raise 
policy questions. They will also be taken up in Activity 5 (Anticipating and managing the impact of 
change), when there are new forms of employment, related to the identified drivers of change, 
which can have significant implications for employment and working conditions and social 
protection. The question as to whether labour institutions are fit for purpose to ensure employment 
in a flexible labour market that guarantees good working conditions and protection will be 
examined.  

The ambition to improve working conditions and job quality is also linked to the requirement to 
address the consequences of demographic change. Demographic change, namely low fertility rates 
and longer life expectancy, may require the integration and retention of more workers in the labour 
market for longer. Based on its previous research on the factors that lead to more sustainable work, 
Eurofound could examine the employment and working conditions of workers, company practices 
and policies beyond the workplace that have proved to be effective to increase the employment rate 
of older workers and/or extend working life.  

In the context of the longer-term approach to Eurofound surveys, a feasibility study setting out 
various scenarios future-proofing Eurofound surveys was drafted and discussed in a steering group. 
On the basis of the study and the discussion, it has been decided that in 2024 Eurofound will carry 
out the European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) including some questions on working 
conditions and living conditions relevant to the aftermath of COVID-19. Respondents for this survey 
are recruited face-to-face. The majority of these respondents will also be interviewed face-to-face, 
to ensure that the findings of the survey can be compared with previous rounds of the EWCS. To test 
a possible transition of Eurofound surveys to an online mode of data administration, a smaller 
random subsample of respondents would be recruited to complete the interview online. This allows 
for a comparison of the answers between the two different modes of administration for a selection 
of questions from the EWCS. It further allows testing the impact of moving to a push-to-web 
approach on survey efficiency and data quality. As part of this 2024 survey, respondents will be 
asked to participate in a series of online follow-up questionnaires. These follow-up questionnaires 
will include questions from the EWCS that were not asked in the initial questionnaire – increasing 
the selection of variables for which trend breaks can be managed. This element also allows testing 
the effectiveness of recruiting respondents for follow-up questionnaires, the impact of the initial 
refusals to participate in such follow-up questionnaires, as well as survey attrition at a later stage on 
the sample composition. 

16 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Further analysis of working conditions is included in the two transversal thematic activities dealing 
with the impact of change (Activity 5) and social cohesion and convergence (Activity 6). 

Objectives  
This activity will address the challenge of improving job quality and making work sustainable over 
the life course by providing policymakers with facts and figures on working conditions and evidence 
on developments in job quality. The focus of the latter will be to identify and analyse pressing issues 
and specific groups at risk, also in light of the impact of the COVID-19 crisis. Through providing 
knowledge about policy interventions which have been successful in improving job quality and 
making work more sustainable, Eurofound will assist policy action. 

Expected results 
By the end of the programming period, Eurofound will have provided evidence of relevance to a 
wide range of existing and planned legal instruments, for example, with regard to working time, 
equal treatment and anti-discrimination. Research related to the COVID-19 impact on working 
conditions can feed into renewed discussions on, for example, telework regulations (including the 
right to disconnect), health and safety at work, design of workplaces and work organisation, and 
training and skills development options. Cooperation will continue with EU-OSHA with regard to 
occupational health and safety. 

Data points on working conditions as experienced by workers in the EU in 2021 and the analysis of 
their job quality will allow relevant policymakers and/or evaluators to establish a snapshot of 
working conditions and job quality in the aftermath of the COVID-19 crisis – against which the 
impact of regulatory and soft initiatives including those introduced under the European Pillar of 
Social Rights (for example, the directive on work–life balance of parents and carers and the directive 
on transparent and predictable working conditions) can be assessed and gaps identified.  

For many job quality indicators, data will be available on trends over time, though comparability of 
data collected in 2021 will be limited due to the change of mode in data collection. Nonetheless, this 
evidence will enable further progress towards the aim to support growth in the creation of quality 
jobs that can be measured as set out by the Commission’s President. Given the emphasis on the 
European Gender Equality Strategy and the Commission’s political guidelines, the analysis of gender 
differences in job quality will be of interest, particularly in view of the impact of the COVID-19 crisis 
and the implementation of the European Gender Equality Strategy 2020–2025. 

Through having provided evidence on the working conditions and job quality of those in non-
standard forms of employment, Eurofound will have supported the goal of the EPSR to prevent 
employment relationships that lead to precarious working conditions. More particularly, the Agency 
will have contributed to identifying different forms of self-employment, including those with 
characteristics that might be considered as bogus self-employment, taking into account diverse 
national contexts. Evidence provided on the situation of the self-employed will have contributed to 
monitoring the implementation of the Council Recommendation on access to social protection for 
workers and the self-employed.  

By providing knowledge about policy interventions that have been successful, Eurofound will have 
supported mutual learning and peer-review processes among the Member States. For example, 

17 

 
 
 
 
 
 
knowledge provided on the institutional frameworks and policies that support making work more 
sustainable, as evidenced by higher employment rates for older workers, will inform the European 
Semester process and the drafting of country-specific recommendations (CSRs). 

2024 Work programme: Activity 1 – Working conditions and sustainable work 

Overview  
In 2024, fieldwork for the next wave of the EWCS will be conducted. Preparatory work for drafting 
the overview report, which will present a first analysis of the data in 2025, will start. In parallel, the 
programme of analysis of the 2021 EWCTS will be finalised. Following the publication of the report 
Working conditions in the time of COVID-19: Implications for the future in 2022, more in-depth 
analysis followed and in 2024, three studies will be completed: an analysis of working conditions and 
work practices in the hybrid workplace; an investigation of changing working time patterns; and an 
examination of the job quality of older workers. 

Two new topics will be added in 2024. The importance of small and medium size enterprises (SMEs) 
as primary vehicles of innovation is highlighted by the New Industrial Strategy for Europe. In a new 
project, Eurofound will examine the degree of digitalisation, digital skills, innovation and training 
strategies in European SMEs and assess how workers in SMEs compare to the average in terms of 
working conditions, job quality, digital skills and take-up of training. Challenges specific to the SME 
context, which could pose a barrier to skills development and good job quality, will be identified, as 
will policy initiatives supporting SMEs in the digital transition in terms of investment in innovation 
and training. The main data sources will be the EWCTS 2021 and the 2019 European Company 
Survey, including the 2020 follow-up interviews and expert interviews to be conducted in 2024. 
Cooperation with Cedefop and ETF will be sought. 

The EPSR and its Action plan aim to foster fair and quality employment, emphasising that ‘regardless 
of the type and duration of the employment relationship, workers have the right to fair and equal 
treatment regarding working conditions, access to social protection and training’. In a new piece of 
research, Eurofound will conceptualise the most vulnerable group of workers, meaning those in 
employment relationships that combine several unfavourable traits, for example involuntary part-
time workers on very low hours contracts. Using key indicators from the EU LFS, EU-SILC and the 
EWCS, the groups most likely to engage in these forms of employment will be identified and trends 
assessed. This will be complemented with an analysis of the working and material conditions and the 
job quality of these workers. The final step will assess policy and legislative developments aimed at 
addressing vulnerability through providing access to training, social protection and supporting the 
transition to more secure forms of employment. 

18 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Projects and outputs 

Project description 

The hybrid workplace in the post-Covid-19 era  

(continuation) 

Working time in the aftermath of the pandemic 
(continuation) 

Outputs 

Policy brief 

Working paper 

Report  

Exploitation of data from the EWCTS through the 
involvement of external researchers (continuation) 

Blogs linking to 
academic articles 

Analysis of the job quality of older workers and 
company practices that support keeping older workers 
in employment (continuation) 

Analysis of self‐employment based on EWCS data and 
policies addressing the challenges associated with 
specific types of self-employment, including an 
assessment of existing evaluations of these policies 
(continuation) 

Digital transition, job quality and workplace practices, 
including workers involvement, in SMEs (new) 

Employment and working conditions of the most 
vulnerable workers: Addressing an ongoing policy 
challenge (new) 

Report  

Report 

Working paper 

Report  

2025 

Report  

2025 

Year  

2025 

2025 

2024 

2025 

2024 

Preparatory work for the EWCS overview report (new) 

Report 

2025 

Resources 

€216,000 and 5.1 FTE 

2.2 Activity 2: Industrial relations and social dialogue 

Multiannual perspective 

Overview 
Eurofound will continue to support the dialogue between management and labour and will analyse 
developments in industrial relations systems and social dialogue. This comparative analysis of 
policies, institutional frameworks and practices will contribute also to the research in both Activities 
5 and 6. This activity will build on Eurofound’s established expertise on industrial relations, and will 
draw on the knowledge of the Network of Eurofound Correspondents at national level. 

A first strand of work concerns the actors and processes of industrial relations, and the framework in 
which the employment relationship is shaped (by law and collective agreements). In this context, 
comparative information will be provided on national systems of industrial relations, including 
national social dialogue and collective bargaining processes and outcomes.  

19 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The framework of key dimensions of industrial relations and the dashboard of indicators established 
by the Agency will be updated during the programming period. Regular and timely updating of 
national industrial relations developments will be provided by the Network of Eurofound 
Correspondents, including updates to the EU PolicyWatch database, which contains policy initiatives 
by governments, social partners and other actors.  

Reporting will also include the functioning of tripartite social dialogue and involvement of social 
partners in policymaking at national level, notably the Recovery and Resilience Plans. Data on wage 
and working time setting, including for minimum wages, will be reported regularly and findings will 
also be published on working time developments.8 At two-yearly intervals, the national profiles of 
working life, which include structural information on industrial relations systems and other 
dimensions of working life, will be updated. Data and findings on labour disputes, generated through 
the feasibility study and pilot project on an industrial action monitor conducted during the previous 
programming period, were presented in a final overview report.  

A second strand of work concerns support for social dialogue. At EU level, Eurofound will continue to 
support the development of social dialogue through its studies on the representativeness of social 
partner organisations. The studies provide the empirical basis for the European Commission to take 
decisions on the participation of European organisations of management and labour in social 
dialogue committees and to consult under Article 154 TFEU, as well as to assess their 
representativeness in the context of their dialogue leading to Council decisions under Article 155 
TFEU. Building on previous work, Eurofound can make available its expertise to support capacity-
building activities for effective social dialogue, the EU Social Dialogue Committee and debates of the 
EU-level social partners in the framework of their work programme. Building on the 
recommendations made in Eurofound’s report Capacity-building for effective social dialogue (2020), 
Eurofound will explore together with the social partners the development of further activities in this 
area, as well as looking at options for organisational support.  

Activity 5 (Anticipating and managing the impact of change) will consider the role of social dialogue 
in the context of restructuring, climate change and digitalisation. Social partners, particularly at 
company level, play a key role in the anticipation and management of change, for example, in the 
adaptation of the workplace and job content, and when more significant restructuring is required. 
Similarly, Activity 6 (Promoting social cohesion and convergence) will consider the role of social 
dialogue in contributing to some social outcomes. 

Objectives  
Eurofound’s objectives in this area are to support the EU institutions, Member States and social 
partners in promoting social dialogue, and to monitor and analyse developments in industrial 
relations systems and social dialogue at national and European levels. Eurofound will contribute 
regular, timely and authoritative information on a comparative basis on the main developments 

8 Further analysis of wages and working time developments will be conducted in Activity 6 Promoting social 
cohesion and convergence.  

20 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
affecting the actors, processes and key outcomes of industrial relations, and make available data and 
expertise to support social dialogue. 

Expected results 
Through the provision of reliable and timely information on trends and developments in national 
industrial relations systems and working life outcomes (including a report on labour disputes and 
industrial action), Eurofound will support the European institutions, national public authorities and 
social partners at various levels in their work of policy formation, social dialogue, collective 
bargaining and the regulation of employment relations. Eurofound’s input will pay particular 
attention to the steps taken in response to the COVID-19 emergency, the impact of the war in 
Ukraine, the Recovery and Resilience Facility and the twin transition. 

Eurofound will analyse developments with a view to identifying ways to strengthen collective 
bargaining at national level and to support the social partners and European institutions in fostering 
social dialogue more widely, taking into account their joint work programme.  

In particular, Eurofound findings will contribute to the functioning of European social dialogue, for 
example, facilitating decisions on representativeness for the consultation and negotiation, as well as 
the functioning of committees, and the implementation of Principle 8 of the EPSR (‘Social dialogue 
and involvement of workers’). The findings will also contribute to the legislative process and policy 
coordination through the European Semester, thus providing valuable input on a range of policy-
relevant themes as required by policymakers and industrial relations actors. 

Specific findings will seek to contribute to the discussion on minimum wages (in the context of the 
Directive on adequate minimum wages), to initiatives promoting fair, decent and transparent wages 
(in line with Principle 6 of the EPSR and the gender pay equality priority), to the proposed Directive 
on Gender Pay Transparency, to monitoring the Working Time Directive and also contribute to 
actions in the wake of the implementation of the Council Recommendation on strengthening social 
dialogue in the EU. 

2024 Work programme: Activity 2 – Industrial relations and social dialogue 

Overview  
In 2024, Eurofound will continue to monitor developments in industrial relations and social dialogue 
at European level and in the Member States, and to support social dialogue. 

The Agency will draw extensively on the work of the Network of Eurofound Correspondents to 
provide information on developments in industrial relations. Work begun in 2023 will be completed, 
and in 2025 a report will be published on the interaction of minimum wages with collective 
bargaining for low-paid groups. Likewise, the work on collective bargaining beyond pay will be 
finalised and, subject to feasibility, a dataset and report will be published in 2025. Regular 
monitoring of developments in industrial relations, social dialogue and working-life will generate 
national reports and thematic articles; the EU PolicyWatch database will continue to be updated and 
to serve as a flexible tool for observing policy developments in changing contexts; and preparations 
will be made for updating the working life country profiles for publication in 2025, in cooperation 
with ETF for the profiles of the new candidate countries. .  

21 

 
 
 
 
 
 
The role of national (tripartite or institutional) social dialogue in policy formation in the context of 
the EU semester will continue to be researched. Findings on the role of tripartite discussions, social 
dialogue and social partner involvement in national policy-making linked to the EU Recovery and 
Resilience package will be published in 2024, and a new cycle of work will begin with a focus on 
social partners’ contribution to the twin transition policies. This will focus on policy processes linking 
European and national policy agendas – in particular the Employment Guidelines and the European 
Semester.  

Comparative information will be published on developments affecting minimum wages in the 
context of the European policy debate (uprating of the levels, and changes in the systems for setting 
them), and preparation will begin for the update on working-time developments in 2023–24 (to be 
published in 2025). Policy-relevant topics will be selected for comparative reporting based on the 
work programme. 

Eurofound will continue to support social dialogue, in particular by conducting studies on the 
representativeness of European social partners in specific sectors. Six studies will be published in 
2024, unless the needs of stakeholders change in light of developments in the organisation of 
European social dialogue. As part of the capacity building activities, and following the successful 
implementation of the pilot Tripartite Exchange Seminars (TES) in 2022, a new phase of TES will be 
initiated in 2024 and in collaboration with ETF, Cedefop and EEA. 

One new project will begin in 2024, with results to be published in 2025. It will continue Eurofound’s 
work on gender pay transparency measures (which started in 2018, looking into the first experiences 
of such measures). In liaison with EIGE, in 2024 Eurofound will start to investigate further 
experiences with the implementation of gender pay transparency measures, notably, but not 
exclusively, in those Member States which have recently introduced new legislation. The research 
will include national evaluation studies and interviews with relevant actors involved. In addition, the 
research will seek to provide a deeper insight into how gender-neutral pay determination functions 
in practice. This will be done through case studies of selected examples in which the work of equal 
value principle was implemented in a gender-neutral manner either as general guidance, or within 
collective agreements or for company-level pay scales.  

Projects and outputs 

Project description 

Outputs 

Year 

The interaction of minimum wages with 
collective bargaining for low-paid groups 
(continuation) 
Representativeness studies (ongoing) 

National reporting on industrial relations, 
social dialogue and working life (ongoing) 
Monitoring policy developments and social 
partner involvement – EU PolicyWatch 
database (ongoing) 

•  Report 

•  Six studies as part of rolling 

programme 
•  National reports 
•  Thematic articles 
•  Updated database 
•  Article 

2025 

2024 
2025 
2024 
2024 
2024 

22 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Collective bargaining beyond pay 
(continuation) 
National tripartite social dialogue and policy 
formation in the context of the EU semester 
(continuation/ongoing) 

•  Dataset 
•  Report 
•  Report – RRF/European 

Semester 

•  Report (social dialogue and 

the twin transition) 

•  3 workshops with sectoral 

social partners 

2025 
2025 
2024 

2025 

Working life country profiles (ongoing) 

•  Updated working life profiles 

2025 

Minimum wages – annual review (ongoing) 

Topical updates (ongoing) 

Developments in working time (2023–24) 
(ongoing) 
Further experiences with pay transparency 
measures (new) 
Capacity building for effective social dialogue 
(Tripartite Exchange Seminars) (continuation) 

•  Report 
•  Article 
•  Reports 
•  Articles 
•  Article 

•  Report 

•  Seminar 
•  Article  

Resources 
€1,293,000 and 8.1 FTE  

2024 

2024 

2025 

2025 

2024 

2.3 Activity 3: Employment and labour markets 

Multiannual perspective 

Overview 
Following an overall improvement in the employment situation in the aftermath of the Great 
Recession, the European labour markets were again faced with significant challenges when the 
COVID-19 pandemic was unleashed on the world in early 2020. The expectations of much higher 
levels of unemployment in some countries, regions, sectors and occupations, with the most 
precarious and vulnerable workers likely to be affected the most and longest in some cases were 
dampened by the strong policy responses from both the national and European level. In addition to 
this, in 2022 Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine triggered a humanitarian, and economic and 
an energy crisis with further repercussions on European economic situation and labour markets. 
Eurofound will fulfil its function to provide knowledge that can inform policy to help mitigate the 
consequences of both the pandemic and the war in Ukraine for work and employment and ensure 
the functioning and inclusiveness of the labour market in the face of the twin-green and digital 
transition. Eurofound will collect data, analyse trends in employment and labour market 
developments and provide the Commission and other EU institutions, Member States and social 
partners with support to devise employment policies. This will be achieved by continuing 

23 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Eurofound’s role in the monitoring of trends on the labour market, the impacts of these trends for 
different groups and the lessons which can be drawn for policymakers.  

A first research strand in this activity will focus on the change in the structure of the labour market, 
including the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact of the war in Ukraine. It will identify 
growing and declining sectors, occupations and qualifications, based on ongoing updates and 
analyses of Eurofound’s established monitoring instruments, the European Jobs Monitor (EJM) and 
the European Restructuring Monitor (ERM), as well as Eurostat data. The EJM will continue to map 
job growth and decline across occupations and sectors and to identify shifts in the tasks, profiles and 
some aspects of the quality of jobs, including educational attainment. Some focus will be placed on 
jobs employing a large number of workers or those growing or declining fastest. The cooperation 
with the European Commission’s JRC in this area is expected to continue. Work on restructuring 
could carry on with the ERM examination of large-scale restructuring events and legislative 
measures. This could be supplemented by more in-depth qualitative research on company practices 
at restructuring (including the role of social dialogue). Regional perspectives could also be 
considered, notably with a focus on those neighbouring countries and regions receiving a large 
number of refugees from Ukraine. Research on restructuring will continue to contribute to activities 
of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund for Displaced Workers (EGF) as well as the European 
Social Fund Plus (ESF+). The results of the two instruments will be presented in an integrated way to 
provide an overview of structural changes in labour markets. 

