INSPIRES PROJECT Innovative Social Policies for Inclusive and Resilient

Labour Markets in Europe-

Assistant Professor Constantine Dimoulas Project Partner Panteion University

AIM of INSPIRES

• to comparatively assess the resilience and inclusiveness of labour markets in European countries

• to identify innovative policies that have contributed to resilience and

inclusiveness

• to analyze strategies of policy learning that facilitate the development and transfer of these innovations within and across European nation states

THROUGH

• in-depth analysis of the evolution of labour markets policies, employment policies and social policies

• qualitatively and quantitatively assessment of the labour market position of

vulnerable groups

Preliminary findings about youths’ unemployment

and the corresponding policies to combat it

Evolution of general unemployment rate 1995-2012

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

AT BE

BG HU

CY EE

GR LU

ES FI

FR IE

IT LV

LT PT

NO CZ

DK PL

SE DE

RO SK

SI UK

MT NL

Evolution of youths(15-24) unemployment rate 1995-2012

0

10

20

30

40

50

60 AT BE BG

HU CY EE

GR LU ES

FI FR IE

IT LV LT

PT NO CZ

DK PL SE

DE RO SK

SI UK MT

NL

Evolution of youths unemployment rate and general unemployment rate 1995-2012

0

10

20

30

40

50

601995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

Unemployment rate of youths 15-24 (1995-2012)

Long-term unemployment of youths 15-24 (1995-2012

Early leavers from education and training aged 15-24 years old

Involuntary part- time employment of youths 15-14 as percentage of total part-time employment

Expenditure on training as % of GDP

Expenditure on out of work income maintenance as % of GDP

Expenditure on LMP as % of GDP

Most preferred policies in terms of financing (average spending 2000-2012) 1st Policy measure

2ND Policy measure

AT Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on training

BE Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on early retirement

BG Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on employment incentives

CY Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on employment incentives

CZ Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on employment incentives

DK Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on early retirement

EE Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on training and early retirement

FI Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on employment incentives

FR Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on training

DE Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on employment incentives and training

GR Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on employment incentives

HU Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on employment incentives

IE Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on employment incentives and training

IT Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on training

LV Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on employment and rehabilitation

LT Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure early retirement and on training

LU Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on training and employment incentives

MT Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on training

NL Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on employment and rehabilitation

NO Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on training

PL Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on supported employment and rehabilitation

PT Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on training

RO Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on labour market services

SK Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on labour market services

SI Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on labour market services

ES Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on training

SE Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on employment incentives

UK Expenditure on out-of-work income maintenance and support Expenditure on training

Policy innovations to combat youths’ unemployment

• Prolonging probation periods (number of terms -duration)• Reduction of payment• Enforcement of conditionality (evidence of looking

for a job, training, duration of experience for getting benefits)

• Internships • Various forms of temporally subsidized employment

(subsidies on contributions, tax-reliefs)• Temporal and flexible employment• Combination of employment and welfare services

(social working -employment for public benefit)

Preliminary outcomes• Variation of the age ceiling for eligibility between different

programs and different countries(-25,27,29,35)

• No noticeable positive effects of the lifelong learning strategy

• Coordinated economies are more resilient than competitive economies

• No clear supremacy of a specific policy choice or a combination of policies

• The national and regional context matters the most

• The method of implementation is, also, crucial.

• Insufficient financing of Employment policies in most countries

Some more general findings

• Most policies are short-term innovations• They are supply-side oriented• Concentrate on changes in eligibility rules and

social protection• Ignore their integration in a more broad

economic, social and cultural context

Some open questions that need comprehensive answers

• How could the governance of employment policies increase their effectiveness?

• What are the necessary reforms that could strengthen the bonds of higher secondary education with the labour market?

• Are there underused financial resources for employment policies?

• How could be achieved stronger alignment of the employment policies with the national and regional contexts?

• What are the national and regional policy synergies and mixtures that could limit the length of temporal and precarious employment for youths?