A case study of temporary work agencies in the Norwegian construction sector

2012 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 461-470
Author(s):  
Anne Mette Ødegård ◽  
Øyvind Berge ◽  
Kristin Alsos
Keyword(s):  
Construction Sector ◽  
Temporary Work ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Eu Directive ◽  
Temporary Agency Work ◽  
Temporary Work Agencies ◽  
The Impact ◽  
New Eu Member States ◽  
The Eu

The temporary work agency sector in Norway is diverse and growing. Since the EU enlargements of 2004 and 2007, it has also experienced a large influx of workers from the new EU Member States, especially in construction. This has led to more informal and undeclared business activities in the hiring industry. In this article we show some of the consequences of this development. We also discuss the impact of various national regulations in this sector and whether new EU regulation, namely the EU Directive on temporary agency work, might improve the situation.

scholarly journals Identification and Analysis of Structural Fund Support Mitigating the Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic in the EU—A Case Study of Health Unit Funding

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (16) ◽  
pp. 4976
Author(s):  
Karina Bedrunka ◽  
Łukasz Mach ◽  
Anna Kuczuk ◽  
Anna Bohdan
Keyword(s):  
Research Process ◽  
Theoretical Background ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Structural Fund ◽  
Public Intervention ◽  
Development Fund ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Eu

The research carried out describes the provision of COVID-19 funding in individual EU Member States under the ongoing operational programmes of the EU financial perspective in the period 2014–2020. This was followed by identification of the most important areas of support and the amounts allocated to them for Poland and its sixteen voivodeships under the available EU funds from the 2014–2020 perspective. Types and forms of support for health services from the funds of the Regional Operational Programme for the Opolskie Voivodeship 2014–2020 (ROP WO) were analysed in detail. The obtained results showed that Italy, Spain, and Poland provided the largest values of support under the available operational programmes from 2014–2020 to combat the effects of COVID-19. In Poland, funding was mainly provided by the European Regional Development Fund, with the dominant support allocated to entrepreneurship and health care. In the Opolskie voivodeship, which is the case study, the additional financing in the health area concerns: personal protective equipment, equipment, construction works, oxygen installations, and waste water management. In this article, a literature analysis of the issue was conducted prior to the research process, which included theories of post-2007 crises, including the COVID-19 pandemic. The focus is on the theoretical background and research showing the impact of crises from the point of view of social, economic, and ecological dimensions, i.e., from the point of view of sustainable development. It also presents planned and implemented public intervention to offset the negative effects of COVID-19 in 2020 from structural funds in EU countries, including Poland and its 16 voivodeships.

scholarly journals Les miraculés a bierność edukacyjna i zawodowa młodych mieszkańców wsi – case study Polska i kraje UE = Les miraculés versus educationally and economically inactive young inhabitants of rural areas – case study of Poland and EU

2018 ◽  
Vol 52 ◽  
pp. 139-155
Author(s):  
Anna Mijal
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Level Of Education ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Long Time ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Educational Biographies ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Desk Research ◽  
The Eu

The level of education as a component of competence may play an important role in determining the chances of social and material success, as well as raising the living standards, forming conditions for economic growth. This finds its reflection in the EU strategic documents, which lays the foundations for opening a public debate. It is commonly accepted that the level of education stands behind the heritage and thus, a significant role is played by the parents’ educational lifelines. Population inhabiting rural areas is presented in the subject literature as a community usually more inclined towards ending their education as early as possible and displaying professional passivity. The aim of the article is to identify the scale of the phenomenon concerning professional and educational inactive young people aged 15–34 in Poland and in the EU (the so-called NEET – Not in Education, Employment, or Training), particularly in rural areas, in the context of rural inhabitants’ opinions, concerning the impact of education on their situation and expectations relating to the sphere of their children’s education. For the purpose of the study the non-reactive method of the existing data analysis (desk research) was used. Basing upon the study of the subject literature and analysis of articles provided by experts, information was collected on the essence of the NEET population and its subgroups. Reasons behind the educational and professional inactivity of the youth were identified. Reports published by the Eurostat, Poland’s statistics in form of Diagnoza społeczna 2015 results and reports by the Institute of Educational Studies comprised the source of information. For a relatively long time the possibility of social advancement owing to education remained within the reach of solely the most ambitious individuals who left the country as les miraculés or les héritiers – “heirs” equipped in culture capital, successors to family educational biographies. There appear substantial differences in this sphere between individual EU member states, which can reach several dozen percent. In the comparative analysis, the NEET population inhabiting rural areas of Poland comprised over 16% in 2008, almost 21% in 2013 and over 17% in 2017. The attempt of diagnosing poses a strategic challenge to the rural EU areas as regards the selection of appropriate solutions resulting from the specificity of the motives for belonging to the NEET group.