The analysis of restructuring would also feed into Activity 5 (Anticipating and managing the impact of 
change) as regards some types of restructuring (for example, linked to climate change/the transition 
to a carbon-neutral economy, digitalisation, offshoring or reshoring) that would be further 
researched in that area.  

A second research focus will be on labour shortages and underutilised potentials. Based on research 
conducted in the 2017–2020 work programme, analysis will mainly explore policy interventions and 
company practices. Eurofound will analyse various types of labour market and social policy measures 
as regards their effectiveness, with a specific focus on measures to tackle the functioning of certain 
sectors traditionally subject to labour shortages which were accentuated during the COVID-19 crisis 
and after. Supply side enabling factors are considered where relevant. Where possible, case studies 
on corporate initiatives to integrate Ukrainian migrants will be integrated. 

Respective approaches can target the supply as well as the demand for labour and refer to fostering 
activation/active inclusion and management of workplace diversity, focusing on unused or 
underutilised human resources and talent (for example, in terms of geographic or occupational 
mobility; skills mismatches and working time, including ‘labour market slack’; or oriented towards 
specific target groups underrepresented in the labour market, such as people with disabilities, 
women and young people). The related work of the Commission and the implementation of EU 
funds such as the ESF+, OECD and other organisations will be considered. Cooperation with Cedefop 
and the ELA will be explored as regards skills and labour mobility in the context of employment 
policies to tackle labour shortages. More generally, the use of other resources (for example, the 
European Job Vacancy statistics provided by Eurostat) and exchange with other European actors 

24 

 
 
 
 
 
 
working on the issue of labour shortages and underutilised potentials could be explored (for 
example, the European network of Public Employment Services).  

This activity will also feed into the preparation of the new round of the ECS, foreseen for the next 
multiannual programme. 

Objectives  
Eurofound will monitor and analyse how the labour market structure is changing, including as a 
result of the COVID-19 crisis and the war in Ukraine, in terms of net job creation and job loss by 
sector and occupation, as well as key characteristics of the job structure (for example, employment 
polarisation and changing task composition in jobs). Furthermore, Eurofound will provide up-to-date 
information on restructuring, in terms of its employment effects, as well as on policies and 
legislation. Finally, this research activity will address the key challenge of labour shortages in certain 
sectors and occupations by exploring the effectiveness of relevant policy responses.  

Expected results 
Analysis of labour market structural change and shifts in supply and demand will allow stakeholders 
to go beyond standard statistical data to better understand recent trends and developments and 
identify related opportunities and challenges. This can contribute to the EU objective of quality jobs 
in regions, as well as to the development of the forthcoming comprehensive and coordinated 
industrial policy. In addition to generally monitoring large-scale restructuring in a period of 
substantial economic and labour market shock as result of the COVID-19 crisis and the war in 
Ukraine, the ERM can be a knowledge base for activities of the EGF, the Just Transition Fund and the 
ESF+, particularly in light of the broadened scope of the EGF post-2020 to cover all large-scale 
restructurings.  

EJM data will continue to inform policymakers on the extent to which employment shifts in national 
labour markets are polarising, upgrading or following some other pattern of change. Analysis of 
what works to tackle labour shortages and activate underused potentials will help policymakers in 
their design of specific instruments. Knowledge provided through this activity will be a useful basis 
to support the development of more effective policies, for example, when debating labour market 
reforms, including in the context of the European Semester, social dialogue, the implementation of 
ESF+ measures related to access to employment, the participation of young people and women, 
active ageing, and the integration of migrants and people with disabilities. 

2024 Work programme: Activity 3 – Employment and labour markets 

Overview  
In 2024, Eurofound will continue its work on monitoring and analysing how the labour market 
structure is changing. Research on regional perspectives of labour market change following the 
COVID-19 pandemic will be finalised from 2023. Ongoing work as part of the European Restructuring 
Monitor (ERM) will continue to track restructuring activity based on media coverage. This database 
also forms the basis for projects conducted as part of Activity 5 and continuing from 2023. This 
refers to exploring company restructuring practices related to the twin transition, and to research on 
the impact of change caused by the twin transitions at the sectoral level. 

25 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Another two projects will continue from 2023, and include research on company practices tackling 
labour shortage related to the twin transition and in sectors in which shortages have been 
aggravated by COVID-19, and the analysis of job retention measures during COVID-19 pandemic and 
their effects on mitigating the longer-term consequences of COVID-19 for business, work and 
employment. 

Three new projects will begin in 2024. Annual reporting on structural change in the labour market 
will be based on a new project investigating shifts in the employment structure in the first quarter of 
the 21st century. The research will answer several research questions and critically examine some 
assumptions about the accelerating pace of change (technological, globalisation/trade-related, 
demographic) and its impacts on labour markets. In particular, the project will explore whether 
average job tenure and the pace of job reallocation are decreasing/increasing, and whether shifts in 
the employment structure are upgrading or polarising.  

In addition to the above, a new project will start to investigate job differences in task requirements 
and their implications for mobility and employment reallocation across the economy. When 
switching jobs, workers are more likely to opt for jobs that match their existing skill and/or job-task 
profiles. This project aims at measuring job differences in terms of task requirements, with the view 
to determine the magnitude and the nature of changes in job tasks following a job move. It will 
contribute to understandings of how jobs differ in terms of task requirements, what changes in tasks 
requirements are associated with job moves, where and for whom are the differences smallest or 
biggest and what specific task-based skills determine most of the differences. Cooperation with JRC 
will be sought. 

Another new project will explore wage determinants in the EU, with a specific focus on gender gaps. 
The research will analyse the extent to which trends in educational attainment by gender (the 
gender educational gap) and wages by gender (the gender pay gap) are – or are not – correlated. It 
will also identify the determinants of any mismatch between wages and education levels by gender 
(subject choice, sector, occupation, and so on) taking account of tenure and other wage correlates. 
Cooperation with EIGE will be sought. 

Projects and outputs 

Project description  

Company/organisation practices to tackle labour 
shortages related to the twin transition and in 
sectors in which shortages have been aggravated by 
COVID-19 (continuation) 
Regional perspective of labour market change 
following the Covid-19 pandemic (continuation) 
COVID-19 support measures and their effects on 
mitigating the longer-term consequences of COVID-
19 for business, work and employment 
(continuation) 
European Restructuring Monitor events databases – 
maintenance and update (ongoing) 

26 

Outputs  

•  Report 
•  Case studies 

Year  

2024 

•  Report 

•  Report 
•  Database update 

•  Updated database 
•  Article 

2024 

2024 

2024 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Annual reporting on structural change on the labour 
market: Shifts in the employment structure: is 
change accelerating or slowing? (new)  
Measuring jobs differences in task requirements: 
Implications for mobility and employment 
reallocation across the economy (new)  
Wage determinants in the EU: the riddle of opposing 
gender gaps (new)  

•  Report 
•  Dataset 

2025 

•  Working paper 

2025 

•  Policy brief 

2025 

Resources 
EUR 198,000 and 5.2 FTE 

2.4 Activity 4: Living conditions and quality of life 

Multiannual perspective 

Overview 
The health and economic outfall from the COVID-19 pandemic and the implications of the war in 
Ukraine, including the increase of the price of energy and of the cost of living, are deeply affecting 
the lives of people living in Europe. For this reason, the study of living conditions and quality of life 
has acquired even more importance, and Eurofound will continue to monitor trends in this area in 
light of these new challenges.  

As mentioned in the sections on Activities 1 and 7 in relation to the discussion on the longer-term 
approach to Eurofound surveys, in 2024 Eurofound will carry out the EWCS which will include some 
questions on working conditions and living conditions relevant to the aftermath of COVID-19. 
Respondents for this survey are recruited face-to-face. The majority of these respondents will also 
be interviewed face-to-face, to ensure that the findings of the survey can be compared with previous 
rounds of the EWCS. To test the possible transition of Eurofound surveys to an online mode of data 
administration, a smaller random subsample of respondents would be recruited to complete the 
interview online. This will allow for a comparison of the answers between the two different modes 
of administration in the case of a selection of questions from the EWCS. It will further allow the 
impact of moving to a push-to-web approach on survey efficiency and data quality to be tested. As 
part of this 2024 survey, respondents will be asked to participate in a series of online follow-up 
questionnaires. These follow-up questionnaires will include questions from the EWCS that were not 
asked in the initial questionnaire – increasing the selection of variables for which trend breaks can 
be managed. This element also allows for the testing of the effectiveness of recruiting respondents 
for follow-up questionnaires and the impact of the initial refusals to participate in such follow-up 
questionnaires, as well as survey attrition at a later stage on the sample composition.  

The European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS) will be fielded in 2026 using lessons learnt from the 2024 
EWCS test survey. 

With European societies still enveloped in uncertainty due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in 
Ukraine, including the increasing price of energy, Eurofound will investigate the impact of these new 

27 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
crises on the living conditions of Europeans in different life stages and the role played by various 
initiatives implemented to alleviate the social hardship of various groups of citizens.  

Furthermore, to respond to key demographic changes in European societies, Eurofound will focus on 
the implications of demographic changes. This involves capturing and assessing the quality of life of 
older citizens, including older workers and pensioners, and the analysis of income security and the 
role of public services in facilitating independent ageing. Eurofound’s research perspective will 
address the preferences and opportunities of citizens to participate in society and employment, as 
well as to contribute to the development of services that enable older people to do so. The new 
demography also has implications for the younger generation and for women. This will be explored 
through research on young people and their social inclusion as well as their social mobility, including 
the transmission of advantages and disadvantages between generations. Building on previous 
research findings, Eurofound will investigate the differentiated impact of the crisis on men and 
women across several dimensions. 

Many responses to the challenges and opportunities for the improvement of living conditions are 
designed, delivered or facilitated by institutions and public services that played a major role, while 
facing important challenges, during the COVID-19 crisis and following the Ukrainian war and the 
resulting wave of refugees. Adopting a social investment perspective, the adequacy, quality and 
fairness (access and affordability) of public services, with a potential focus on social, care and health 
services, will be investigated. The analysis will be based on available results of the proposed new 
Eurofound survey and other data sources, such as the European Union Statistics on Income and 
Living Conditions (EU-SILC) and the Fundamental Rights Survey. Eurofound will inform policymakers 
by producing evidence on trends and drivers in this field in relation to the implementation of 
services included in Chapter III of the EPSR (‘Social protection and inclusion’). Research on the 
quality of society will also contribute to Activity 6 (Promoting social cohesion and convergence) on 
issues such as trust, social tensions and quality of public services, as has been previously explored in 
the EQLS. 

Objectives  
The objectives of this activity are to monitor living conditions in the EU, including the impact of the 
COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine on the cost of living, and to provide information on 
status, trends and risks, as well as to explore ways to improve living conditions in the EU. The 
research will look broadly at the quality of society and at communities at local or regional level, 
underlining the role of social protection for all citizens, with a special focus on the most vulnerable.  

Another objective is to inform policy debates on ageing and measures to improve the social situation 
of older citizens, on support for independent living, and on developing quality services to 
complement informal care throughout the life course. Furthermore, the research will provide up-to-
date information on the social situation of young people, men and women in order to support policy 
measures promoting their inclusion. 

28 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Expected results 
The results of the research will shed light on the development of living conditions, including the 
impact of the health and economic fallout from the COVID-19 crisis and the implications of the war 
in Ukraine, and will contribute to initiatives and assessments of the implementation of the EPSR and 
sustaining the European social model, with particular attention paid to the regional dimension. 
Specific findings regarding groups affected by demographic change, care responsibilities, 
developments in work–life balance, as well as regarding access to quality public services, could feed 
into the debate on the European Care Strategy and the Youth Guarantee and be used in the 
European Semester for social policy-related CSRs, especially in relation to care. This research can 
support discussions around initiatives such as the European Child Guarantee while the findings on 
gender equality will contribute to the Gender Equality Strategy 2020–2025. Results from the 
research on care services can contribute to the Long-Term Care initiative, European Semester 
discussions related to social spending and social services, as well as to the monitoring and evaluation 
of the implementation of the Cohesion Fund and ESF+. The findings could inform the annual reports 
of the Employment and Social Protection Committee and the European Commission’s reports on 
Employment and Social Developments in Europe.  

2024 Work programme: Activity 4 – Living conditions and quality of life 

Overview 
In 2024, Eurofound will complete the research on ‘Becoming adults’, which focuses on the life and 
prospects of young people in the post-pandemic world. The study will shed light on the long-term 
impact of the pandemic on young people using new and original data collected in 2023. 
Furthermore, the analysis of the monitoring framework of the European Child Guarantee will come 
to an end, and the project on the developments in social protection during and after COVID-19 will 
be concluded, as well as the new research on the paths towards independent living.  

The efforts of the EU to fight against the risk of poverty and social exclusion of children gained even 
more  salience with the  Ukrainian  crisis  and  the  displacement of more than  7 million  refugees,  the 
majority of whom are women and children. Eurofound will start a new research project to support 
national governments and the EU institutions in the implementation and evaluation of the European 
Child  Guarantee.  The  project  will  investigate  developments  in  the  Member  States  levels  of 
performance and their disparities, building on its previous work on convergence. Furthermore, it will 
review the progress made in the first two years of implementation, identifying areas in which more 
progress is needed. The main focus will be on the workforce needed to deliver the European Child 
Guarantee in areas of early childhood education and care, education, healthcare and other relevant 
sectors. The study will seek examples of good practice related to training, recruitment, creation of 
new roles and improving retention. 

Considering the importance of care provision in our societies, and the crucial role played by informal 
caregivers, Eurofound will launch a new project investigating informal care and the challenges faced 
by  informal  caregivers  in  the  EU.  Care  provided  to  people  of  all  ages  will  be  analysed,  including 
caregiving to children, to people with disabilities or health issues and to elderly people. The project 
will establish the extent of informal caregiving carried out and examine values that people hold when 

29 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
it comes to informal care work. Moreover, it will describe how this volume of work has evolved over 
time and will seek to identify the characteristics of carer groups highlighting the challenges faced by 
them. Given the composition of the carer group, the gender aspect will be taken into account in the 
analysis. Where possible the project will also look at the specific situation and challenges of live-in 
carers. The project will also map the EU policy landscape when it comes to support for informal carers 
by examining policies aiming at addressing the challenges faced by informal carers as well as attempts 
to formalise the employment of care workers working undeclared. 

Finally, in 2024, Eurofound will launch a new project on mental health services. Prior to the pandemic, 
mental health problems were already prevalent and on the increase. The pandemic has made it clear 
that even groups deemed less vulnerable in this regard were at risk of mental health problems, with 
particularly large increases of mental health problems arising among young people. The war in Ukraine 
has  added  to  the  need  for  mental  health  care,  due  to  the  influx  of  refugees  marked  by  their 
experiences. This project investigates trends and prevalence of mental health problems for different 
groups  and  how  these  needs  are  met  in  various  countries.  An  overview  of  policy  actions  taken  to 
address or prevent mental health problems will be provided, and problems hindering the access to 
mental health services. It draws on the literature, data from EU-SILC and Eurofound's Living, working 
and COVID-19 e-survey, and input from the Network of Eurofound Correspondents. 

Projects and outputs 

Project description 
Addressing challenges to mental health in Europe: Trends and 
services (new) 
Care provision and the role of informal carers (new) 

European Child Guarantee: Two years on (new) 

Social Protection 2.0 (continuation) 

Outputs 

•  Report 

Year 
2025 

•  Report 

2025 

•  Report 

•  Report 

2025 

2024 

Paths towards independent living in Europe (continuation) 

•  Report 

2024 

Becoming adults: youth life and work in a post-pandemic world 
(continuation) 
Analysis of the European Child Guarantee monitoring framework 
(continuation) 

•  Report 
•  Dataset 
•  Working 
paper 

2024 

2024 

Resources 

€278,000 and 4.2 FTE 

30 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2.5 Activity 5: Anticipating and managing the impact of change  

Multiannual perspective 

Overview  
The megatrends mentioned in Chapter 1 are driving a rapid change in the economy, society and 
labour market. Digitalisation and the transition to a carbon-neutral economy are currently two of 
the most relevant drivers, together with the anticipated longer-lasting impact of the COVID-19 crisis, 
as well as the implications of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. Eurofound will focus on the 
impact of these drivers, sometimes associated with new business models and a different 
organisation of work, for employment creation and labour market integration, employment relations 
and working conditions, together with the implications for labour market institutions – particularly 
the regulatory framework, social dialogue and social protection. The roles, situations and challenges 
for specific types of organisations, such as SMEs and the public sector, could be explored. 

Eurofound will examine aspects associated with the deployment of digitalisation, not least AI. This 
could include the use and ownership of private/personal data and, in the area of working conditions, 
issues such as leadership and HRM practices, remote and flexible working, teamwork, human-
machine interaction, working time, control and surveillance. As far as possible, data from the EWCS 
and ECS could be exploited for this purpose. Cooperation with EU-OSHA and the European Union 
Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) could be considered as regards the implications of 
digitalisation for health and safety, particularly psychosocial risks, and the ethics dimension of 
digitalisation. The same is true for Eurofound’s collaboration with Cedefop in relation to skills 
requirements. 

The impact of the transition to a carbon-neutral economy, in light of the target of a climate-neutral 
Europe, including the circular economy and NextGenerationEU, is less known. Eurofound will 
investigate the socioeconomic effects, such as on employment (shifts and transformation of jobs) 
and working conditions, as well as on society (for example, the distributional impacts of climate 
change policies). Some of this work can build on the results of the pilot project on the future of 
manufacturing (FOME) implemented by Eurofound. Cooperation will take place with the European 
Environmental Agency (EEA), including the European Climate and Health Observatory, as well as with 
Cedefop in relation to changing skill needs as appropriate. 

Building on the research of Activity 3 (Employment and labour markets), restructuring in relevant 
sectors will be identified and analysed. Restructuring specifically linked to digitalisation and the 
transition to a carbon-neutral economy could be identified in the ERM databases, by adjusting the 
events database, and complemented with qualitative research. The analysis would also include the 
specific role of social dialogue and employee representatives in the design and implementation of 
the change process, for example, social plans, including support for the transitions of workers 
affected and other measures, such as active labour market policies, collected in the ERM support 
and legal databases.  

31 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Eurofound will also examine the impact, in the areas indicated in the first paragraph of this section, 
of new business models and work organisation. This could include, for example, an examination of 
new ways of cooperation and organisation between and within companies, such as those related to 
the platform or the circular economy. The already existing orientation of platform work will continue 
with exploring challenges and opportunities created by this new form of employment, with more 
focus on mapping and providing some assessment of the effectiveness of initiatives to tackle the 
challenges identified. Furthermore, issues such as discrimination, gender and age, and privacy could 
be explored.  

Future scenarios of potential developments driven by digitalisation and the transition to a carbon-
neutral economy have been published. This includes a discussion with stakeholders about possible 
pathways and measures to achieve the desired outcomes.  

