Workers Say Working Conditions are Slow to Improve

DUBLIN, November 16, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Work intensity among European workers is still high, and it has not increased over the past five years, according to the first findings of the 5th European Working Conditions Survey, out today.

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The survey also found that for most workers (67%), the pace of work is set by direct demands from people and working at high speeds remains high. The extent to which workers can make their own decisions about how they do their job has not improved, leaving a large number of workers ill-equipped to deal with work's demands. European workers also remain as exposed to physical hazards, however, as they did 20 years ago.

However, in 2010, training paid for by employers was at its highest level since 1995 (for the EU15), with 34% of workers receiving training in the last 12 months. This is a break in a 15-year trend in which employer-provided training had not increased. And around 60% of workers feel that they would be able to do their current job at the age of 60, a marginal increase since 2000.

Ensuring quality of work and employment is a core element in achieving an economically dynamic and socially cohesive European Union. Examining how working conditions have changed, or remained the same, can shed light on what progress is being made towards this goal. The European Working Conditions Survey is the only survey available at European level that looks at work in all its dimensions. This time, the survey was carried it out to see how quality of work and employment is faring during the economic crisis. "It is important that we know what is going on in the workplace, so that we can help policymakers design policies that are relevant and are tackling the real issues," says Jorma Karppinen, Eurofound's Director.

For most indicators of working time stability, the figures have remained the same since 2000, with 67% of workers working the same numbers of hours per week, and 58% working the same number of hours every day. The proportion of workers who work the same number of days per week has increased from 74% in 2005 to 77% in 2010. Slightly fewer workers (61%) in 2010 than in 2000 (65%) start and finish work at the same time every day.

More information on the first findings of the 5th European Working Conditions is available at http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/ewco/surveys/ewcs2010/index.htm

Notes to the editor

The European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound) is a tripartite EU body that provides European social policymakers with comparative data, research and recommendations.

The fieldwork for the 5th EWCS took place from January to June 2010, with more than 43,000 workers interviewed in the EU27, Norway, Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkey, Albania, Montenegro and Kosovo.

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SOURCE Eurofound