scholarly journals REAL CONVERGENCE AND EUROPEAN INTEGRATION WITH FOCUS ON THE NEW MEMBER STATES

2019 ◽  
pp. 215-228 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ovidiu Stoica ◽  
Angela Roman ◽  
Delia-Elena Diaconaşu
Keyword(s):  
Economic Crisis ◽  
Member States ◽  
Eu Countries ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Real Convergence ◽  
Convergence Process ◽  
Global Economic Crisis ◽  
The Impact ◽  
New Eu Member States ◽  
The Eu

Our paper aims to analyse the dynamics of real economic convergence and the impact of several macroeconomic and institutional factors on this process, within the EU countries for the period 1995-2018. Employing cross-sectional and panel data techniques, this paper examines both the level and dynamics of absolute and conditional convergence within the EU28 countries and identifies key drivers of economic growth within the EU28 and subsequent groups (the EU15 versus New EU Member States group), by taking into consideration the impact of the recent global economic crisis. We find that the real convergence process is quite uneven and unstable over the 1995-2018 period. Our results confirm the negative effects of the recent global economic crisis on per capita GDP growth, suggesting a weakening of the convergence process at the EU28 level, especially at the level of New EU Member States. In addition, we find that investment, the openness of the economy and the quality of the institutional framework represent the main drivers of real convergence within the EU countries.

Modernisation of Higher Education – Willful Action or Wishful Thinking? The Case of Bulgaria

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 3-17
Author(s):  
Elena Blagoeva
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Economic Crisis ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
National Level ◽  
Sustainable Growth ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Case Study Methodology ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Eu

The impact of the last global economic crisis (2008) on the European economy put a strain on higher education (HE), yet it also pushed the sector towards intensive reforms and improvements. This paper focuses on the “Strategy for the Development of Higher Education in the Republic of Bulgaria 2014-2020”. With a case study methodology, we explore the strategic endeavours of the Bulgarian government to comply with the European directions and to secure sustainable growth for the HE sector. Our research question is ‘How capable is the Bulgarian HE Strategy to overcome the economic and systemic restraints of Bulgarian higher education?’. Because the development of strategies for HE within the EU is highly contextual, a single qualitative case study was chosen as the research approach. HE institutions are not ivory towers, but subjects to a variety of external and internal forces. Within the EU, this is obviated by the fact that Universities obtain their funds from institutions such as governments, students and their families, donors, as well as EU-level programmes. Therefore, to explore how these pressures interact to affect strategic action on national level, the case method is well suited as it enabled us to study the phenomena thoroughly and deeply. The paper suggests the actions proposed within the Strategy have the potential to overcome the delay, the regional isolation and the negative impact of the economic crisis on the country. Nevertheless, the key elements on which the success or failure of this Strategy hinges are the control mechanisms and the approach to implementation. Shortcomings in these two aspects of strategic actions in HE seem to mark the difference between gaining long-term benefits and merely saving face in front of international institutions.

scholarly journals The impact of COVID-19 on households´ income in the EU

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vanda Almeida ◽  
Salvador Barrios ◽  
Michael Christl ◽  
Silvia De Poli ◽  
Alberto Tumino ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fiscal Policy ◽  
Disposable Income ◽  
Income Loss ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Policy Interventions ◽  
Discretionary Fiscal Policy ◽  
Policy Measures ◽  
The One ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Eu

AbstractThis analysis makes use of economic forecasts for 2020 issued by the European Commission in Autumn 2019 and Spring 2020, and of a counterfactual under a no-policy change assumption, to analyse the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on EU households´ income. Additionally, our analysis assesses the cushioning effect of discretionary fiscal policy measures taken by the EU Member States. We find that the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to affect significantly households’ disposable income in the EU, with lower income households being more severely hit. However, our results show that due to policy intervention, the impact of the crisis is expected to be similar to the one experienced during the 2008–2009 financial crisis. In detail, our results indicate that discretionary fiscal policy measures will play a significant cushioning role, reducing the size of the income loss (from −9.3% to −4.3% for the average equivalised disposable income), its regressivity and mitigating the poverty impact of the pandemic. We conclude that policy interventions are therefore instrumental in cushioning against the impact of the crisis on inequality and poverty.

scholarly journals Review of the Construction Labour Demand and Shortages in the EU

Buildings ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 17
Author(s):  
Belinda Brucker Juricic ◽  
Mario Galic ◽  
Sasa Marenjak
Keyword(s):  
Free Movement ◽  
Construction Sector ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Total Employment ◽  
Member States ◽  
Skill Levels ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Free Movement Of Workers ◽  
European Union Member States ◽  
The Eu