When addressing the implications for industrial relations in the research mentioned above, 
Eurofound will investigate the role, opportunities and challenges of traditional social dialogue and 
the emergence of new types of collective actions where they exist. 

Objectives 
Eurofound will explore the impact of digitalisation and the transition to a carbon-neutral economy 
on employment levels, working conditions (including social protection) and employment relations, 
and study the role of industrial relations and social dialogue in shaping and implementing such 
change, as well as the impact on society and citizens. Furthermore, the implications for labour 
market institutions, particularly social partners and the regulatory framework, as well as for different 
regions and social groups will be analysed. Existing measures and initiatives to manage change will 
be mapped and pathways towards a desirable future explored. 

Expected results 
By delivering on this objective, stakeholders will have the necessary evidence to inform decisions 
about where and how to intervene to manage change, optimise positive impacts and prevent the 
undesirable consequences of digitalisation and the transition to a carbon-neutral economy on 
society, work and employment in a labour market affected by the longer-term implications of the 
COVID-19 pandemic and the impact of the war in Ukraine. The focus on the impact of these drivers 
of change on the workplace level will provide insight into how best to support employers and 
workers to take advantage of the opportunities and mitigate the challenges related to these 
developments, which figure high on the policy agenda: for example, included in NextGenerationEU, 
the European Green Deal, REPowerEU, the EU Strategic Agenda 2019–2024 or related to the Digital 
Services Act, the Digital Education Action Plan, and the update of the European Skills Agenda, the EU 
Strategy for Data or the EU White Paper on Artificial Intelligence. The research could also feed into 
the new SME strategy and activities related to help businesses adapt to globalisation, and thereby 
contribute to the Commission priorities on ‘Europe fit for the digital age’ and ‘An economy that 
works for people’. 

Research on the twin transition related to digitalisation and climate change could provide relevant 
information for policymakers seeking solutions to make markets work better for consumers, 

32 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
business, workers and society and for the sustainable development of cities and urban areas, and to 
support regions to improve their infrastructure and access to services as foreseen in the Commission 
priorities on ‘Europe fit for the digital age’, the ‘European Green Deal’, ‘Cohesion and reforms’ and 
‘Democracy and demography’. It will build on the Council Recommendation on ensuring a fair 
transition towards climate neutrality. More specifically, the research conducted by Eurofound in 
connection with the socio-economic impact of the transition to a carbon neutral economy and 
monitoring the employment and social dimension of the green transition will ensure consistency and 
explore synergies and complementarities with the Commission’s activities in this area. 

The exploration of the impact on labour market institutions, including regulations and social 
partners, industrial relations and job quality, can support discussions on whether traditional forms of 
monitoring are fit for purpose in a changing world of work.  

The examination of the distributional impacts of climate change policies, and of measures to 
maximise social justice is expected to inform the Just Transition Fund as well as the Social Climate 
Fund. The monitoring of reforms and newly emerging interventions can foster an exchange of policy 
approaches and lessons learned, in terms of informing on ‘what works, what does not’. 

2024 Work programme: Activity 5 – Anticipating and managing the impact of change 

Overview  
The year 2024 will see the continuation of a number of multiannual projects which allow Eurofound 
to regularly monitor and update its knowledge base with regard to topics linked to the digital 
transformation of work. This includes the web repository on policies linked to the platform 
economy, which enables Eurofound to provide information on national policy, legislative and 
collective bargaining evolutions. In addition, the online resource on digitalisation, which will be 
presented as a web hub on Eurofound’s webpage, will be updated and enhanced. Three projects 
linked to the digital and green transitions, which were started in 2023, will also be finalised in 2024. 
One project focuses on the impact of changes caused by the twin transitions at the sectoral level, 
and another assesses the role, opportunities and challenges for policy actors in the twin transition. 
The third project analysis the impact of new developments in human-machine interaction on work 
organisation and working conditions. 

The strong research focus on the impact of the green and digital transitions on the labour market 
and labour market actors will continue with a project aimed at exploring the ongoing adaptation 
strategies and restructuring events at company level. The project will assess whether there are new 
developments and approaches to ongoing adaptation strategies and restructuring events, and HR 
management practices to address these challenges, and to what extent change mechanisms, social 
dialogue agreements and other industrial relations and workers participation instruments played a 
role in mitigating the impact of the twin transitions in affected companies. The continued validity of 
the approach of the European Commission’s Quality Framework for anticipation of change and 
restructuring will be considered, as well as the extent to which companies are applying sustainable 
development goals and new HR practices and tools (for example, AI) in anticipating and 
implementing change management, and environmental and career development projects. Further 

33 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
research will also be carried out on the transition to a low carbon economy to address gaps in the 
research identified in the concept paper prepared in 2022. Research will also build on projects 
implemented in 2022–2023. Depending on the findings of this research, Eurofound may further 
elaborate on the monitoring of the socio-ecological transition, with a focus on both living and 
working conditions at regional and Member States level. This could take into account the impact of 
such transitions on convergence or divergence between regions or countries as a result of policies to 
foster more sustainable development. Collaboration with the EEA is being sought. 

Following on from the assessment of the impact of the increase in telework and hybrid work on 
workers carried out – among other things – using data from the 2021 EWCTS but also through 
projects implemented by Eurofound in 2022 and 2023, a new project will focus on how managers’ 
roles and functions are impacted by the shift towards more hybrid working in terms of challenges 
and opportunities. This will include, among other things, an assessment of the new skills required in 
less presence-based management systems and more output driven management systems; how 
supervisory and managerial roles are performed in the new working environment, how managers 
engage with employees and/or worker representatives on these issues and the extent to which 
lessons are being drawn from the pandemic period. 

Building on Eurofound’s previous projects on platform work and the ongoing monitoring of policies 
and measures with regard to platform work through the web repository (see above), a new project 
will focus on the working conditions and management of online platform workers. It will explore the 
characteristics of online platform workers, and how they fare in relation to contractual 
arrangements and job quality including pay, work intensity, working time, occupational safety and 
health, social environment and career prospects. The planned survey of online platform workers will 
also seek to provide evidence on aspects previously unexplored such as the career goals of online 
platform workers, their information needs, whether people perform online platform work because it 
offers better alternatives than traditional employment and whether online platform work impacts 
on the workers’ skills development. Eurofound has an ongoing exchange and coordination with 
other agencies working on the issue of platform work including the ELA, CEDEFOP and EU-OSHA. 

Projects and outputs 

Project description 

Outputs 

Web repository for the platform economy 
(continuation) 
Maintenance of the online resource on 
digitalisation (continuation) 
Impact of change caused by the twin 
transition at sector level (continuation) 

•  Database 
•  HTML 
•  HTML 

•  Report 
•  Working paper 

Just transition: Policy actors’ role, 
opportunities, and challenges (continuation) 

•  Policy brief 
•  Working paper 

Year 

2024 

2024 

2025 

2024 

34 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The impact of new developments in human-
machine interaction on work organisation and 
working conditions (continuation) 
Company restructuring approaches in the 
context of the twin transitions (new) 
Hybrid work: a new management challenge 
(new) 
Further evidence on the socio-economic 
impact of the transition to a carbon-neutral 
economy monitoring the employment and 
social dimension of the green transition (new) 
Working conditions of online platform 
workers (new) 

•  Report 
•  Working paper 

•  Report 

Working paper 

•  Report 

•  Report 
•  Data hub 

•  Report 
•  Dataset 

2024 

2025 

2025 

2025 

2025 

Resources 

        €324,000 and 4.9 FTE 

2.6 Activity 6: Promoting social cohesion and convergence 

Multiannual perspective 

Overview  
Coming in the wake of the improvements in economic growth and labour market participation 
recorded in recent years, the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, with the related 
implication on the surge of the cost of living, constitute a new, extraordinary challenge for the EU 
and its economic and social stability. The very severe financial consequences of the crisis, with rising 
inflation and the spike in energy prices, could trigger new fragmentations among Member States’ 
performances, revealing the fragility of the progress in convergence patterns recently achieved. 
Furthermore, the socioeconomic effects of the pandemic and of the increase in the cost of energy 
could impact on inequalities among citizens, leaving many Europeans with a growing perception of 
economic and social insecurity and a sense of discontent, expressed at both national and European 
levels. The war in Ukraine and its economic implications for the cost of living may exacerbate these 
perceptions even more. Promoting upward convergence towards better working and living 
conditions and strengthening economic and social cohesion are of the utmost importance for the 
EU. With the aim of providing evidence to policymakers on how to mitigate the consequences of 
these crises and reduce economic and social fragmentations, Eurofound will continue to study the 
upward convergence theme of the previous work programme. It will more explicitly focus on the 
potential rise of new inequalities and how to explain and address the increased challenges to the 
social cohesion of the EU. In order to monitor the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and of the war 
in Ukraine, Eurofound will continue to report regularly on trends of upward convergence in the 
socioeconomic dimension, as well as in employment, working and living conditions in Europe at 
Member State and regional levels. The convergence web repository will be updated and further 
developed. 

35 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Furthermore, Eurofound will focus on the drivers and implications of economic and social 
convergence within the EU. The research will highlight the interrelationships between various 
dimensions of convergence and the factors that drive convergence, such as social investment, 
mobility and institutional frameworks (for example, regulation, welfare systems, public services and 
social dialogue, and structural reforms). The effect on economic and social convergence of the 
various recovery programmes put in place at European level to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic 
and subsequent economic crisis will be investigated and a comparison with the 2008 recession will 
be made. This will provide information to policymakers on the possible means to promote 
convergence and the effectiveness of these initiatives. A specific focus will be placed on monitoring 
and explaining convergence in the euro area, not least in terms of the contrasts between different 
groups of countries and possible emerging asymmetries. Eurofound will also consider how industrial 
relations processes, in particular collective bargaining, is influencing the convergence of some 
outcomes. 

Another strand of research will focus on social cohesion in the EU, to inform policymakers on the 
means to promote policies towards a fair and inclusive society. The COVID-19 pandemic and the 
increase of the cost of living following the war in Ukraine may have resulted in an entrenchment of 
existing inequalities or in the upsurge of new ones, affecting society and its citizens more broadly. 
Economic, social and health disparities, both in the labour market (such as income and employment 
security) and in terms of access to and quality of crucial goods and services such as healthcare, 
housing, education and social protection will be examined from a social cohesion perspective. Links 
with migration and integration will be also considered. This analysis will be conducted for various 
groups in society, including the middle classes. Using Eurofound survey data, the issue of future 
prospects and perceptions of fairness will be taken into account. Furthermore, Eurofound will 
investigate the expressions of a lack of cohesion associated not only with the material and economic 
situation, but also in terms of trust in institutions and tensions between groups in society (for 
example, ethnic and religious groups), as well as citizen participation.  

Objectives 
The overall objective of this activity is to investigate the links between the development of 
disparities among Member States and among social groups and developments in social cohesion in 
Europe. In particular, the activity aims to monitor the key trends and determinants of upward 
economic and social convergence in Europe, to understand the impact of COVID-19 and the war in 
Ukraine on upward convergence and identify the key policy drivers for strengthening Member 
States’ resilience and promoting sustainable upward convergence.  

This activity also aims to investigate the trends and determinants of social cohesion, with a special 
emphasis on the impact of rising levels of disparities among social groups as a result of the COVID-19 
and the increase of the cost of living following the war in Ukraine. The research will look into the 
main drivers of inequality and key policy levers to support the reduction of multidimensional 
inequalities and initiatives to promote social cohesion. It will also provide options for policymakers 
regarding actions to reduce inequalities and strengthen social cohesion in Europe. 

36 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Expected results 
The evidence produced in this activity will inform policymakers on the latest trends on and drivers of 
convergence, inequalities and social cohesion in Europe, shedding light on the impact of the COVID-
19 crisis and of the war in Ukraine. Research on convergence relates to the EU objective of 
sustainable economic and social convergence and will help to identify gaps and overlaps between 
these two objectives. It will assess the developments of convergence trends and the effects of the 
various recovery programmes in reducing any fragmentation resulting from the war in Ukraine and 
the COVID-19 crisis, including through the rapid restoration of the full functionality of the single 
market. It will seek to contribute to the debate about the EPSR, its implementation and monitoring 
role (in particular through the European Semester process), as well as about the reform of Economic 
and Monetary Union.  

In addition, the work on cohesion can contribute to understanding the impact of the COVID-19 crisis 
and the surge in the cost of living on inequalities in order to better frame the EU priorities identified 
by the European Council on strengthening cohesion, reducing inequalities and the role of social 
protection. The research on trust and discontent can contribute to the overall initiatives following 
the Future of Europe debate. For these reasons, the results produced as part of this activity would 
contribute to the work of the different services of the European Commission and the Employment 
Committee (EMCO), the Social Protection Committee (SPC), the Economic and Financial Committee 
(EFC), the Council and the European Parliament, including in relation to the European Semester. 

2024 Work programme: Activity 6 – Promoting social cohesion and convergence 

Overview  
In 2024, Eurofound will provide new evidence on the debate on upward convergence concluding the 
project on the role of human capital on cohesion and convergence. The work on income inequalities 
will be completed, shedding light on the impact of the increased cost of living on different income 
groups, including the middle class, and households. Finally, the project on the social impact of 
migration and refugees will be published including analysis on the recent wave of Ukrainian 
refugees.  

Eurofound  will  continue  to  inform  policymakers  on  the  latest  trends  on  and  drivers  of  upward 
convergence  on  the  socio-economic  dimension  by  updating  and  maintaining  its  dashboard  of 
indicators and by providing regular annual updates on upward convergence in living and working in 
Europe, at both Member States and regional level. 

Eurofound’s work on convergence and inequalities will be complemented by a new project on the role 
of digitalisation. ‘A Europe Fit for the Digital Age’ is one of the six priorities set by President von der 
Leyen’s  Commission  for  2019–2024.  Many  of  the  ensuing  initiatives,  for  example  the  2030  policy 
programme ‘Path to the Digital Decade’, concerns increasing the digital skills and uptake of the EU 
citizens.  The  Recovery  and  Resilience  Facility  (RRF)  is  seen  as  a  catalyst  for  this  digital  transition 
designed to empower convergence within and between EU Member States. Eurofound aims at firstly 
analysing the long-term trends in the uptake and usage of digital technologies by EU citizens up to 
2020 and the progress reached by countries in fulfilling the targets set in their RRF plans. Secondly, 
the project will assess if digitalisation is a driver of economic and social convergence in the EU, with a 
37 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
focus on income, employment and poverty. The convergence analysis will rely on Eurostat’s survey on 
the use of ICT in households and by individuals (Community statistics on information society (CSIS)), 
complemented by a study of indicators that track the digital performance of countries across the years 
(such as the composite Digital Economy and Society Index). 

Building on the work done in 2019 and using data from the 2021 Household Finance and Consumption 
Survey,  Eurofound  will  review  how  the  levels  of  overall  wealth  distribution  developed  during  the 
recent period. In recent years, some economic sectors declined and others grew, and consumption 
patterns  changed,  reflecting  decreases  in  incomes  and  reliance  on  financial  support  for  some  and 
increasing saving capacity for others. Building on previously developed expertise, Eurofound will seek 
to identify changes in overall wealth distribution and will produce a more detailed account of the size 
and composition of the population with no or negative wealth, and of the asset composition of the 
wealth quantiles. 

Finally, in 2024 Eurofound will shed further light on the dynamics of social cohesion, polarisation in 
perceived trust in institutions and satisfaction with democracy in Europe. In the light of the COVID-19 
crisis  and  Russia’s  war  of  aggression  against  Ukraine,  a  new  project  will  seek  an  evidence-based 
assessment of social developments that can lead to tensions, withdrawal, or radicalisation and identify 
the main dimension of the above-mentioned polarisation in European societies over the last decade. 
Looking at the 2024 European elections, an investigation of new forms of inclusive participation and 
their possible effect on polarisation will be carried out. This will include the recent upsurge of social 
media and the rise of policymaking platforms/ online advocacy groups. The impact of polarisation on 
relevant social cohesion and active citizenship indicators will also be investigated. 

Projects and outputs 

Project description  
State of the play of upward convergence in 2024 
(new) 
Reaching out to the disconnected – Economic 
and social Convergence in EU’s digital societies 
(new) 
The dynamics of wealth distribution in Europe 
(new) 
Social cohesion and new forms of inclusive 
participation (new) 
Social Impact of Migration: Addressing 
challenges in receiving and integrating Ukrainian 
refugees (continuation) 
Income inequalities and the middle class 
(continuation) 
The role of human capital on cohesion and 
Convergence (continuation) 

Outputs  

•  Policy brief 

•  Report 

•  Report 

•  Report 

•  Report 

•  Report 

•  Report 

Resources 
€201, 000 and 4.2 FTE 

38 

Year  
2024 

2025 

2025 

2025 

2024 

2024 

2024 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2.7 Activity 7: Survey management and development 

Multiannual perspective 

Overview 
Eurofound surveys cover a broad range of policy-relevant areas within Eurofound’s strategic 
priorities and feed into a substantial part of the multiannual work programme. The Agency has been 
conducting three Europe-wide surveys over many years (EWCS since 1990, EQLS since 2003 and ECS 
since 2004).  

In recent years, Eurofound has been preparing a long-term strategy aimed at making the surveys 
future-proof and financially sustainable. The frequency of the surveys has been reviewed, new data 
collection modes have been explored and non-response rates have been analysed.  

For the period 2021–2024, Eurofound plans to implement the following actions. 
It will continue to develop the long-term survey strategy, which includes an examination of the 
viability of different and more cost-effective data-collection modes, considering both overall survey 
quality and comparability over time. A further element is to reconsider the way the surveys are 
managed and includes assessing different options for the way the surveys are organised in terms of 
contracting and opportunities for further collaboration with other EU agencies, as well as better 
synergy and options for enlarging sample sizes through more collaboration with Member States. 
Further developmental work will include the investigation of potential complementary sources of 
data, such as big data analysis and non-probabilistic, non-random online surveys (building on the 
experience of the COVID-19 e-survey). 

Fielded in 2021, an EWCS via telephone interviewing (EWCTS 2021) replaced the face-to-face EWCS 
2020 for which fieldwork had to be stopped because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to force 
majeure, the mode change to CATI was the only possible way of restarting the fieldwork in the 
foreseeable future for Eurofound, as well as for most other statistical offices in the world. 
Respondents to the EWCS 2020 who gave permission to be recontacted were followed up.  

In the context of the longer-term approach to Eurofound surveys, a feasibility study setting out 
various scenarios for future-proofing Eurofound surveys was drafted and discussed in a steering 
group. On the basis of the study and the discussion, it has been decided that in 2024 Eurofound will 
carry out the EWCS including some questions on working conditions and living conditions relevant to 
the aftermath of COVID-19. Respondents for this survey are recruited face-to-face. The majority of 
these respondents will also be interviewed face-to-face, to ensure that the findings of the survey can 
be compared with previous rounds of the EWCS. To test a possible transition of Eurofound surveys 
to an online mode of data administration, a smaller random subsample of respondents would be 
recruited to complete the interview online. This allows for a comparison of the answers between the 
two different modes of administration for a selection of questions from the EWCS. It further allows 
testing the impact of moving to a push-to-web approach on survey efficiency and data quality. As 
part of this 2024 survey, respondents will be asked to participate in a series of online follow-up 
questionnaires. These follow-up questionnaires will include questions from the EWCS that were not 

39 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
asked in the initial questionnaire – increasing the selection of variables for which trend breaks can 
be managed. This element also allows testing the effectiveness of recruiting respondents for follow-
up questionnaires, the impact of the initial refusals to participate in such follow-up questionnaires, 
as well as survey attrition at a later stage on the sample composition. 

