(DUBLIN, IRELAND) Announced job losses continued to outnumber job gains in each quarter in 2011 – as they have done since the first quarter of 2008 – though levels of restructuring activity are much reduced from those of the peak crisis quarters 2008-2009, according to the 2011 annual report from Eurofound’s European Restructuring Monitor (ERM). The ERM annual report provides an overview of restructuring activities in the European Union, and this edition also launches a database on public and social partner based support measures to anticipate and manage restructuring in the EU27 and Norway.

The extraordinary public spending cuts and general austerity measures over the past year have impacted heavily on employment in central and local government, most notably in some of the most recession affected countries such as Latvia but also in larger Member States such as the UK and France. Job losses during the recession were otherwise concentrated in manufacturing and construction but there is some evidence of a recovery in certain manufacturing sub-sectors in the year to mid-2011. Construction employment continued to decline, falling over 2% in the most recent twelve-month period, as the weak recovery has failed to offer much of a boost to this cyclically sensitive sector.

Job growth was just over 1.3 million jobs in the EU27 between the first quarter of 2010 and 2011, which is only slightly better than a jobless recovery, given the destruction of five million jobs in the preceding two years. And there are good reasons to be cautious concerning prospects for employment in Europe for the coming twelve months.

The ERM 2011 Report launches a database on public and social partner based support measures to anticipate and manage restructuring in the EU27 and Norway. While restructuring economic and human resources towards more productive and profitable activities is fundamental to the dynamism of the European economy, it can entail difficulties for employees. It is therefore essential that institutions and policies not only facilitate necessary structural change but also serve to mitigate the negative effects that the ensuing labour market adjustment may have for both companies and employees. 

The new ERM database on support instruments for restructuring provides information on about 400 measures across Europe, for the first time systematically compiled, categorised and made accessible in a user-friendly online database. National governments, employers’ organisations and trade unions are among the bodies providing support for companies that need to restructure and the affected employees. The support instruments are described in terms of their characteristics, involved actors, funding sources, strengths, weaknesses and outcomes. Due to the substantial number and heterogeneity of relevant instruments, the database does not provide a comprehensive list of each and every measure available. Rather, it aims to provide an overview of different examples of what is done and what can be done, also considering instruments that are not explicitly labelled ‘restructuring’ but could be beneficial in this context. The aim is to inform governments, social partners and others involved about what kinds of support can be offered, thereby acting as a pool of ideas for decision-makers confronted with restructuring. 

The ERM Report 2011 is available from http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/publications/htmlfiles/ef1165.htm   [1]

The database on support instruments for restructuring is available at http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/emcc/erm/supportinstruments/  [2]

For further information, contact Måns Mårtensson, media manager, on email: mma@eurofound.europa.eu [3], telephone: +353-1-2043124, or mobile: +353-876-593 507.  

Notes to the editor

The European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound [4]) is a tripartite EU body that provides European social policymakers with comparative data, research and recommendations. 

The European Monitoring Centre on Change (EMCC [5]) is a place for exchanging practice, information and ideas on the management and anticipation of change. The European Restructuring Monitor (ERM [6]) has been monitoring the extent of restructuring activities in Europe and their employment consequences since 2002. It now covers the 27 EU Member States, and Norway. The ERM database on support instruments for restructuring provides information on about 400 measures in the same countries.  

Now you can follow Eurofound on Twitter [7], become a ‘fan’ of Eurofound on Facebook [8] and subscribe to Eurofound’s channel on YouTube [9]. You can also register for regular news [10] and information from Eurofound including the new Eurofound Observer, and subscribe to newsfeeds via RSS [11].