This paper reviews the recent literature on skill and labour shortages in the labour market with special emphasis on the construction sector in the European Union Member States, foreseeing the Construction 4.0 era. The free movement of people is one of the rights of all citizens of the EU which also includes the free movement of workers. Labour shortages in the EU are expected to increase in the future due to a declining population and an ageing workforce. In order to recognize and forecast labour shortages, EU Member states use a variety of instruments but they do not answer as to whether it is possible to use migrant labour to appease those shortages. There are several systems used to classify labour shortages in the EU Member states. Most of the countries classify labour shortages in relation to different sectors or occupation groups as well as by skill levels, but in some Member States, classification is made according to the type of employment. Instruments used to measure labour shortages significantly differ from country to country. Several criteria are used for creating lists of shortage occupations and most of the criteria include demand side and supply side criteria. A majority of the Member States are facing labour and skill shortages in various sectors and the construction sector is not an exception. As total employment in the construction sector decreased, so did the share of employed migrants. Labour shortages in the construction sector can be eased by the availability of a labour supply willing to accept unqualified and low-paying jobs. The construction sector seeks low-, medium-, and high-skilled individuals and is most likely the sector where most of the incoming migrants will be working, which has an impact on the development and implementation dynamic of Construction 4.0.

scholarly journals Corporate Social Responsibility Information in Annual Reports in the EU—A Czech Case Study

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 237 ◽  
Author(s):  
Radka MacGregor Pelikánová
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
International Standards ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Annual Reporting ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Eu

The commitment of the European Union (EU) to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is projected into EU law about annual reporting by businesses. Since EU member states further develop this framework by their own domestic laws, annual reporting with CSR information is not unified and only partially mandatory in the EU. Do all European businesses report CSR information and what public declaration to society do they provide with it? The two main purposes of this paper are to identify the parameters of this annual reporting duty and to study the CSR information provided by the 10 largest Czech companies in their annual statements for 2013–2017. Based on legislative research and a teleological interpretation, the current EU legislative framework with Czech particularities is presented and, via a case study exploring 50 annual reports, the data about the type, extent and depth of CSR is dynamically and comparatively assessed. It appears that, at the minimum, large Czech businesses satisfy their legal duty and e-report on CSR to a similar extent, but in a dramatically different quality. Employee matters and adherence to international standards are used as a public declaration to society more than the data on environmental protection, while social matters and research and development (R&D) are played down.

Developments and perspectives of health literacy in Europe

2017 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 10-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristine Sørensen ◽  
Helmut Brand
Keyword(s):  
Health Literacy ◽  
Member States ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
The World ◽  
European Health ◽  
A Priority ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Eu

Abstract A decade ago the European health literacy field was in its infancy. A comparable study among EU Member States was made to explore if health literacy was as much as a concern in Europe as elsewhere in the world. This article analyses the impact of the European Health Literacy project (2009–2012). Based on the outcomes new avenues for health literacy in Europe are proposed. In spite of progress there is still a strong call for actions to make health literacy a priority in the EU.

scholarly journals European myriad of approaches to parasitic commercial practices

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 167 ◽  
Author(s):  
Radka MacGregor Pelikánová
Keyword(s):  
Quantitative Research ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Value Added ◽  
Unfair Competition ◽  
Member States ◽  
Secondary Sources ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Unfair Commercial Practices Directive ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Eu

Research background: The Post-Lisbon EU aims at smart, sustainable, and inclusive growth on the single internal market, as indicated by the Europe 2020. The interplay of the competition and consumer protection on such a market is subject to harmonization. The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive has been made in order to achieve a full harmonization in this respect in 2007. However, EU member states share different social, political, legal and economic traditions and their approaches to unfair competition, in particular if committed via parasitic commercial practices, are dramatically diverse. In such a context, is it feasible, effective and efficient to install a full harmonization?Purpose of the article: The primary purpose of this article is to describe and assess ap-proaches to unfair competition, in particular if committed via parasitic commercial practices, by the EU law and EU member states law. The secondary purpose is to study and evaluate possibilities for the feasible, effective and efficient harmonization, or their lack. Methods: The cross-disciplinary and multi-jurisdictional nature of this article, and its dual purposes, implies the use of Meta-Analysis, of the critical comparison of laws and the impact of their application, to the holistic perception of historical and national contexts, and to case studies. The primary and secondary sources are explored and the yield knowledge and data are confronted with the status quo. The dominating qualitative research and data are complemented by the quantitative research and data.Findings & Value added: The EU opted for an ambitious challenge to install via the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive a full harmonization of the regime against unfair commercial practices, including parasitic ones. The exploration pursuant to the duo of purposes suggests that the challenge is perhaps too ambitious and that the EU underestimated the dramatic diversity of approaches to unfair commercial practices, especially parasitic ones.

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