The EQLS will be fielded in 2026–2027 using lessons learnt from the 2024 EWCS test survey. 

A steering group with Board representatives accompanied the feasibility study and will monitor any 
potential further development of the future approach to surveys. 

A new round of the ECS will take place in 2028–2029. Appropriate cooperation partners will be 
sought. The 2019 survey covered the areas of work organisation, HR practices, workers’ 
participation, social dialogue, skills strategies and digitalisation at workplace level. 

Exploitation of the data of previous surveys, namely the EWCTS, will also continue during the 
multiannual cycle as indicated in Activity 1.  

Activity 7 has three strands of work: 

• 
fielding the surveys: Preparation and implementation of fieldwork 
•  methodological survey development: Making the surveys future-proof 
• 

survey management: Improving the organisation of the surveys 

Objectives 
The surveys inform and guide a substantial part of Eurofound’s research work. During the previous 
programming period, the long-term approach to the surveys was reassessed and Eurofound began 
developing a long-term strategy for the future of the surveys, aimed at a better use of resources 
while keeping abreast of methodological developments. 

The Agency will examine the viability of different and more cost-effective data collection modes, 
looking at overall survey quality as well as comparability with data collected in the past. Another 
objective is to improve the way the surveys are organised in terms of contracting and further 
collaboration and better synergy with other EU agencies and Member States. 

Expected results 
Eurofound will have gathered the necessary information to develop the strategy for the future of the 
surveys to ensure that the Agency continues to be a key data source of policy relevance in its areas 
of expertise.  

2024 Work programme: Activity 7 – Survey management and development 

Overview 
In Spring 2024, Eurofound will field the EWCS 2024 with face-to-face interviews to collect 
comparable trend data and push-to-web interviews to test the transition to online, following the 
mandate of the Management Board. Follow-up interviews will be organised in-house to ensure the 
full EWCS questionnaire is collected from all respondents. The first follow-up round will take place at 
the end of 2024 and the following will take place in 2025. 

40 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Preparations for the 2026 EQLS will continue in 2024 with the development of the design of the 
survey and the publishing of the tender specifications, drawing on the lessons learned from the 
EWCS 2024. 

Finally, in 2024, Eurofound will further consider options to adapt the survey management practices 
to the characteristics of our future-proof surveys.  

In collaboration with the ETF, the Agency will field a new round of the e-survey in 2024, in the EU 
Member States, the Western Balkan countries and Türkiye. 

The Agency will continue its work with the Steering Group on the Future of the Surveys to test the 
transition to online data collection and ensure that high quality, policy- and research-relevant 
comparable data on working conditions and quality of life can be collected in the future.  

The Activity also requires resources to maintain and improve methodological know-how. 

Projects and outputs 

Project description  

Outputs  

Preparation and implementation of the EWCS 
2024 (continuation) 

Preparing for the EQLS 2026 (continuation) 

Survey management (continuation) 
Methodological survey development 
(ongoing) 

E-survey (continuation) 

•  Dataset 
• 
Internal reports 
•  Technical report 
•  Quality control report 
•  Tender specifications 

Internal paper 

• 
•  Dataset  
•  Working Paper 

•  Dataset 
•  Working paper 

Year  

2024 
2024 
2025 
2025 
2024 

2024 
2024 

2024 

Resources 
€2,094,000 and 5.0 FTE (including resources allocated for conducting survey) 

41 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2.8 Activity 8: Reacting to ad hoc information requests 

Multiannual perspective 

Overview 
To be able to react to changing information needs that could not be foreseen at the time of 
programme development and to ad hoc requests from policymakers, Eurofound reserves the 
capacity to provide background papers, customised reports and short studies on request to its 
stakeholders. The capacity reserved can also be used to research upcoming and unforeseen issues at 
the initiative of Eurofound. The Executive Board will be fully informed about requests received and 
the ad hoc research work. 

Objectives 
To provide relevant knowledge to the Agency’s stakeholders on demand. 

Expected results 
Eurofound will have the flexibility to react to changing information needs and to provide evidence on 
emerging, unforeseen issues which require policy action. 

The European Commission, the European Council and its committees, the European Parliament, 
Member States through their Presidencies of the European Council, national governments and the 
European social partners can receive tailor-made information on issues in Eurofound’s remit on 
request. 

2024 Work programme: Activity 8 – Reacting to ad hoc information requests 

Outputs 

Customised reports of existing findings 

Studies in response to stakeholder enquiries 

Background papers 

Contributions to publications 

Reports paid for by stakeholders 

Resources 

€325,000 and 1.7 FTE  

42 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
3.  Horizontal activities 

3.1 Activity 9: Communication  

The multiannual perspective 

Overview 
Communication is of critical importance in achieving Eurofound’s primary goal of providing 
knowledge, research-based conclusions, evidence-based information, analysis and services for 
policymaking, as well as facilitating knowledge sharing among and between stakeholders.  

While still adapting to a revised Founding Regulation, Eurofound continues to work within a 
changing communication context with a constantly evolving policy setting and an information and 
dissemination climate that has experienced intense disruption over recent years, not least with the 
impact of the pandemic and the war in Ukraine. Priorities have been adjusted continually in 
response and new tools and channels have evolved to adapt to the information needs of 
policymakers and other stakeholders.  

Against this background, Eurofound’s efforts must be increasingly keenly targeted at ensuring that 
its knowledge reaches the relevant actors at EU and national levels to shape and implement better 
polices in the core areas of the Agency’s remit. User feedback, analytics, persona analysis and 
evaluations continue to provide a clear picture of how best to do that in the most timely, relevant 
and cost-effective way.  

Objectives  
Four key objectives provide the framework for the corporate communication and dissemination plan 
during this period: 

1. 

2. 

Implement a policy focus (in line with relevant EU top priorities) in all communication outputs, 
prioritising the production and promotion of policy-relevant products over others and 
highlighting expertise.  

Implement a Digital-First approach to content production and dissemination, prioritising online 
and mobile channels over traditional ones.  

3.  Exploit collaborative partnerships for communication activities with EU institutions (specifically 
the Commission and Parliament), other EU agencies, social partners, international organisations 
and other multipliers.  

4.  Further develop national-level communication (while continuing to prioritise the EU level), 

integrating a national approach to analysis and data provision, strengthening communication 
with EU bodies of national representatives (for example, EU committees) and exploring strategic 
collaboration aimed at tripartite bodies, national governments and social partners and other 
relevant organisations. 

Expected results 
Communication activity will ensure policymakers and key stakeholders have timely and easy access 
to Eurofound’s most relevant information, findings and analysis in a manner and format that allows 

43 

 
 
 
 
 
 
them to shape better policies for the improvement of social, employment and work-related issues. 
The Digital First approach will continue to enhance this further and the migration of the corporate 
website to Drupal 10 will, among other things, allow for improved data visualisation and interactivity 
online. Campaigns targeted at raising awareness of Eurofound findings, its areas of expertise and 
programme of work, will ensure stakeholders know where and how to access the right information 
in the right way to facilitate their work. The results of this activity specifically – but not exclusively – 
will be to increase web download numbers and web user activity, increase the number of references 
to Eurofound’s work in EU policy documents, increase the number of Eurofound expert 
contributions and engagements relevant to key policy debates, increase the take-up of Eurofound’s 
work by media outlets, augment the number of Eurofound citations in academic journals and 
amplify uptake in the media. Successful partnerships with international organisations, institutions, 
EU agencies, EU Member States and Presidencies and national bodies will further leverage 
communication and engagement opportunities and increase outreach. Other results will be to 
further increase awareness about the Agency and its work with new audiences and improve levels of 
satisfaction of existing groups. This will be reflected in continued positive user feedback, ongoing 
requests for targeted expertise from policymakers at EU and national levels, wider media reach and 
impact, higher levels of social media interaction and increased numbers of registered contacts. In 
the context of the new European Parliament elections and institutional transition to take place in 
2024, Eurofound will prepare in 2023 and 2024 to harness the arrival of new MEPs and a new 
College of Commissioners to strengthen Eurofound’s partnerships and ensure continued 
collaboration on communication activities. 

2024 Work programme: Activity 9 – Communication and dissemination plan 

Overview 
Eurofound will continue to adapt its communication activities at corporate level to ensure 
optimal presentation and promotion of the 2024 work programme’s priorities and outputs. 

The EU policy focus in this period, and in particular the overarching priorities in the context of the 
COVID-19 social and economic recovery and the use of the RRF funds around its key priorities, 
the impact of the war in Ukraine, digital and climate change, as well as the mid-way point of the 
implementation of the Action Plan of EPSR, will dictate to a large degree the orientation and 
prioritisation of the communication activities and approach. During 2024, work will continue to 
further improve multimedia and multilingual access to key messages and policy issues across 
these EU priorities.  

2024 will also be a period of transition for the institutions with the final year of the Von der 
Leyen Commission and the current term of the European Parliament, with new elections in 2024. 
This will be an opportunity for Eurofound to further promote its findings and contributions. To 
prepare for these institutional changes, Eurofound will adapt and produce relevant 
communication outputs and activities. This will allow Eurofound to harness the arrival of new 
MEPs and a new College of Commissioners to strengthen Eurofound’s partnerships and ensure 
continued collaboration on communication activities. 

44 

 
 
 
 
 
 
In 2024, there will be particular emphasis on European Commission initiatives, European 
Parliament priorities and the work of the EU Presidencies of Belgium and Hungary.  

Implementation of the Agency’s Digital First initiative will continue to play out across several key 
communication dimensions:  

•  Further work will be carried out in the digital sphere on data management and 

visualisation capacity, further building on the migration of the website to Drupal 10 and 
developing the upgraded Eurofound data explorer and exploiting the new data stories 
format to provide better access to and use of all survey and other data resources. 
•  The corporate webinar series will be expanded to address emerging policy priorities 

along with the ‘Ask the expert’ initiative and the ongoing podcast series ‘EurofoundTalks’.  

•  The in-house studio capacity will be exploited further to ensure improved access and 

enhanced cost efficiencies in the delivery of video and audio of Eurofound expertise to 
key stakeholders.  

The focus on making Eurofound’s experts and expertise more accessible in different forms across 
different channels will also continue building on the Ask the Expert online webinar series and the 
targeted Brussels briefings.  

Collaboration and active engagement with key partners among the EU Institutions, social 
partners, tripartite bodies and governments will continue to be prioritised – particularly in the 
context of the institutional transition and European elections in 2024 – and formalised for all 
communication activities, notably in the areas of targeted policy-oriented contributions and 
initiatives as well as press and social media campaigns. Specific collaboration on events and 
publications will continue with other EU agencies and institutions.  

Consolidation of the outreach work to expand the reach to national audiences via a range of new 
digital and other channels will build on activities and partnerships established during 2022–2023, 
such as the new virtual visits programme, including the Network of Eurofound Correspondents as 
well as other tripartite institutions and national institutional networks. The Irish outreach 
programme will be further strengthened during 2024 consolidating links with the Agency’s host 
country.  

Eurofound’s collaboration with the EU Presidencies will also continue with input to the Belgian 
and Hungarian Presidencies during 2024.  

The Living and working in Europe campaign will continue to be strengthened with additional 
elements including the annual event, yearbook and survey highlights which will be produced and 
published to coincide with Europe Day.  

The communication and dissemination plan also includes all communication outputs mentioned 
in the operational activities, which will be promoted and disseminated within the outlined 
framework outlined above. 

45 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Projects and outputs 

Project description 
Corporate production and 
publication 

Corporate campaigns  

Year 
2024 

2024 

Outputs 

•  Corporate outputs 
•  Corporate publications  
•  Database 
•  Datasets 
•  Data visualisations 
•  Web pages 
•  Web hosting and applications  
• 
Library 
•  Translations 
•  Social media packages 
•  Advertising 
•  Media alerts 
•  Photos 
•  Events 
•  Webinars 
•  Visits  
•  Podcasts 
•  Videos 
•  Audio 
•  Dissemination 

Resources 
€985,000 and 16.4 FTE 

3.2 Activity 10: Management and development 

Multiannual perspective 

Overview 
Eurofound operates within the EU’s institutional framework. It is committed to delivering results to a 
high professional standard while at the same time making efficient and effective use of the 
resources available. Eurofound’s activities are executed in an open and transparent (regulatory) 
framework of governance and performed in a spirit of collaboration and teamwork. In supporting 
the strategic objective of the organisation, the focus will be on the following.  

Developing and engaging people and strengthening capabilities to implement a high-performing 
organisation  

•  Continuous investment in the training and development of staff in support of the proposed 

areas of intervention.  

•  Managing the engagement and commitment of the people to the organisation’s objectives 

aimed at increased performance in the organisation and retention of staff through a sense of 
ownership, responsibility and accountability.  

46 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Providing the information and intelligence to make well-informed decisions about the use of the 
scarce resources  

•  The programming cycle is supported by data and evidence on its achievement according to 
established evaluation criteria and performance monitoring information with a view to 
organisational improvement, learning and future sustainability. 

•  Further strengthening activity-based budgeting and activity-based management in support 
of the Agency’s outsourcing strategy and of optimising the allocation of internal resources. 

•  Efficient and effective working methods and delivery of tasks through the application of 
project and process management standards in the context of the Digital First strategy.  

Supporting results-based operations in line with regulatory compliance and governance principles 
for EU agencies 

•  Promoting ethical behaviour and conduct to avoid conflicts of interest and irregularities and 

ensuring zero tolerance for fraud, based on the Agency’s Internal control framework. 
•  Further professionalising the Agency’s approach to quality management in line with 
established and emerging practices in comparable EU agencies and appropriate to 
Eurofound’s operations.  

Objectives 
The Agency carries out its mandate with staff performing towards their potential through: 

the implementation of development programmes with blended learning options  
support from effective professional project and process management tools  

• 
• 
•  access to data and analysis about programme implementation based on efficient digital 

solutions 

During the programming period, the Agency will implement its sustainability framework about 
economic, social and environmental impact with standards that ensure comparable measurement.  

Expected results 
Optimisation of competencies and capabilities of staff in meeting the programme’s requirements.  

Reasonable assurance of sound financial management, based on the building blocks of internal 
control and specific audits. 

2024 Work programme: Activity 10 – Management and development 

Overview  

•  Organisational performance analysis and process improvements. 
•  Well-functioning internal control components and zero-tolerance to fraud through annual 

risks assessments, regular monitoring and the annual corporate ethics month 

•  Further implementation of the framework for ecological, social and financial sustainability. 
•  Further implementation of the Learning and Development strategy. 
•  Further implementation of the information security and cyber-security regulations. 
•  Exploration of AI, machine learning and data analysis as important emerging technologies. 

47 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Projects and outputs 

Project description 
Monitoring and Evaluation  

Governance 

Sustainability 
Learning & Development 

Resources 
€266,000 and 5.3 FTE 

Outputs 

•  Final ex ante evaluation report for the 
2025-2028 programming document 

•  Biennial user feedback report  
•  Meetings of Advisory committees, 

• 

Executive Board and Management Board 
Internal control annual assessment and 
risk review  

•  Corporate annual activity report 2023, 

including sustainability report 

•  EMAS re-certification 
• 

Implementing updated Competency 
Framework for improved needs analysis 
and better training delivery. 

Year 
2024 

2024 

2024 
2024 

4.  Implementation approach 

4.1 Methodologies and tools 
Eurofound will implement a wide range of research approaches, methodologies and data sources in 
this programming period. The objective is to ensure (comparative) analysis that also cover different 
breakdowns according to gender, age and sectors where relevant. Eurofound survey instruments 
have already been described under ‘2.7 Activity 7: Survey management and development’. Other 
methodologies and tools are:  

•  Analysis by Eurofound of other datasets, mainly those of Eurostat. This includes both the direct 
use of Eurostat and other data sources but also the matching of various datasets to create 
unique sources of information, for example, as is done with the European Jobs Monitor.  
•  Gathering national-level information and comparing regulations and practices. This is primarily 
conducted with the Network of Eurofound Correspondents based in all Member States. The 
representativeness studies are an example of this approach. The Network of Eurofound 
Correspondents contributes to all areas of Eurofound’s research (especially in areas where no 
harmonised data sources exist) and by describing and comparing institutional frameworks, 
policies and practices.  

•  The systematising of information publicly available, such as in the ERM. Eurofound will be 

exploring other options to use big data and user-generated information. 

•  The approach to policy evaluation is primarily based on an assessment of previously conducted 
evaluations. This entails a compilation and critical review of many studies and, when feasible, 
meta-evaluations. Another feasible approach is the use of expert interviews. 

48 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
•  With the increased focus on change in this programming period, some emphasis will be placed 

on future-oriented methodologies, such as scenario building, forecasting and backcasting. These 
will often be used together in discussion with stakeholder groups. Explorative methodologies 
can also include case studies of emerging, but as yet rather minor, phenomena. 

•  This programming period will make more use of research conducted by others, in academia, 

other EU institutions and bodies, international organisations and think tanks, etc. Such research 
can be used for several issues in the two strategic areas, ‘Anticipating and managing the impact 
of change’ and ‘Promoting social cohesion and convergence’. It can also be applied to provide 
policy-relevant inputs to key policy debates. 

•  The Agency will explore the use of national administrative registers and databases where 
appropriate, while being aware that access to and comparability of data are difficult.  

•  There will be an option for ad hoc studies, both those requested by the stakeholders or initiated 

by Eurofound in response to changing policy needs over the programming period. 

Most of the resources will be devoted to surveys and the Network of Eurofound Correspondents. 
Other tools and approaches will be considered where appropriate. During the programming period 
e-surveys have been implemented on several occasions and have become a part of the toolbox of 
Eurofound. 

4.2 Collaboration and partnerships9 
Eurofound seeks and maintains a close working relationship with other EU agencies. It will continue 
to build on the well-established collaboration with the sister Agencies in the employment and social 
affairs policy field (Cedefop, ELA, ETF, and EU-OSHA), as well as other agencies related to 
Eurofound’s work (EEA, EIGE, FRA). Memoranda of understanding and coordination of work 
programmes can lead to the selection of joint activities of shared interest. The Agencies organise 
annual meetings between the Directors and exchange work programmes to avoid overlaps and 
identify areas and subjects where enhanced collaboration should take place. Surveys is an area 
where collaboration is well established, for example EU-OSHA is a member of the EWCS 
questionnaire development group as it supplies data to the OSH Barometer, Eurofound is a member 
of the expert group of the EU-OSHA Worker Exposure Survey (WES) and exchange of experience is 
planned with regard to the preparation of the ECS and the work coming out of the Futures of 
Surveys. ETF has joined forces with EF to field the Living and Working and COVID-19 in countries 
beyond the EU-27. Platform work is an area where exchange of expertise and knowledge has 
increased, as each Agency provides a complementary angle to the subject. This also holds for the 
topic of youth. Furthermore, Eurofound will explore partnership with Cedefop, ETF and other EU 
agencies and institutions for the next European Company Survey.  

