As part of the EU funded Mapping inequalities through the life course (Mapineq) project, our Director Professor Melinda Mills and co-authors have produced a new policy brief that discusses best practices and adaptations to fulfil current and future needs of European labour markets.
The below has been adapted from Population Europe's Press Release, published here on 22 November 2023
Before this decade is over, labour force shortages will have become palpable in many sectors of European economies. Strategies to ensure long-term labour market resilience must be put in place now.
This policy brief, part of the EU funded Mapineq project, outlines recommendations based on the newest population research.
There is expected to be a 7 Million or 2.6 % decrease in the EU’s working age population by the end of the decade. Eurostat predicts the number of people at working age (20 to 64) will fall from 265 million in 2022 to 258 million in 2030.
Which strategies are needed to address the European labour shortage in a sustainable way?
Melinda Mills, Professor of Demography and Population Health at the Universities of Oxford and Groningen said, 'Think about the car factories: when they were booming, they offered housing and lots of infrastructure for their workers. The equivalent of this today could be hybrid and flexible working, or allowing someone to work from another country or another region. It is not only about jobs and skills, it is about the package of people’s lives.'
The first step to create environments that are able to attract, develop and retain talents is to distinguish between short-term fixes and long-term strategies. While upskilling and reskilling of the domestic population as well as immigration can alleviate specific needs of labour markets, there is a need for substantial policy reforms to improve salaries, job security, and working arrangements, as well as for strengthening collective bargaining.
Most of the time, what stands in peoples’ way of finding a job is neither a lack of will nor a lack of skills. Rather, it is insufficient information about options or sheer hopelessness. To invest in labour markets means to invest in people, which in turn requires a focus on their needs.
This policy brief, part of the EU funded Mapineq project, offers recommendations which go beyond the narrow scope of skills. All recommendations are based on rigorous research from sociology and population studies.
Low-qualified adults (those who have not completed upper secondary education) are much more likely to be unemployed than their more educated counterparts. According to Eurostat data, in 2022 the unemployment rate was 12.2% for this group, while for those with tertiary education it was 3.8%.
What do low-qualified people need to gain better access to the labour market? Is it enough to invest in their skills?
Jani Erola, Professor of Sociology at the University of Turku said, 'Investments in skills alone are insufficient for reintegrating low-qualified individuals into education or the labour market. In essence: Skills are necessary but not enough for success, particularly among students from disadvantaged backgrounds.'
Heike Solga, Professor of Sociology at the Free University of Berlin and Director of the department Skill Formation and Labor Markets at the Berlin Social Science Center (WZB) said, 'Skills alone have a very little impact on the prospects of the low qualified. Activation policies are key to bring them to education or the labour market.'
Activation policies aim to encourage people to step up their job search, enhancing their motivation and providing incentives to seek employment. This can include training, job rotation and job sharing, employment incentives, supported employment and rehabilitation, direct job creation, or start-up incentives.