Collaboration in sharing methodologies and common approaches continues, notably in the area of 
risk management, cyber security, performance indicators, evaluation and project management. 
More specifically, in 2024, together with Cedefop, ETF and EU-OSHA, the Agency will fully 
collaborate on following up on the recommendations from the evaluation of the individual 
evaluations of each agency, and cross-cutting analysis as commissioned by DG EMPL.  

9 Stakeholders and partners | Eurofound (europa.eu) – Collaboration agreements/Memoranda of 
Understanding with sister Agencies. 

49 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Eurofound will seek to further build on its relations with the European Commission. This includes 
exploration of more coordination between the Network of Eurofound Correspondents and networks 
under the responsibility of DG EMPL. Eurofound will maintain its regular exchanges with the 
European Commission in order to continue to take into consideration the relevant research activities 
funded under EU programmes to ensure synergies between the Agency and the European 
Commission. Activities with the JRC will continue. Cooperation could be expanded in areas such as 
supporting the capacity building of social partners in the framework of the ESF and on restructuring 
activities for the EGF. The Agency will also explore new avenues of cooperation with DG Research 
and Innovation to expand Eurofound’s current role.  

Cooperation in the area of communication is covered in more detailed in the section 3.1 ‘Activity 9: 
Communication’. Eurofound will seek opportunities to cooperate with entities that can act as 
multipliers or provide synergies with the Agency´s activity. This would include exploring cooperation 
with entities mentioned in the Founding Regulation, such as the national tripartite bodies.  

Following the implementation of the pilot project on minimum wages, concluded in 2023, the 
Agency is open to carrying out, where relevant and at the request of the Commission, other pilot 
projects and preparatory actions, as is indicated as one of Eurofound’s tasks in its Founding 
Regulation. 

In July 2023, Eurofound entered a service-level agreement with DG Employment on working time 
reduction and the project will come to an end in 2025. 

The pilot project has the following modules: 

1.  A literature review of recent experiences of working time reductions. 
2.  A mapping exercise done by the Network of Eurofound Correspondents on recent policy 

initiatives in the EU Member States. 

3.  A set of 10–12 case studies. 
4.  Final report based on the elements listed above, communication materials (infographics, 

videos etc.), to be presented at an online closing event.  

4.3 Strategy for relations with third countries and international organisations  
Eurofound maintains close working relationships with international organisations such as the ILO 
and the OECD, allowing for a global perspective in the analysis of EU policy issues.  

Eurofound is committed to continuing its work in candidate countries, building on the positive role 
of EU agencies in supporting the EU strategy for enlargement countries. In the context of the 
Instrument of Pre-Accession III, Eurofound and the European Commission’s DG for Neighbourhood 
Policy and Enlargement Negotiations signed a contribution agreement in May 2023 for the ‘Provision 
of knowledge to support better informed social, employment and work-related policies in the 
Western Balkans and Türkiye’. Covering a period of 36 months until 2026, the agreement covers 
three main tasks: data collections, comparative analysis and knowledge exchange. Using data 
collected as part of Eurofound’s own surveys, comparative analysis on specific and relevant topics 
will allow countries not only to compare themselves with others but also to monitor their own 

50 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
developments in living and working conditions over time. Participation in seminar, network and 
expert meetings will facilitate knowledge exchange, while also becoming familiar with Eurofound’s 
mandate and tripartite governance. Implementation is financed via earmarked funds and are 
included here for information purposes only. Resources are included in Annex XI: Plan for grant, 
contribution or service-level agreements. 

When the opportunity arises, Eurofound will also express an interest in supporting other countries in 
the framework of the eastern and southern countries of the European Neighbourhood programme. 

Resources dedicated to international relations are reduced and are included in the activities of the 
annual work programme. Some limited mission costs are covered in the ordinary budget line for 
missions of the Agency.  

5.  Human and financial resources outlook: Resource programming 2022-

2026  

5.1 Financial resources  
In December 2020, the European Council adopted the multiannual financial framework (MFF) for the 
period 2021–2027 which is still the main basis for the development of Eurofound’s subsidy during 
the planning years. In principle, the MFF foresees a freeze in real terms (in 2018 prices) for all 
‘cruising speed’ agencies, which is the category Eurofound belongs to. 

However, the development of the Irish country coefficient applied to staff salaries to ensure parity 
of purchasing powers with EU staff in other countries led to an annual increase of €1,780,000 in 
2022 compared to 2019. To compensate for this extraordinary change in the country coefficient 
(increase from 119.2 in 2019 to 136.9 in 2022) an additional subsidy amount of €650,000 was 
requested from 2023 on to at least mitigate this increase and its effect on the operational budget. 
Furthermore, the European Commission decided in May 2022 to cover the additional cost of 
Agencies due to inflation-driven salary increases from 2023 on; for Eurofound, this translates into a 
subsidy increase of €453,000 from 2023 on. The planned subsidy for 2024 is, therefore, €24,054,000 
resulting in a total budget for 2024 of €24,260,000. 

Since the subsidy increase will not fully cover the rising cost sparked by higher inflation expectations, 
particularly noticeable in massive increases of energy costs, Eurofound needs to implement 
substantial savings in all areas of its operations: technical and process improvements, higher 
synergies and cooperation with other organisations and innovations. 

The planned title 3 (operational expenditure) level for 2024 is about €6.2 million. This is a 
considerable increase compared to the all-time low of 2022 (less than €5.5 million as per expected 
actuals) caused by high increases in title 1, which were not compensated by an increase of the 
subsidy and, therefore, had to be balanced by cuts in title 3. Having said that, the planned title 3 
budget for 2024 is still significantly lower than 2010 when it was about €7.8 million. The modest 
subsidy increases planned in the MFF for 2025 and 2026 will only bring title 3 to about €6.3 million 
by the end of the planning period. 

51 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Following the relatively steep increases in title 1 (staff and staff-related costs) during the years 
2019–2023 (mainly due to the increase of the Irish country coefficient and salaries in 2022), further 
rises are not reflected in the years ahead so that title 1 only grows by a relatively modest 2% 
between 2024 and 2026. Any further increases of the country coefficient above the level of 2022 
would seriously threaten Eurofound’s ability to deliver on its mandate, since the operational budget 
would need, again, to shrink to a (long-term) unsustainable level.  

The big cost increase in 2022 in title 2 is based on surging energy prices and the compensation for IT 
cost increases due to the further rise in requirements for digital solutions, including a heightened 
focus on prevention of cyber-related crime and attacks. It is assumed this cost increase will continue 
during the planning period. Also, it needs to be ensured that Eurofound can deliver on its 
sustainability programme, particularly the environmental sustainability, which will be required to 
achieve the aim of carbon neutrality in the future. 

2022 

2023 

2024 

2025 

2026 

Budget 

PD2023 

PD2024 

Forecast 

Forecast 

in thousand 
EUR 

Revenue 

Subsidy 

22051 

23595 

24054 

24522 

25000 

219 

218 

206 

198 

200 

22270 

23813 

24260 

24720 

25200 

Other 
revenue 
Total 

Expenditure 

Title 1 

Title 2 

Title 3 

Total 

14755 

1550 

5965 

22270 

16053 

1660 

6100 

23813 

16360 

1720 

6180 

24260 

16660 

17000 

1840 

6220 

1870 

6330 

24720 

25200 

Details of the evolution of revenue and expenditure can be found in Annex III – Financial resources 

52 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5.2 Human Resources  
The following table sets out the projected staff evolution up to 2026. 

Staff 
population 

Total AD10 

Total AST11 

Total CA12 

SNE13 

Structural 
service 
providers14 
TOTAL  

Staff 
population 
planned 
for 2022 

Staff 
population 
planned 
for 2023 

Staff 
population 
planned 
for 2024 

Staff 
population 
planned 
for 2025 

Staff 
population 
planned 
for 2026 

51 

40 

13 

1 

7 

51 

40 

13 

1 

7 

51 

40 

13 

1 

7 

51 

40 

13 

1 

7 

51 

40 

13 

1 

7 

112 

112 

112 

112 

112 

Eurofound does not expect changes in overall staffing in the period 2022–2026. Details of the staff 
population and evolution are in Annex IV: Human resources quantitative.  

The stable headcount is a reflection of the unchanged mandate and the continuation of most tasks.  

5.3 Development of tasks and efficiency gains 
While the revision of Eurofound’s Founding Regulation (Regulation (EEC) No 1365/75) led to an 
update of its mandate, it did not include any substantial changes which would influence the 
resources requirements. This programming document does, therefore, not include any new tasks or 
growth in existing tasks.  

The Agency might, however, be entrusted with tasks such as pilot projects or through contribution 
agreements which would need to be resourced beyond the figures here presented. 

In the context of a, in principle, frozen budget in real terms for the next years, only increased by an 
amount to partly compensate the Irish country coefficient, efficiency gains are the only way to 
counter the likely effects of increased costs beyond inflation, for example ICT or utilities, the 

10 Total administrators, officials and temporary agents. 
11 Total assistants, officials and temporary agents, including AST/SC. 
12 Contract agents, in FTE.  
13 Seconded national expert (SNE). 
14 Service providers are contracted by a private company and carry out specialised outsourced tasks of a 
horizontal/support nature, for instance in the area of information technology. At the Commission the following 
general criteria should be fulfilled: 1) no individual contract with the Commission; 2) on the Commission 
premises, usually with a PC and desk; 3) administratively followed by the Commission (badge, etc.) and 4) 
contributing to the value added of the Commission. 

53 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
collection of reliable data. With more than 60% of its budget in the area of staff and staff-related 
costs (title 1), largely influenced by the EU Staff Regulation, the possibilities for efficiency gains are in 
the number of staff employed and, to a much smaller extent, in areas like missions, buildings and 
savings in the procurement of services. Following on from experiences gained during the pandemic, 
expenditure for missions, meetings and governance, as well as administrative overheads, is already 
cut back from previous levels in order to harness the operational core tasks despite significant cost 
increases, particularly in the area of data collection. 

An important lever for efficiency gains could be the increase of services that are shared between 
different EU agencies or between an Agency and the Commission. Compared to several years ago 
the agencies have significantly professionalised their approach to the sharing of services: systematic 
screening of potential tasks to share, substantial increases in the number of shared procurement 
allowing for administrative savings and economies of scale, and regular monitoring and reporting of 
the progress achieved in this area.  

Similarly, the amount of shared services and joint procurements with the Commission also increased 
consistently over the past few years. An example of this is the roll-out in Eurofound of the 
Commission’s HR system, Sysper, which will be fully implemented during the period of this 
programming document.  

While these developments certainly resulted in a higher quality of goods and services procured, as 
well as economies of scale, the reduction in administrative burden and cost is much less obvious. 
The procedures for participating in joint procurements and in shared services give rise to 
coordination costs that limit any potential savings. This is even more the case if an agency leads a 
joint procurement or offers services to others. In the case of the Commission, this regularly leads to 
the request for very significant fixed annual charges, for example, for the use of Sysper or the 
possibility to participate in IT procurement tenders. 

Next to the sharing of services and joint procurements, the delivery of more and better digital 
solutions to support the Agency is a key element to achieve efficiency gains. The digital-driven 
redesign of processes and projects to reduce the administrative burden will be another focus in 
years to come. This comes, however, at the cost of additional expenditure in the area of information 
and communication technology. On balance, this will nevertheless result in net efficiency gains for 
the Agency. 

Finally, lessons learned during the prolonged working from home during the Covid-19 pandemic in 
2020 and 2021 will allow for higher efficiency. Electronic signatures, increased numbers of online 
meetings, the digital communication of research findings and many other smaller measures will help 
both with overall cost savings and increased environmental sustainability.  

54 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Annex I: Organisation chart  
Eurofound overview as of 31 December 2023 

Note: AD: Administrator post; AST: Assistant post; CA: Contract agent post. The HR Sector (Head of 
Human Resources) is part of the Resources Unit (Head of Resources). The Brussels Liaison Office is 
part of and led by the Directorate.  

55 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Annex II: Resource allocation per activity 

Activity 

Working conditions and sustainable work 

Industrial relations and social dialogue 

Employment and labour markets 

Living conditions and quality of life 

Anticipating and managing the impact of change 

Promoting social cohesion and convergence 

Survey management and development 

Ad hoc requests 

Corporate communication infrastructure 
Management and development 

2023  

Operational 
cost Title 3 cost 
(EUR) 
292,000 

1,322,000 

309,000 

238,000 

248,000 

189,000 

1,738,000 

330,000 

1,219,000 
215,000 

Staff time 
in FTE 

Total cost 
(EUR) 

2024 

Operational 
cost Title 3 
(EUR) 
216,000 

2,121,000 

3,645,000 

1,293,000 

1,920,000 

198,000 

1,267,000 

278,000 

1,420,000 

324,000 

1,642,000 

3,543,000 

985,000 

5,883,000 
1,387,000 

201,000 

2,094,000 

325,000 

985,000 
266,000 

Staff time in 
FTE 

Total cost (EUR) 

5.1 

8.1 

5.2 

4.2 

4.9 

4.2 

5.0 

1.7 

16.4 
5.3 

1,822,000 

3,814,000 

1,822,000 

1,581,000 

1,876,000 

1,488,000 

3,662,000 

849,000 

5,632,000 
1,714,000 

6.2 

7.9 

5.4 

3.5 

4.0 

4.9 

6.1 

2.2 

16.5 
4.3 

Grand Total 

6,100,000 

60.8 

23,813,000 

6,180,00015 

60.1 

24,260,000 

15 An amount of EUR 5,390,500 has been established as the ‘global procurement envelope’ reserved for procurements funding operational activities, under Title 3 of the annual budget 
2024, in line with Article 72 of Eurofound’s Financial Regulation. Article 72 provides that a budgetary commitment shall be preceded by a financing decision, except for administrative 
expenditure. It further stipulates that Eurofound’s multi-annual and annual work programmes in the Single Programme Document shall be the equivalent to the financing decision for the 
activities it covers. The amount does not include existing framework contracts in use for 2024. Cumulated changes to the global budgetary envelope of the financing decision not 
exceeding 20% shall not be considered substantial in accordance with Decision No. 24 of the Management Board on the delegation of power to make non-substantial amendments to the 
work programme, adopted on 4 May 2020. 

56 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Annex III: Financial resources 
Table A1: Revenue 

Total revenues 

Revenues 

EU contribution 

Other revenue 

Additional EU funding: grant, 
contribution and service level 
agreement 

202316 

2024 

Revenues estimated by the Agency 

Budget forecast 

23,595,000 

24,054,000 

804,770 

970,161 

206,000 

pm 

Total revenues 

25,369,931 

24,260,000 

General revenues 

Revenues 

EU contribution 

Other revenue 

Total revenues 

202317 

2024 

Revenues estimated by the Agency 

Budget forecast 

23,595,000 

804,770 

24,399,770 

24,054,000 

206,000 

24,260,000 

16 Aligned with the Amending Budget 2023 adopted by the Management Board on 22 December 2023. 
17 As above. 

57 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
General revenues 

Revenues 

Executed 
2022 

Estimated 
by the 
Agency 
202318 

2024 

Agency 
request 

Budget 
forecast 

VAR 
2024 
/2023 
(%) 

Envisaged 
2025 

Envisaged 
2026 

1. Revenue from fees and 
charges 

2. EU Contribution 

22,051,380 

23,595,000  24,054,000   24,054,000 

1.9% 

24,522,000  25,000,000 

17,912 

pm 

pm 

n/a 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

pm 

12,704 

10,000 

10,000 

-21.3 % 

8,000 

7,000 

pm 

pm 

pm 

0% 

pm 

pm 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

297,69619 

792,06620 

196,00021 

196,00022 

-75.3% 

190,000 

193,000 

- of which assigned revenues 
deriving from previous years' 
surpluses 

3. Third countries contribution 
(incl. EEA/EFTA and candidate 
countries) 

- Of which EEA/EFTA (excl. 
Switzerland) 

- Of which candidate countries 

4. Other contributions 

5. Administrative operations 

- Of which interest generated by 
funds paid by the Commission by 
way of the EU contribution (FFR 
Art. 58) 

6. Revenues from services 
rendered against payment 

7. Correction of budgetary 
imbalances 

Total 

22,349,076  24,399,770  24,260,000  24,260,000 

-0.6% 

24,720,000  25,200,000 

18 As above. 
19 Includes contributions as assigned revenue for EUR 184,190 from Switzerland and Norway towards 
European Working Condition Survey.  
20 Includes funding from Member States and third countries towards European Working Conditions Survey, 
revenue arising from shared accountancy services rendered to the European Labour Authority (ELA), and 
Norway’s contribution towards Eurofound’s Network of Correspondents. 
21 See above. 
22 See above. 

58 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
  
 
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
 
 
 
Additional EU funding: Grants, contribution and service-level agreements 

 Revenues 

2023 

2024 

Revenues estimated by the Agency 

Budget forecast 

Total revenues 

970,161 

100,000 

Additional EU funding: Grants, contribution and service-level agreements 

Revenues 

Executed  

2022 

Additional EU funding stemming from 
grants (FRR Art.7) 

Additional EU funding stemming from 
contribution agreements (FFR Art.7) 

Additional EU funding stemming from 
service level agreements (FFR Art. 43.2) 

Estimated 
by the 
Agency 

2023 
35,16126 

810,00027 

202423 

Agency 
request 

Budget 
forecast 

VAR 
2024 
/2023 
(%) 

Envisaged 
202524 

Envisaged 
202625 

n/a 

- 

- 

n/a 

90,00028 

-20 % 

25,00032 

125,00029 

100,00030  100,00031 

Total 

970,161 

100,000 

100,000 

-90 % 

25,000 

90,000 

23 Figures for 2024 are for information only; they are not yet included in the budget. 
24 As above. 
25 As above. 
26 The final payment for the grant contract with DG NEAR under the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance 
(IPA II). 
27 The new contribution agreement with DG NEAR under the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA III), 
90% prefinancing. See also Annex XI. 
28 The balance for the new contribution agreement with DG NEAR under the Instrument for Pre-accession 
Assistance (IPA III), (10%). 
29 Service Level Agreement with DG EMPL for the pilot project on working time reduction, first instalment 
(50%). 
30 The same as above, second instalment (40 %). 
31 The same as above, second instalment (40 %). 
32 The same as above, final instalment (10 %). 

59 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Table A2: Expenditure  

Expenditure 

202333 

2024 

Commitment 
appropriations 

Payment 
appropriations 

Commitment 
appropriations 

Payment appropriations 

 16,217,089  

16,217,089 

16,360,000 

16,360,000 

 1,893,345 

1,893,345 

1,720,000 

1,720,000 

 7,259,497  

7,259,497 

6,180,000 

6,180,000 

Title 1 - Staff 
expenditure 

Title 2 - Infrastructure 
and operating 
expenditure 

Title 3 - Operational 
expenditure 

Total expenditure 

 25,369,931 34 

25,369,93135 

24,260,000 

24,260,000 

Expenditure 

Executed 
Budget 
202236 

Budget  

202337 

Commitment appropriations 

Draft Budget 2024 

Agency 
request 

Budget 
forecast 

VAR 
2024 
/2023 
(%) 

Envisaged 

Envisaged 

2025 

2026 

Title 1 – Staff expenditure 

15,379,798 

16,217,089
38 

16,360,000  16,360,000 

0.9%  

16,660,000 

17,000,000 

Salaries & allowances 

14,640,804 

15,212,978  15,359,000  15,359,000 

 1.0 % 

15,612,000 

15,929,000 

- Of which are 
establishment plan posts 

- Of which are external 
personnel 

Expenditure relating to 
staff recruitment 

14,035,294 

14,776,297  14,899,000  14,899,000 

0.8 % 

15,145,000 

15,455,000 

605,509 

 436,681 

460,000  

460,000  

5.3 % 

467,000 

474,000 

85,280 

119,989 

129,000 

129,000 

7.5 % 

131,000 

133,000 

33 Aligned with the Amending Budget 2023, adopted by the Management Board on 22 December 2023. 
34 The total expenditure appropriations include EUR 1,563,353 arising from ‘external assigned revenue’ and 
additional EU funding. 
35 As above. 
36 Includes all payments made from C1, C4 and R0 appropriations in 2022. 
37 Aligned with the Amending Budget 2023, adopted by the Management Board on 22 December 2023. 
38 In Title 1, expenditure of EUR 16,367 arose from additional EU funding (‘assigned revenue’). 

60 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
Employer’s pension 
contributions 

Mission expenses 

52,444 

113,129 

125,000 

125,000 

 10.5% 

150,000  

152,000 

Socio-medical 
infrastructure 

117,450 

149,483 

183,000  

183,000  

22.4 % 

185,000  

190,000 

Training 

96,029 

107,902 

120,000  

120,000  

11.2 % 

120,000  

122,000 

External Services 

387,791 

513,608 

444,000 

444,000 

-13.6 % 

462,000  

474,000 

Receptions, events and 
representation 

Social welfare 

Other staff-related 
expenditure 

Title 2 – Infrastructure 
and operating 
expenditure 

Rental of buildings and 
associated costs 

Information and 
communication, 
technology and data 
processing 

Movable property and 
associated costs 

Current administrative 
expenditure 

Postage and 
telecommunications 

Meeting expenses 

Running costs in 
connection with 
operational activities 

Information and 
publishing 

Studies 

1,654,410 

1,893,345 

1,720,000  

1,720,000  

-9.2 % 

1,840,000  

1,870,000 

634,542 

 720,234 

731,000 

 731,000 

1.5 % 

776,000 

798,000 

910,000 

 986,782 

840,000 

 840,000  

-14.9 % 

915,000  

923,000  

67,264 

143,443 

 103,000  

 103,000  

-28.2 % 

103,000 

103,000 

16,000 

19,386 

 20,000  

 20,000  

3.2 % 

20,000 

20,000 

26,604 

23,500 

 26,000  

 26,000  

10.6 % 

26,000 

26,000 

61 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
Other infrastructure and 
operating expenditure 

Title 3 – Operational 
expenditure 

5,988,392 

7,259,497
39 

6,180,000 

6,180,000 

-14.9 % 

6,220,000 

6,330,000 

Meetings 

Evaluations 

223,031 

   262,642 

386,000   

386,000  

-47.0 %  

433,000 

60,924 

59,759 

100,000  

100,000  

 67.3 % 

110,000 

Translation expenses 

229,970 

385,577  

378,000   

378,000  

-2.0 %  

330,000 

Studies and consultants 

4,669,411 

5,412,734 

4,478,000    4,478,000   

-17.3 %   4,402,000 

Information and 
publications 

Other 

Total 

805,056 

1,138,785  

  838,000   

838,000  

-26.4 % 

945,000 

23,022,600 

25,369,931
40 

24,260,000  24,260,000 

-4.4% 

24,720,000  

25,200,000  

Expenditure 

Executed 
Budget 
202241 

Budget 
202342 

Payment appropriations 

Draft Budget 2024 

Agency 
request 

Budget 
forecast 

VAR 
2024 
/2023 
(%) 

Envisaged 
2025 

Envisaged 
2026 

Title 1 - Staff expenditure 

15,240,652  16,217,089

16,360,000 

16,360,000 

0.9 % 

16,660,000  17,000,000 

43 

Salaries & allowances 

14,640,804  15,212,978  15,359,000 

15,359,000 

1.0 % 

15,612,000  15,929,000 

- Of which are 
establishment plan posts 

- Of which are external 
personnel 

Expenditure relating to 
staff recruitment 

14,035,294  14,776,297  14,899.000 

14,899.000 

0.8 % 

15,145,000  15,455,000 

605,509 

436,681 

460,000 

460,000 

5.3 % 

467,000 

474,000 

84,880 

119,989 

129,00 

129,000 

7.5 % 

131,000 

133,000 

39 In Title 3, expenditure of EUR 1,546,986 originates from additional EU funding and contributions from 
Member States and third countries towards the European Working Conditions Survey (‘Assigned revenue’). 
40 The total expenditure appropriations include EUR 1,563,353 from ‘external assigned revenue’ and additional 
EU funding.  
41 Includes all payments made from C1, C4 and R0 appropriations in 2022. 
42 Aligned with the Amending Budget 2023, adopted by the Management Board on 22 December 2023. 
43 In Title 1, expenditure of EUR 16,367 arose from additional EU funding (‘assigned revenue’). 

62 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
Employer’s pension 
contributions 

Mission expenses 

46,431 

113,129 

125,000 

125,000 

10.5 % 

150,000 

152,000 

Socio-medical 
infrastructure 

85,897 

149,483 

183,000 

183,000 

22.4 % 

185,000 

190,000 

Training 

61,555 

107,902 

120,000 

120,000 

11.2 % 

120,000 

122,000 

External Services 

321,086 

513,608 

444,000 

444,000 

-13.6 % 

462,000 

474,000 

Receptions, events and 
representation 

Social welfare 

Other Staff related 
expenditure 

Title 2 – Infrastructure 
and operating 
expenditure 

Rental of buildings and 
associated costs 

Information and 
communications, 
technology and data 
processing 

Movable property and 
associated costs 

Current administrative 
expenditure 

Postage / 
Telecommunications 

Meeting expenses 

Running costs in 
connection with 
operational activities 

Information and 
publishing 

Studies 

1,326,703 

1,893,345 

1,720,000 

1,720,000 

-9.2 % 

1,840,000 

1,870,000 

463,863 

720,234 

731,000 

731,000 

1.5 % 

776,000 

798,000 

777,603 

986,782 

840,000 

840,000 

-14.9 % 

915,000 

923,000 

44,046 

143,443 

103,000 

103,000 

-28.2 % 

103,000 

103,000 

15,307 

19,386 

20,000 

20,000 

3.2% 

20,000 

20,000 

25,885 

23,500 

26,000 

26,000 

10.6% 

26,000 

26,000 

63 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
Other infrastructure and 
operating expenditure 

Title 3 – Operational 
expenditure 

1,708,839 

7,259,497
44 

6,180,000 

6,180,000 

-14.9 % 

6,220,000 

6,330,000 

Meetings 

Evaluations 

165,152 

262,642 

386,000 

386,000 

-47 % 

433,000 

18,779 

59,759 

100,000 

100,000 

67.3 % 

110,000 

Translation expenses 

160,103 

385,577 

378,000 

378,000 

-2.0 % 

330,000 

Studies and consultants 

829,411 

5,412,734 

4,478,000 

4,478,000 

-17.3 % 

4,402,000 

Information and 
publication 

Other 

Total 

535,394 

1,138,785 

838,000 

838,000 

-26.4 % 

945,000 

18,276,194  25,369,931

24,260,000 

24,260,000 

-4.4% 

24,720,000  25,200,000 

45 

44In Title 3, expenditure of EUR 1,546,986 originates from additional EU funding and contributions from 
Member States and Third countries towards European Working Conditions Survey (‘Assigned revenue’). 
45 The total expenditure appropriations include EUR 1,563,353 from ‘external assigned revenue’ and additional 
EU funding. 

64 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Table A3: Budget outturn and cancellation of appropriations 2020–2022 

Budget outturn 

2020 

2021 

2022 

Revenue actually received (+) 

21,702,380 

22,688,360 

22,349,076 

Payments made (-) 

17,505,223 

-18,887,562 

-18,281,159 

Carry-over of appropriations (-) 

5,048,887 

-4,700,465 

-5,284,381 

Cancellation of appropriations carried over (+) 

143,234 

81,233 

102,528 

Adjustment for carry-over of assigned revenue 
appropriations from previous year (+) 

1 317, 618 

836,351 

1,127,975 

Exchange rate differences (+/-) 

-63 

-5 

-11 

Balance of the outturn account for the financial year out  

Adjustment for negative balance from previous year (-) 

-335,489 

Total 

273,570 

17,912 

14,028 

Descriptive information and justification on: 

• 

 budget outturn 

The budget utilisation rate measured as commitments against general C1 appropriations was 100.0 % in 2022. 

The balance of the outturn account for the financial year 2022 shows a positive balance of EUR 14,028. This 
amount arises from cancellation of carry-overs from 2021.  

• 

cancelation of commitment appropriations 

In 2022, EUR 436 (0.002%) of general C1 appropriations were cancelled as non-consumed  

• 

cancelation of payment appropriations for the year and payment appropriations carried over 

Cancelled carry-over appropriations amounted to EUR 102,528 or 2.9 % of all C8 commitments carried over 
from 2021 to 2022.  

Most of the cancelled appropriations relate to work/services contracted or orders which were not completely 
delivered by contractors/suppliers or the quality was not satisfactory. 

65 

 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
Annex IV: Human resources quantitative  

A.  Statutory staff and seconded national experts 

Table A4: Staff population and its evolution: Overview of all categories of staff 

2022 

Actually 
filled as 
of 
31/12/20
22 

46 

38 

0 

2023 

2024 

2025 

2026 

Occupancy 
rate % 

Authorised 
staff 

Envisaged 
staff 

Envisaged 
staff 

Envisaged 
staff 

90.2 

97.4 

0 

51 

38 

2 

51 

39 

1 

51 

39 

1 

51 

39 

1 

Staff 

Establishment 
plan posts 

Authorised 
Budget 

51 

39 

1 

Administrators 
(AD) 

Assistants 
(AST) 

Assistants/ 
Secretaries 
(AST/SC) 

Total 
establishment 
plan posts 

External staff 

91 

84 

92.3 

91 

91 

91 

91 

FTE 
corresponding 
to the 
authorised 
budget 

Executed 
FTE as of 
31/12/20
21 

Execution 
Rate % 

FTE 
corresponding 
to the 
authorised 
budget 

Envisaged 
FTE 

Envisaged 
FTE 

Envisaged 
FTE 

Contract 
Agents (CA) 

Seconded 
national 
experts (SNE) 

Total external 
staff 

13 

1 

14 

Total staff 

105 

10 

0 

10 

94 

84.6 

0 

13 

1 

13 

1 

13 

1 

13 

1 

71.4 

14 

14 

14 

14 

89.5 

105 

105 

105 

105 

66 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
B.  Additional external staff expected to be financed from grants, contributions or service-level 

agreements 

Human Resources 

2023 

2024 

2025 

2026 

Envisaged 
FTE 

Envisaged FTE 

Envisaged 
FTE 

Envisaged 
FTE 

Contract Agents (CA) 

Seconded national experts (SNE) 

TOTAL  

2 

0 

2 

1 

0 

1 

1 

0 

1 

0 

0 

0 

C.  Other Human Resources 

Structural service providers46 

Actually in place 
as of 31/12/2022 

Security 

IT 

Other (specify) 

Canteen staff 

Other (specify) 

Receptionist 

2 

0 

2 

1 

Interim workers 

Total FTEs in 
2022 

Number 

6 

46 Service providers are contracted by a private company and carry out specialised outsourced tasks of a 
horizontal/support nature. At the Commission, following general criteria should be fulfilled: 1) no individual 
contract with the Commission 2) on the Commission premises, usually with a PC and desk 3) administratively 
followed by the Commission (badge, etc) and 4) contributing to the added value of the Commission. 

67 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
  
 
 
Table A5: Multiannual staff policy plan 2023–2025 

2022 

2023 

2024 

2025 

2026 

Function 
group 
and 
grade 

Authorised 
budget 

Actually filled 
as of 
31/12/2022 

Authorised 
budget 

Envisaged  

Envisaged 

Envisaged 

Perm. 
posts 

Temp.
posts 

Perm. 
posts 

Temp. 
posts 

Perm. 
posts 

Temp. 
posts 

Perm. 
posts 

Temp. 
posts 

Perm. 
posts 

Temp. 
posts 

Perm. 
posts 

Temp. 
posts 

AD 16 

AD 15 

AD 14 

AD 13 

AD 12 

AD 11 

AD 10 

AD 9 

AD 8 

AD 7 

AD 6 

AD 5 

AD 
TOTAL 

AST 11 

AST 10 

AST 9 

AST 8 

AST 7 

AST 6 

AST 5 

AST 4 

0 

0 

0 

2 

1 

0 

0 

1 

0 

0 

0 

0 

4 

0 

0 

2 

1 

2 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

2 

3 

8 

5 

6 

6 

8 

6 

2 

1 

47 

2 

1 

7 

8 

5 

2 

5 

2 

0 

0 

0 

2 

0 

0 

1 

1 

0 

0 

0 

0 

4 

0 

0 

0 

1 

2 

1 

0 

0 

0 

0 

1 

2 

4 

2 

3 

8 

8 

5 

4 

5 

42 

2 

0 

6 

2 

7 

5 

6 

2 

0 

0 

0 

2 

0 

1 

0 

1 

0 

0 

0 

0 

4 

0 

0 

2 

1 

2 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

2 

0 

1 

1 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

4 

0 

0 

2 

2 

1 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

2 

4 

5 

4 

5 

7 

8 

7 

3 

2 

47 

2 

1 

7 

9 

5 

2 

6 

1 

68 

0 

0 

2 

4 

5 

4 

5 

8 

7 

7 

3 

2 

47 

2 

2 

8 

6 

5 

3 

6 

1 

0 

0 

0 

2 

0 

1 

1 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

4 

0 

0 

2 

1 

1 

0 

0 

1 

0 

1 

1 

4 

5 

2 

5 

9 

8 

8 

4 

0 

47 

2 

2 

8 

4 

7 

4 

4 

1 

0 

0 

0 

2 

0 

2 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

4 

0 

0 

3 

0 

1 

0 

0 

1 

0 

1 

1 

4 

4 

4 

5 

9 

8 

4 

5 

2 

47 

0 

2 

6 

3 

9 

6 

2 

4 

 
 
 
 
 
 
0 

0 

0 

5 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

9 

AST 3 

AST 2 

AST 1 

AST 
TOTAL 

AST/SC 6 

AST/SC 5 

AST/SC 4 

AST/SC 3 

AST/SC 2 

AST/SC 1 

AST/SC 
Total 

Total 

Grand 
total 

2 

0 

0 

34 

0 

0 

0 

1 

0 

0 

1 

82 

0 

0 

1 

5 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

9 

2 

1 

0 

33 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

75 

0 

0 

0 

5 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

9 

0 

0 

0 

33 

0 

0 

0 

1 

1 

0 

2 

82 

0 

0 

0 

5 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

9 

1 

0 

0 

34 

0 

0 

0 

1 

0 

0 

1 

82 

0 

0 

0 

5 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

9 

2 

0 

0 

34 

0 

0 

0 

1 

0 

0 

1 

82 

0 

0 

0 

5 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

9 

2 

0 

0 

34 

0 

0 

1 

0 

0 

0 

1 

82 

91 

84 

91 

91 

91 

91 

External personnel 
Contract Agents 

Contract 
agents 

FTE 
corresponding 
to the 
authorised 
budget 2022 

Executed 
FTE as of 
31 
December 
2022 

Headcount 
as of 31 
December 
2022 

FTE 
corresponding 
to the 
authorised 
budget 2023 

FTE 
corresponding 
to the 
authorised 
budget 2024 

FTE 
corresponding 
to the 
authorised 
budget 2025 

FTE 
correspondin
g to the 
authorised 
budget 2026 

Function 
Group IV 

Function 
Group III 

Function 
Group II 

Function 
Group I 

7 

2 

4 

0 

7 

1 

2 

0 

7 

1 

2 

0 

7 

2 

4 

0 

7 

2 

4 

0 

Total 

13 

10 

10 

13 

13 

7 

2 

4  

 0 

13 

7 

4 

2 

0 

13  

69 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Seconded National Experts 

Seconded 
national 
experts 

FTE 
corresponding 
to the 
authorised 
budget 2022 

Executed 
FTE as of 
31/12/20
22 

Headcount 
as of 
31/12/2022 

FTE 
corresponding 
to the 
authorised 
budget 2023 

FTE 
corresponding 
to the 
authorised 
budget 2024 

FTE 
corresponding 
to the 
authorised 
budget 2025 

FTE 
corresponding 
to the 
authorised 
budget 2026 

Total 

1  

 0 

0  

1 

1 

 1 

1 

Table A6: Recruitment forecasts 2023 following retirement/mobility or new requested posts  
(information on the entry level for each type of posts: indicative table) 

Job title in the Agency 

Type of contract 
(Official, TA or CA) 

Due to 
foreseen 
retirement/ 
mobility 
N 
N 

New post 
requested due 
to additional 
tasks 
Y 
Y 

N 

N 

Y 

Y 

Internal Control Officer 
Digital Transformation 
Manager 
Head of Procurement 
Sector 
Digital Communication 
Officer 

TA/Official 
Function group/grade of internal 
recruitment and single grade of 
external recruitment foreseen for 
publication 

Internal  

External  

CA 
Recruitment Function 
Group (I, II, III and IV) 

n/a 
n/a 

n/a 

AD6 
AD8 

AD8 

FGIII 

Number of inter-agency mobility to and from Eurofound 2023: 1 Contract Agent FGIV from 
Eurofound to EEA. 

70 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Annex V: Human resources qualitative 

A. Recruitment policy 

Officials  

The officials serving in Eurofound are largely as a result of the ‘titularisation’ exercise undertaken in 
2007. The competition was open to all serving temporary agent staff, regardless of position. The 
result of that procedure is that staff across the Agency hold the status of official in a personal 
capacity without regard to their function. The options used for recruitment of officials are:  

inter-institutional transfer 
internal competition (Article 29(d) of the Staff Regulations) 

• 
• 
•  European Personnel Selection Office (EPSO) reserve lists for officials, using the electronic 

reserve list (ERL) database 

•  open competition organised by EPSO 
• 

temporary agents recruited under Article 2(b) 

Due to difficulties in attracting, recruiting and retaining the right candidates (especially in research), 
the decision on how to fill official vacancies is to be taken on a case-by-case basis. Eurofound is 
conscious of the principle in Article 29 that the vast majority of officials are to be recruited on the 
basis of open competitions. Therefore, future policy on filling official posts includes a mix of options 
allowing Eurofound to manage the process in the most efficient and effective manner. The policy 
aims to allow Eurofound to fill vacant posts in a timely manner and promote the career development 
possibilities of current staff members.  

Inter-institutional transfers for officials are advertised on the Eurofound, EPSO and Commission 
websites. They are also circulated to all agencies. Internal competitions may be organised on the 
basis of Article 29(d) of the Staff Regulations. A vacancy notice, outlining the job specification, the 
necessary competencies and the selection process is published internally in the Agency and serving 
officials and temporary agents are invited to apply.  

Temporary agents  

The great majority of staff in the agency are temporary agents, 2(f). They are deployed for all roles, 
both managerial and operational, except those roles that are filled with contract agents. In addition, 
there are two Temporary Agent 2(a) posts, which are filled by the Executive Director and Deputy 
Director.  

All newly recruited staff will be offered a fixed-term contract, with for temporary agents 2(f) the 
possibility of an indefinite contract on first renewal. Fixed-term contracts are for a duration of five 
years, unless, exceptionally, the nature of the role to be filled or the skills required is for a shorter 

71 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
duration. The contract of a temporary agent 2(a) can be renewed once for a duration of another five 
years.  

Where it is not possible to fill an official post with an official, the option of appointing a temporary 
agent under Article 2(b) of the CEOS is exercised. The contract duration is for up to four years in such 
cases, with the option of renewal for a maximum of a further two years.  

The entry grades are in accordance with the requirement of the Staff Regulations and with the 
model decision for the agencies. For the most junior administrative assistant role (for example, 
secretary or finance assistant, the entry level was AST 1 and AST/SC2). Eurofound has difficulties in 
allocating AST/SC positions in the organisation due to the absence of pure secretarial/administrative 
roles. Because of the size of the organisation, secretarial/administrative tasks are almost always 
combined with more complex assistant tasks and therefore require an AST position. 

For more complex administrative assistant roles (for example, HR generalist, editor or personal 
assistant), the entry level is AST 3 or AST 4. Almost all AD staff are recruited at AD 5, AD 6 or AD 7 
levels. Eurofound is recruiting social researchers in the beginning of their career at AD5 and AD6 
level. Researchers with extensive experience in managing research projects and programmes are 
recruited at AD7. The determining factor in deciding on the appropriate entry point is the level of 
experience that the candidate needs in order to assume the responsibilities of the role. For instance, 
in the area of research, Research Managers recruited at AD 7 are normally more mature candidates, 
with a significant level of experience and expertise and are expected to assume a project managerial 
role immediately. Research Officers, on the other hand, who are recruited at AD 5, will generally be 
less experienced and are assigned to carry out work of a more technical/scientific nature initially, for 
example conducting research rather than managing it. In this role, the Research Officer develops the 
skills of a Research Manager over time and by the time of promotion to AD 7 will be expected to 
assume all aspects of the role of Research Manager.  

Contract agents  

Contract agents are engaged by Eurofound to carry out different roles. Roles for which contract 
agents have been engaged are: Project Officer – HR; Project Officer – Research; Events Assistant; 
Contracts Assistant; Project Officer – Data Protection and Internal Control; Receptionist; Facilities 
Assistant; and Operations Assistant. In deciding on the posts to be filled by contract agents, the 
following factors are considered. 

•  There is no post available in the approved staffing table to source a suitable candidate and 

there is a work overload problem, perhaps long term. 

•  There is a short- or medium-term project where the appointment of a permanent resource 

is not justified. 

•  To fill a post on a short-term basis, due to extended illness or, exceptionally, maternity 

leave. 

•  A post is being created on a pilot basis and a contract agent is employed until the success of 

the new post can be assessed in due course. 

72 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Eurofound offers contracts of up to five years in duration. These contracts may be renewed if there 
is a need for the role to be continued and subject to budgetary constraints. On second renewal, a 
contract would become indefinite. 47 

Some contract agents have been offered contracts of shorter duration, depending, for example, on 
the envisaged duration of the project in the case of core activities, the estimated time for which an 
additional resource is required, or the time that it will take to fill a temporary agent vacancy.  

There are two options available when recruiting contract agents on short- or medium-term 
employment. The first is to source candidates from the EPSO CAST Permanent database. The second 
option of recruiting through a selection procedure organised by the Agency is invariably the more 
effective solution.  

CAST Permanent is a new contract agent selection procedure for a number of profiles comprising 
Function Groups II, III & IV which has been developed by EPSO.  

Structural service providers 

In Eurofound, there are three categories of resources falling within this heading.  

Interim staff  

Such staff are provided to meet shorter-term staffing needs, arising from inability to fill a vacancy 
immediately or to carry out work when the role holder is on long-term sick leave.  

They have been engaged to carry out a range of functions:  

•  General Facilities Assistant/Officer 
•  Web Content Officer 
•  HR Assistant 
•  Finance/Procurement Assistant/Officer 
•  Research Officer 
• 

ICT Helpdesk Assistant 

Contracts for interim staff usually range between 2 and 11 months. In exceptional cases, interim 
staff may be engaged for a longer period, where they have key skills and the life of a project may 
exceed 11 months.  

They are supplied by a recruitment agency with which Eurofound has a four-year framework 
contract, following an open tendering procedure. Their employment contracts are with the 
recruitment agency and not with Eurofound.  

ICT contractors  

They provide consultancy services and additional technical support to the staff of the ICT unit. This 
support relates to ICT projects for which specific technical expertise is not available internally within 
the ICT unit.  

47 In the case of FG IV staff, subject to confirmation that they have achieved a level of B2 in a third language. 

73 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
They are provided under the terms of a framework contract, awarded following an open tendering 
procedure carried out by Eurofound. Framework contracts have a duration of between one and four 
years. Their services are provided as required and relate to specific ICT projects approved in the 
annual Strategic ICT Plan. Support may also be provided during very busy periods or to cover for the 
absence of key ICT technical personnel (such as network administrator).  

Service contractors  

A number of contract staff are working intra-muros in the context of framework contracts for the 
supply of catering, cleaning and security services.  

Appointment of Heads of Unit  

To ensure the appointment of candidates of the highest calibre and competence to Head of Unit 
(middle management) positions, Eurofound adopted the Model decision on Middle Management 
Staff in 2018. Eurofound will invite one manager of another Agency (at least in the same grade as 
that of the function to be filled) to participate in the pre-selection procedure. Short-listed candidates 
shall take part in an assessment centre to evaluate the candidate’s managerial skills. 

Mobility within the Agency  

All vacancies are advertised internally, where practical and appropriate. Interested candidates are 
interviewed and if considered suitable are transferred internally. If there is no suitable candidate, a 
selection procedure or competition is launched. The first stage is an internal selection/competition, 
and if internal candidates are successful, they are appointed to the position.  

A job rotation scheme also exists. It is not frequently availed of, but it allows staff members to swap 
jobs with each other. The ultimate decision to facilitate the swap is contingent on the suitability of 
each candidate for the roles.  

Redeployment  

Decisions regarding the choice of posts to be suppressed are, if needed, based on strategic and 
organisational criteria to ensure that the best interests of the agency are not compromised and that 
the objectives of the programming document can be met. These criteria should assess whether the 
post is key to the functioning of Eurofound and should, therefore, include the following 
considerations:  

• 

Is the post becoming vacant (transfer, end of contract, retirement or resignation) still as 
relevant as it was when originally created?  

•  Has technology or more efficient procedures/structures created any redundancies in the 

• 
• 

roles?  
Is the post assigned to a core activity?  
Is the activity appropriately resourced or over-resourced? Could it be carried out with fewer 
resources or by restructuring other roles? Is there duplication between the role and what 
others are doing? Can the work be delegated to other staff?  
•  Can the activity/task be outsourced, or simply discontinued?  
•  Are skills critical – can they be found among existing staff or must they be recruited?  

74 

 
 
 
 
 
 
•  What would be the impact of not filling the post – for the Unit, for Eurofound?  
•  Should staff reductions be used to rebalance in favour of AD and have fewer AST staff, or 

vice versa? 

Implementing rules in place: 

Yes  No 

If no, which other 
implementing 
rules are in place 

Engagement of CA 

Model Decision C(2019)3016 

Engagement of TA 

Model Decision C(2015)1509 

Middle management  

Model decision C(2018)2542 

Type of posts 

Model Decision C(2018)8800 

X 

X 

X 

X 

B. Appraisal and reclassification/promotions 
Eurofound has an annual appraisal and development cycle (HRDP). After closing the HRDP exercise, the 
promotion and reclassification exercise is launched. 

Implementing rules in place 

Yes 

No 

If no, which other 
implementing rules 
are in place 

Reclassification of TA 

Model Decision C(2015)9560 

Reclassification of CA 

Model Decision C(2015)9561 

X 

X 

75 

 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
 
Table A7:Reclassification of TA/promotion of official 

Average seniority in the grade among reclassified staff 

Grades 

2019 

2020 

2021 

2022 

2023 

Actual 
average 
over 5 
years 

Average over 
5 years 
(according to 
decision 
C(2015)9563) 

4.5 

4.2 

2.8 

4 

4.5 

12 

3.7 

4.3 

3 

4.8 

6 

6 

4.3 

AD05 

AD06 

AD07 

AD08 

AD09 

AD10 

AD11 

AD12 

AD13 

AST1 

AST2 

AST3 

AST4 

AST5 

AST6 

AST7 

AST8 

AST9 

AST10 
(Senior 
assistant) 

3 

5 

3.2 

2.7 

3 

2.8 

5 

4 

3.3 

3 

3.5 

8.5 

8.2 

3 

6.5 

5 

4 

5.5 

7.5 

3.5 

2.3 

3 

3 

4.2 

3 

3.5 

76 

2.7 

3 

2.9 

3 

3.8 

4 

6.2 

11.1 

3.2 

2.8 

4 

4.2 

3.3 

4 

2.8 

3.9 

3.3 

3.3 

3.8 

4.2 

9.1 

8.3 

7.4 

3.5 

3.1 

3.7 

4.5 

4.3 

4.6 

4.2 

7.5 

2.8 

2.8 

2.8 

3 

4 

4 

4 

6.7 

6.7 

3 

3 

3 

3 

4 

4 

4 

4 

N/A 

5 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Average seniority in the grade among reclassified staff 

Grades 

2018 

2019 

2020 

2021 

2022 

Actual 
average 
over 5 
years 

Average over 
5 years 
(according to 
Decision 
C(2015)9563) 

AST/SC1 

AST/SC2 

AST/SC3 

AST/SC4 

AST/SC5 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

4 

5 

5.9 

6.7 

8.3 

77 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Table A8: Reclassification of contract staff 

Function 
Group 

Grade 

Staff in activity 
on 1 January 
2021 

How many 
staff members 
were 
reclassified in 
2022 

Average 
number of 
years in grade 
of reclassified 
staff members 

Average number of 
years in grade of 
reclassified staff 
members according to 
Decision C(2015)9561 

Between 6 and 10 
years 

Between 5 and 7 years 

Between 4 and 6 years 

3 

Between 3 and 5 years 

Between 3 and 5 years 

Between 6 and 10 
years 

Between 5 and 7 years 

Between 4 and 6 years 

Between 3 and 5 years 

Between 6 and 10 
years 

Between 5 and 7 years 

Between 3 and 5 years 

Between 6 and 10 
years 

Between 3 and 5 years 

CA IV 

CA III 

CA II 

CA I 

17 

16 

15 

14 

13 

11 

10 

9 

8 

6 

5 

4 

2 

1 

1 

4 

2 

1 

1 

2 

0 

1 

0 

0 

0 

0 

78 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
C. Gender representation  
There is a fairly balanced gender distribution. This is applicable to the distribution of staff in general 
and also for staff in managerial roles. 

Table A9: Statutory staff (only officials, TA and CA) on 31 December 2022 

Official 

Temporary 

Contract Agents 

Grand Total 

Staff 

% 

Staff 

% 

Staff 

% 

Staff 

% 

Female 

Administrator 
level 

Assistant level 
(AST & AST/SC) 

Total 

Male 

Administrator 
level 

Assistant level 
(AST & AST/SC) 

Total 

Grand 
Total 

3 

4 

7 

1 

1 

2 

9 

3.2 

19 

20.1 

4.2 

21 

22.2 

40 

23 

42 

24.3 

12 

12.7 

7.4 

1 

1 

2.1 

9.5 

4 

3 

7 

2 

1 

3 

4.2 

26 

27.6 

3.2 

28 

29.7 

7.4 

2.1 

55 

26 

58.3 

27.5 

1 

14 

14.8 

35 

75 

37.1 

3.2 

79.5 

10 

10.6 

40 

94 

42.4 

100 

Table A10: Gender evolution over five years of middle and senior management48 

Female managers  

Male managers 

2018 

Number 

5 

6 

% 

45 

55 

2022 

Number 

4 

5 

% 

44 

56 

Only middle and senior managers are considered in this table. Head of Sectors are not accounted 
for as they do not fall in these categories. These figures are aligned with the Organisation chart in 
Annex I. 

48 Staff who are defined as middle manager by the applicable general implementing provisions on middle 
management.  

79 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
 
 
D. Geographical Balance 
There is a fairly balanced nationality distribution. It is notable that few candidates from Member 
States such as Cyprus, Estonia, Malta and Slovenia apply for positions in Eurofound. The relatively 
high number of Irish staff is due mainly to historical reasons and may re-balance with time, although 
for geographical reasons, it will continue to be higher than other nationalities. 

Table A11: Geographical balance of statutory staff only (officials, TA and CA) on 31 December 2022 

AD + CA FG IV 

AST/SC- AST + CA FGI/CA 
FGII/CA FGIII 

TOTAL 

Number 

% of total 
staff 
members in 
AD and FG 
IV 
categories 

Number 

% of total staff 
members in 
AST SC/AST 
and FG I, II and 
III categories 

Number 

% of total 
staff 

Belgium 

Bulgaria 

Denmark 

Germany 

Ireland 

Greece 

Spain 

France 

Italy 

Lithuania 

Luxembourg 

Hungary 

Netherlands 

Austria 

Poland 

Portugal 

Romania 

1 

1 

1 

5 

7 

1 

6 

3 

5 

2 

0 

2 

5 

2 

1 

2 

3 

1.9 

1.9 

1.9 

9.8 

13.7 

1.9 

11.7 

5.8 

9.8 

3.9 

0 

3.9 

9.8 

3.9 

1.9 

3.9 

5.8 

4 

1 

0 

1 

21 

0 

5 

4 

3 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

2 

0 

0 

80 

9.2 

2.3 

0 

2.3 

48.3 

0 

11.5 

9.2 

6.9 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

4.6 

0 

0 

5 

2 

1 

6 

28 

1 

11 

7 

8 

2 

0 

2 

5 

2 

3 

2 

3 

5.3 

2.1 

1 

6.3 

29.6 

1 

11.6 

7.4 

8.4 

2.1 

0 

2.1 

5.3 

2.1 

3.1 

2.1 

3.1 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Slovakia 

Finland 

Sweden 

United Kingdom 

1 

2 

1 

0 

1.9 

3.9 

1.9 

0 

1 

0 

1 

0 

Total 

51 

100 

43 

2.3 

0 

2.3 

0 

100 

2 

2 

2 

0 

2.1 

2.1 

2.1 

0 

94 

100 

Table A12: Evolution over 5 years of the most represented nationality in the Agency 

Most represented nationality 

2018 

2022 

Ireland 

Number 

27 

% 

27 

Number 

% 

28 

29.6 

E. Schooling 
There is one European School, Type II, providing education up to level 5, based in Dunshaughlin, Co. 
Meath. The school was primarily established for children of staff of the Food and Veterinary Office, a 
directorate of the Commission, in Grange, Co. Meath. However, it does not offer the European 
Baccalaureate degree and is also for logistical reasons not a viable option for Eurofound staff. No 
child of Eurofound staff is currently attending the school.  

Eurofound has discussed the schooling question with the Irish authorities, particularly in the context 
of the Irish Government’s commitment in the Seat Agreement to be open to providing for the 
education of the children of Eurofound staff on a similar basis to what is provided for EU staff 
located elsewhere. Following these consultations, Eurofound staff were surveyed on their 
preferences. There was a strong preference for maintaining the level of choice that is currently 
available to them and continuing with payment of the double education allowance in respect of 
children attending second level education. On the basis of this feedback, Eurofound will not pursue 
the matter of an Accredited European School for the time being.  

Eurofound together with the Commission’s office and the Parliament’s office in Ireland have 
established an arrangement for many years with a private school, St Andrew’s College, Blackrock, 
which operates at both primary and secondary level. In its ‘European Annex’ the school provides 
additional tuition in children’s mother tongues to the children of Eurofound staff, funded wholly by 
the Irish Government. It also prepares children for and allows them to sit the exams to get the 
International Baccalaureate (IB). This school is used by many of Eurofound’s staff. In its admission 
policy, the school grants a certain level of priority to children of Eurofound staff. However, 
depending on general demand, the priority given to Eurofound children might not in every case 
secure a place in the school. This is particularly critical for newly recruited staff members’ children 
who arrive in Ireland with little lead time and, possibly, during the academic year. Eurofound has 

81 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
established a regular dialogue with the school in order to inform them about staff developments and 
to create an understanding for the particular needs of Eurofound staff and their children. 

Agreement in place with the European School(s)  

Contribution agreements signed with the EC on type I European schools 

Contribution agreements signed with the EC on type II European schools 

Number of service contracts in place with international schools: 

No 

No 

X 

X 

Yes 

Yes 

0 

Description of any other solutions or actions in place: Issuing school allowance as per SR/CEOS 

82 

 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
 
 
Annex VI: Environment management 

Public administrations have the responsibility to reduce the impact of their administrative 
operations on the environment as much as possible. In its special report (14/2014) How do the EU 
institutions and bodies calculate, reduce and offset their greenhouse gas emissions? the European 
Court of Auditors concludes with a recommendation of full implementation of the European 
Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) and green procurement by all EU Institutions and bodies. 

Eurofound considers environmental sustainability as one element towards greater corporate 
sustainability within the context of the UN’s sustainability development goals (SDGs). While in the 
past considerable efforts were put into individual improvement actions (such as upgrading of the 
lighting system and the introduction of high efficiency natural gas boilers, increased window 
insulation, a state-of-the art video conferencing system, to reduce the number of missions, the 
reduction of paper consumption, the instalment of charging points for electrical cars and many 
more) no long-term strategy was implemented.  

Since 2020, concrete steps were taken that have ensured a successful EMAS certification audit in 
November 2022 and Eurofound was issued an EMAS registration certificate in April 2023.  

The biggest obstacle to faster progress in this area are the scarce human and financial resources 
available to Eurofound. Each year only few (relatively small) projects can be implemented in the area 
of environmental management in order not to jeopardise the justified expectations of stakeholders 
in relation to Eurofound delivering on its actual mandate as per its Founding Regulation. It has been, 
therefore, proposed that the Budgetary Authority (the EU Parliament and Council) to make available 
a specific budget that would allow agencies like Eurofound to apply for grants that are not available 
from national authorities to accelerate the efforts for better environmental sustainability of their 
operations. With this, the EU Institutions and Agencies should set an example for a European Green 
Deal.  

Public procurement is an important instrument towards sustainability and the transition to a circular 
economy. In 2020, Eurofound adapted its procurement strategy to chart how to best integrate 
sustainability into existing procurement practices and systems. It will build on and use the handbook, 
toolkit and criteria for social and green public procurement available from the European 
Commission. Since March 2021, Eurofound is a part of an inter-institutional Green Public 
Procurement Helpdesk (GPP) contract. The Helpdesk provides professional advice on purchases of 
environmentally friendly products or services, which will be helpful in implementing the 2024 
procurements.  

Collaboration within the appropriate networks of the EU Agencies will be an important support. 

83 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Annex VII: Building Policy 

Current buildings 

Information to be provided per building 

Name, location and type of 
building  

Dublin: Main building and 
conference centre 

Other comments 

Surface area (in square metres) 

Approx. 2,500 sq. m. 

– of which is office space 

2,000 sq. m. 

– of which is non-office space 

500 sq. m., conference centre 

Annual rent (in €) 

Type and duration of rental contract 

Host country grant or support  

n/a 

n/a 

n/a 

Present value of the building 

EUR 689,161 

As of 31 December 
2022 

Information to be provided per 
building 

Name, location and type of 
building  

Other 
comments 

Dublin: Loughlinstown House 
and grounds (historical, listed 
building) 

Surface area (in square metres) 

Approx. 500 sq. m.  

– of which is office space 

350 sq. m. 

– of which is non-office space 

150 sq. m. meeting rooms 

Annual rent (in €) 

None; €250,000 was paid in 
2000 for a 99-year lease (from 
2001 on) 

Type and duration of rental contract 

99-year lease 

Host country grant or support  

Present value of the building 

n/a 

n/a 

84 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Information to be provided per 
building 

Name, location and type of 
building  

Other comments 

Brussels: 
18, Avenue d’Auderghem 

Brussels Liaison 
Office 

Surface area (in square metres) 

– of which is office space 
– of which is non-office space 

100 sq. m. 

Annual rent (in €) 

 24,514 

in 2022 

Type and duration of rental contract 

Lease agreement with annual 
termination clause 

Host country grant or support  

Present value of the building 

n/a 

n/a 

Building projects in the planning phase 

No new buildings or significant building extensions planned; no change of surface area planned or 
expected. 

Building projects submitted to the European Parliament and the Council 

Eurofound does not plan any building projects likely to have significant financial implications that 
will be submitted to the European Parliament and the Council. Nor are there building projects 
submitted previously in accordance with Article 206 of the 2018 Financial Regulation. 

85 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Annex VIII: Privileges and immunities  

Agency privileges 

The Agency has diplomatic 
status. 

In common with other EU 
institutions, Eurofound is 
exempt from VAT. 

Eurofound meets the full cost 
of office furniture, security 
and infrastructure. 

There is no contribution by 
ministries or national, regional 
or local authorities. 

Privileges granted to staff 

Protocol on privileges and immunities/diplomatic 
status 

Education/day care 

No staff member has diplomatic status, but senior 
staff are entitled to a laissez-passer document to 
facilitate travel; however, this privilege is currently 
not availed of.  

The Protocol on privileges and immunities is 
applicable to all staff recruited under the Staff 
Regulations. This entitles them and their families to 
enter Ireland without being subject to the usual 
immigration procedures, for staff to travel to and 
from work without hindrance, for staff to transfer 
residence to Ireland without payment of import duty 
on their effects and motor cars.  

Staff are exempt from national income tax on their 
earning on the basis that they are liable to a tax for 
the benefit of the Communities on salaries, wages 
and emoluments paid to them by the Communities. 

There are no continuous VAT exemptions for staff, 
with the exception of the Executive Director. 

Staff recruited from outside Ireland may purchase up 
to two cars without payment of tax or import 
charges. They may also purchase household goods 
free of VAT during the first 24 months after moving 
to Ireland. 

There is no access to 
subsidised day-care 
facilities for staff. 

Educational allowances 
are paid to staff in 
accordance with the 
provisions of the Staff 
Regulations. 

School fees are not 
paid directly by 
Eurofound. Staff 
sending their children 
to private schools may 
qualify for the non-flat-
rate education 
allowance (the child 
must be at least six 
years of age) in 
accordance with the 
provisions of the Staff 
Regulations. 

86 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Annex IX: Evaluations  
Eurofound’s performance monitoring system (EPMS) aims to foster a culture of continuous 
organisational improvement using a series of instruments such as key performance indicators and 
metrics, user feedback, qualitative assessment and analysis, evaluation and learning. This approach 
supports the periodic external evaluation organised by the European Commission.49 

Eurofound has long-standing expertise and experience in the area of performance monitoring and 
evaluation. This is also further enhanced through close involvement in the EU Agencies’ sub-network 
Performance Development Network, and takes into account recent developments and requirements 
for monitoring and evaluation for EU agencies. 

Eurofound’s 2021–2024 evaluation policy and evaluation programme consists of a modular 
approach to replace the conventional ex-ante / interim / ex-post evaluation approach at programme 
level, focusing in particular on the activity level of the new programme cycle.  

In 2024, there will be the finalisation of the ex-ante evaluation of the 2025–2028 programming 
document, and the biennial user feedback survey. Additionally, at operational level, in preparation 
of future evaluations and audits, the approach to various processes, including research quality 
management will be reviewed and where necessary streamlined and documented. 

Follow-up to evaluation findings  

During 2024, Eurofound will respond to the recommendations from the cross-agencies evaluation of 
EU agencies under the remit of DG EMPL. 

Performance monitoring 

The Agency has a long tradition in monitoring the implementation of its annual work programme 
against a set of quantitative indicators. In the 2021–2024 programme, Eurofound uses eight key 
performance indicators (KPIs) with a strong emphasis on the result (uptake and use) of Eurofound’s 
knowledge, as well its efficiency (inputs and outputs).  

Key performance indicators 

Source 

Budget implementation – target 98% 

Budgetary outturn account 

Efficient use of posts available in the establishment plan – target 
97% 

Programme delivery – target 80% 

Recognition of the scientific quality of Eurofound’s research 
(references in articles in peer-reviewed journals) 

49 Ex Article 28(2) of Regulation (EU) 2019/127. 

87 

The establishment plan approved for 
the respective year, and records of 
recruitments resulting in posts filled 
by 31 December of that same year 
Report from Eurofound’s project 
management system based on 
outputs listed in the Programming 
document of the respective year 
Academic journal citations based on 
Scopus data 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
HTML page views 

Uptake of and 
engagement with 
Eurofound’s knowledge 
through its website and 
other corporate 
platforms 
Uptake of Eurofound’s knowledge through the media 

PDF downloads 

Eurofound’s engagement with stakeholders in meetings and 
events (out of contributions to events in total) 

Data from Europa analytics 

Eurofound’s Media Monitoring Sheet 
using the Europe Media Monitor50 
complemented with media search 
engine components of Mention, 
MyNewsDesk, and PressReader 

Eurofound’s events tracking database 

Uptake of Eurofound’s expertise in key European-level policy 
documents (out of total European-level policy documents) 

Eurofound EU impact tracking 
database 

Most of these KPIs are also used at activity level 

Key performance indicators 

Budget implementation – target 98% 

Staff capacity – target 97% 

Programme delivery – target 80% 

Recognition of the scientific quality of Eurofound’s 
research (references in peer-reviewed journals) 

Uptake of and engagement with Eurofound’s 
knowledge through its website and other corporate 
platforms 

Uptake of Eurofound’s knowledge through the media 

50 Developed by the Joint Research Centre (JRC). 

88 

Applied to 
Operational 
Activity 1–7 

Applied to 
horizontal 
Activity 9 and 
10 

Applied to 
Activity 8 
Reacting to ad 
hoc 
information 
requests 

✓  target 
90% 
(tbc) 

✓  target 
90% 
(tbc) 

target 90% 
(tbc) 

X 

✓ 

✓ 

✓ 

✓ 

X 

X 

Number of 
requests 

X 

x 

X 

X 

✓ 

X 

X 

X 

 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Contributions to policy development at priority events 
(out of contributions to events in total) 

Use of Eurofound expertise in key European-level 
policy documents (out of total EU policy documents) 

✓ 

✓ 

X 

X 

X 

X 

The Agency collects and reports on various other metrics to support efficiency and effective 
operations at process and functional level notably around its communication programme as well as 
its financial performance. 

89 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Annex X: Strategy for the organisational management and internal 
control systems  
Eurofound applies the 2018 internal control framework based on the model from the European 
Commission. It is designed to provide reasonable assurance in the achievement of five objectives of 
sound financial management as per Article 30(2) of Eurofound’s Financial Regulation:  

 safeguarding of assets and information 

1.  effectiveness, efficiency and economy of operations 
2.  reliability of reporting 
3. 
4.  prevention, detection, correction and follow-up of fraud and irregularities 
5.  adequate management of the risks relating to the legality and regularity of the underlying 
transactions, taking into account the multiannual character of programmes as well as the 
nature of the payments concerned 

The internal control components are: the control environment, risk assessment, control activities, 
information and communication and monitoring activities. They are the building blocks that 
underpin the framework’s structure and support Eurofound in its efforts to achieve its objectives. 
The implementation of internal controls is monitored and an assessment of the effectiveness of 
internal controls is carried out on an annual basis. Any weaknesses identified are taken up in the 
annual work plan of the Coordinator internal control.  

With a new anti-fraud strategy 2024–2026, the Agency continues its efforts on achieving a strong 
anti-fraud culture in Eurofound throughout awareness raising activities and promoting a strong 
connection between internal controls and anti-fraud prevention through mapping the effectiveness 
of controls and the removal of any barriers to effective implementation.  

Risk management 

Risk management is an ongoing activity of identifying and carefully assessing potential problems that 
could affect the execution of the organisation's activities and the achievement of its objectives.51 The 
risks in the table below refer to the multiannual programme period of 2021–2024 and reviewed and 
updated for the 2024 programming document. It documents the most significant residual risks at 
corporate level following an assessment of likelihood and impact. The actions are in addition to the 
internal controls in place and are specific for the relevant annual period. Following the risk review 
the action plan for 2024 is as follows.  

51 Based on the Commission’s Implementation Guide on Risk management, November 2018. 

90 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Risk title and description  

Risk type  

Risk 
Response  

Action  

Political and economic 
uncertainties continue to require 
an appropriate response from the 
organisation by integrating 
emerging priorities and new 
demands within the framework of 
the multiannual programme. This 
requires the flexibility to move 
resources that may be tied to 
longer term arrangements and 
continuous development of staff 
to seize opportunities for 
innovation and for contributing to 
policy developments in a timely 
manner. 

Implementation of hybrid working 
arrangements. As long‐term 
implications of a hybrid work 
organisation are still evolving, the 
risk remains that some aspects of 
workplace engagement and 
productivity are negatively 
affected.  

The budgetary consequences of 
inflation. Delivering the annual 
work programme while having to 
absorb the consequences of high 
inflation since 2020 through 
increasing efficiency measures 
and adapting multiannual 
activities has seen the Agency’s 
capacity stretched beyond its 
limits. There is a risk that further 
inflation will impact operational 
priorities negatively.  

External 
environment 

Accept 

Organisational 
work processes  

People and 
organisation 

Reduce 

Continue to improve the 
organisational capacity to 
rapidly respond to changing 
priorities (modular 
implementation of activities, 
using the ad hoc request 
capacity, training and 
development, enhanced 
flexibility in administrative 
processes). 

Monitor and adjust the 
implementation of the 
provisions on working time 
and hybrid working to 
harness its full potential and 
accompany it with training for 
line managers and staff – as 
well as monitoring the 
performance of the 
organisation.  

Strategic 
external 
environment 

Reduce  

Continue to implement 
efficiency measures insofar 
possible. 

For the 2025–2028 
multiannual programme, 
preparation processes took 
place to assess which projects 
and tasks were deemed most 
relevant in the context of the 
resource limitations, in close 
cooperation with the 
stakeholders in the 
Management Board. This 
process will continue in 
preparation of the approval 
of the 2025 annual work 
programme. 

91 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Risk title and description  

Risk type  

Risk 
Response  

Reduce  

Strategic and 
financial  

Ongoing uncertainty about the 
implications of the 
methodological challenges and 
related costs, in the context of 
considerations on the overall 
budget and priorities of 
Eurofound, pose a risk to the 
medium-term sustainability and 
relevance of the Agency’s survey 
activity.  

Overlap and lack of synergies with 
other organisations in areas of 
common interest and policy 
contribution leading to 
inefficiencies, lack of visibility and 
loss of opportunities for (costly) 
innovation. 

Strategic and 
financial  

Reduce 

Breach of Eurofound’s data 
security will lead to loss, leakage 
or unavailability of data. This will 
cause business interruption, loss 
of reputation and/or regulatory 
incompliance. The resource 
investment required from the 
new Cybersecurity – and the 
Information Security Regulation 

IT, Financial 

Reduce 

92 

Action  

Use the experience and 
lessons learnt with different 
survey modes, together with 
the recommendations of the 
taskforce on data collection 
methods, to make an 
assessment and proposal for 
the Management Board on 
how to move forward with 
data collection in the 
preparation for the 2025–
2028 programme period. 

Continue the implementation 
of the medium‐/long‐term 
roadmap for the Network of 
Eurofound Correspondents 
and seek opportunities for 
cooperation with Commission 
networks in preparation for 
defining the scope for the 
procurement procedure in 
2025. 

Implement the 2023 strategy 
for cooperation with external 
partners at international, EU 
and national level. 

Work towards integrating 
Eurofound in the 
implementation of the 
European Commission’s 
programme activities at an 
appropriate stage of the 
multiannual planning cycle  

Eurofound has a clear 
commitment to reduce this 
risk demonstrated by the 
investment in resources 
including staffing and training 
and to implement the 
Cybersecurity – and the 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Risk title and description  

Risk type  

Risk 
Response  

Action  

(expected to both come into 
effect in 2024) will impact heavily 
on the (ICT) budget and staffing. 
Non‐compliance will lead to an 
increase in the threat of data 
breaches. 

If unregulated, artificial 
intelligence can lead to lack of 
transparency, bias and security 
issues leading to reputational 
damage and financial cost, 
overshadowing its benefits.  

People and 
organisation 

Reduce 

Communication 

Non‐compliance with regulatory 
requirements  

Finance and 
procurement 

Reduce 

HR 

Policies and 
processes 

Information Security 
Regulation without delay. 

Continue building on the 
cooperation with DG DIGIT, 
CERT‐EU and the intra‐agency 
cooperation via ICTAC for 
exchange of information, best 
practices, as well as shared 
services where possible. 

Introduce guidelines for the 
use of generative AI within 
the Agency, and monitor its 
implementation. 

In line with the very good 
results throughout the years, 
Eurofound will continue 
closely assessing and 
mitigating the risks related to 
its current activities, with a 
special attention to the 
largest expenditures. 

Risk mitigation plan for the 
EQLS as the largest single 
project for the next years 
(2024–2027). 

Closely follow the procedures 
prescribed, make regular 
implementation assessments. 

Exchange experience among 
agencies and seek 
methodological advice from 
ECA and IAS where necessary. 

Following a risk assessment focusing specifically on Eurofound’s zero-tolerance to fraud during 2023, 
a strategy and action plan for 2024–2026 will be adopted in 2024.  

93 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Annex XI: Plan for grants, contribution or service-level agreements 
Funds through a grant or contribution agreement for the year 2024, pursuant to Art 7 of the Framework Financial Regulation.  

Duration  

 Counterpart   

 Short 
description  

N = 2023  2024 

2025 

2026 

 Total 
amount  

Actual or 
expected 
date of 
signature   

Contribution 
agreement 

8 May 
2023 

€900,000 

36 
months 
from 
date of 
signature 

Directorate-
General 
Neighbourhood 
and 
Enlargement 
Negotiations 
(NEAR) – 
European 
Commission  

Amount  €810,000 

tbc 

tbc 

€90,000 

1 FGIV 

1 FGIV 

1 FGV 

Number 
of CA/ 
SNE 

Amount  €125,000  €100,000  €25,000 

0 

 Provision of 
comparative 
statistics and 
analysis on 
quality of life 
and work, and 
of support in 
social dialogue. 
Establishing 
networks in 
preparation for 
future 
collaboration at 
governance and 
expert level. 

Pilot project on 
working time 
reduction 

94 

Service level 
agreement 

27 July 
2023 

€250,000 

18 
months 
from the 
date of 
signature 

Directorate 
General 
Employment, 
Social Affairs & 
Inclusion – 
European 
Commission 

 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Annex XII: Strategy for cooperation with third countries and/or international 
organisations  
Addressed in section 4.3: Strategy for relations with third countries and international organisations.  

95 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Annex XIII: Overview of projects in 2024 taking into consideration the rise of 
refugees and cost-of-living in the wake of the war in Ukraine  

Activity 

Activity 1 

Activity 2 

Activity 3 

Activity 4 

Activity 5 

Activity 6 

Projects 

Output 

EU PolicyWatch 

Annual report on minimum wage 

National reporting on industrial relations, 
social dialogue and working-life 

Possible update of policy measures in the 
database to include support measures for 
Ukrainian refugees and policies to offset the 
impact of the war in Ukraine, all depending on 
whether this emerges as a continuing topic. 
Impact of increased inflation and cost of living 
on the developments of real minimum wages 
and minimum wage setting. 
Identification if there is/has been an impact of 
the war in Ukraine in various aspects of working 
life. 

European Restructuring Monitor 
databases – maintenance and update 
Regional perspective of labour market 
change following the COVID-19 pandemic 
(continuation) 
Company policies to tackle labour 
shortages (continuation) 

Database will include cases linked to the war in 
Ukraine. 
Report will include the regional development of 
the labour market, including the impact of the 
war in Ukraine. 
Will include case studies focused on refugees 
from Ukraine. 

Addressing challenges to mental health in 
Europe: Trends and services 
Care provision and the role of informal 
carers 
European Child Guarantee 

Identification of possible impact of/measures to 
address arrival of refugees from Ukraine. 
Identification of possible impact of/ measures 
to address arrival of refugees from Ukraine. 
Identification of possible impact of/measures to 
address arrival of refugees from Ukraine. 

Social impact of migration: Addressing 
challenges in receiving and integrating 
Ukrainian refugees (continuation) 
Social cohesion and new forms of inclusive 
participation 

Report on challenges related to receiving and 
integrating Ukrainian refugees. 

Analysis of the perception of the war in Ukraine 
in Europe. 

Income inequalities and the middle class 
(continuation) 
The dynamics of wealth inequality in 
Europe 

Inclusion of the issue of increasing cost-of-living 
in the research 
Identification of possible impact of war in 
Ukraine will be explored. 

96 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Getting in touch with the EU 

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the centre nearest you at: https://european-union.europa.eu/contact-eu_en 

On the phone or by email 

Europe Direct is a service that answers your questions about the European Union. You can contact this service: 

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downloaded and reused for free, both for commercial and non-commercial purposes.

EF/23/035

 
 
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The European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and 
Working Conditions (Eurofound) is a tripartite European Union 
Agency established in 1975. Its role is to provide knowledge in the 
area of social, employment and work-related policies according to 
Regulation (EU) 2019/127.

ISBN 978-92-897-2387-9 
ISSN 2363-3166 
doi:10.2806/293399