COVID-19

Published between
19 March 2020 - 22 March 2023

Eurofound’s work on COVID-19 examines the far-reaching socioeconomic implications of the pandemic across Europe and the impact on living and working conditions. A key element of the research is the Living and Working in the EU e-survey, first launched in April 2020, with various rounds completed in the subsequent years. This is complemented by the inclusion of research into the ongoing effects of the pandemic in much of Eurofound’s other areas of work.

eurofound.link/efs023

Publication Series
Articles results (4)
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COVID-19 in the workplace: Employer’s responsibility to ensure a safe workplace

Throughout 2021, the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic, specific occupational health and safety rules were reintroduced due to increases in infection rates. Mandatory face masks, physical distancing and hygiene measures were enforced, and the recommendation to telework was largely re-instated in

16 June 2022
Article
Social partners
Working conditions and sustainable work
Teleworking
COVID-19
Industrial relations and social dialogue
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Back to work after COVID-19: Testing, vaccines and green certificates

In the second pandemic year 2021, access to one’s place of work was increasingly dependent on providing proof of either having been tested, vaccinated or recovered from COVID-19 in several countries. Specific professional groups – such as essential workers and workers in critical infrastructure –

16 June 2022
Article
Social partners
COVID-19
Labour and social regulation
Industrial relations and social dialogue

EU level: Latest developments in working life in light of the COVID-19 pandemic - Q1 2020

In early March 2020, working life in EU Member States came under enormous pressure due to the rapid spread of the COVID-19 disease and the precautionary measures taken by governments in subsequent weeks. This article gives a brief overview of the first reactions of European institutions and some of

23 April 2020
Article
COVID-19
Industrial relations
Industrial relations and social dialogue
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Coronavirus highlights sick pay void for platform workers

The coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak is starting to have a serious impact on the world economy. The consequences for platform workers are especially severe in light of forced work stoppages due to self-isolation and lack of sick pay in many cases. Recent media coverage shows that platform workers in

19 March 2020
Article
Anticipating and managing the impact of change
COVID-19
Digitalisation
Platform work
Social protection
Blogs results (34)
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2022 in review

The dawn of 2022 brought muted optimism to a Europe beginning to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, and the progress of vaccination programmes worldwide brought hope. Government and EU support during the pandemic had kept unemployment at bay, averting the widescale collapse of businesses. In step wi

19 December 2022
Ivailo Kalfin
Blog
Living and working in Europe
Stand with Ukraine
Platform work
Teleworking
European Green Deal
European Pillar of Social Rights
Gender equality
Care
COVID-19
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High risk of depression persists following COVID-19 pandemic: Data behind the mental health crisis

Lower levels of health, increasing financial pressure and a significant degree of unmet healthcare: these are the findings of the fifth round of the Living, working and COVID-19 e-survey: Living in a new era of uncertainty – a report that presents an overview of responses from over 200,000 people ac

6 October 2022
Eurofound
Blog
Living and working in Europe
Psychosocial risks
Health and well-being
COVID-19
Living conditions and quality of life
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Energy poverty looms as cost of living increases: Data behind the difficulties

Rising energy prices are putting more people under increased financial pressure and at greater risk of energy poverty. In this data story, we take a closer look at the data from the fifth round of the Living, working and COVID-19 e-survey to explore the extent of the issue and the threat of energy p

3 August 2022
Eurofound
Blog
Pay and income
European Green Deal
Anticipating and managing the impact of change
COVID-19
Living conditions
Living conditions and quality of life
Just transition
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Trust in national institutions is falling: Data behind the decline

Trust in national institutions has declined across the EU over the past two years. Driven by increasingly difficult economic circumstances and unreliable news sources, even people who previously expressed higher trust levels – such as those in financially secure positions – have become less trusting

25 July 2022
Eurofound
Blog
Trust
COVID-19
Living conditions and quality of life
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Europe Day: Europe’s future hangs in the balance

Today is Europe Day, and one hundred young people from Ireland and Ukraine will be marking the event at Eurofound, in peaceful south Dublin. Europe Day has traditionally been seen as a celebration of peace and unity in Europe, but, unfortunately, it must be marked differently this year. Europe Day 2

9 May 2022
Ivailo Kalfin
Blog
Living and working in Europe
Stand with Ukraine
Quality of society
Youth
European Pillar of Social Rights
COVID-19
Inequality
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Recovery and resilience in the EU – Back to the future? Some reflections on Foundation Forum 2022

When it comes to Europe’s COVID-19 recovery and its aspiration to build back a more resilient society, the so-called green and digital transitions have dominated EU policy discussions. And as Eurofound made preparations for the 2022 Foundation Forum – a unique occasion for high-level debate on the s

11 March 2022
Ivailo Kalfin
Blog
Promoting social cohesion and convergence
Social protection
Teleworking
European Green Deal
European Pillar of Social Rights
COVID-19
Digitalisation
Just transition
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Recovering from this pandemic means rebuilding hope for the future

We need to study and understand the blow Europe’s youth have suffered from the COVID-19 pandemic, in order to adjust recovery and resilience measures to their needs: without prioritising young people in the present, we have little hope for the future.

3 December 2021
Ivailo Kalfin
Blog
Youth
Subjective well-being
COVID-19
Labour market policies
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The pandemic aggravated labour shortages in some sectors; the problem is now emerging in others

Following the declines in employment rates and working hours across Europe in 2020, economies began to show signs of recovery during the first quarter of 2021. The gradual rekindling of economic activity has led to a surge in demand for workers and reawakened concerns over labour shortages. Difficul

20 July 2021
Dragoș Adăscăliței
Blog
Skills and training
Employment structure
European Pillar of Social Rights
Employment and labour markets
COVID-19
Labour market policies
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Vaccine acceptance hinges on transparent communication

Vaccine acceptance is key to the success of COVID-19 vaccination campaigns worldwide. Worryingly, over a quarter of people living in Europe are hesitant about taking a COVID-19 vaccine, and the level of hesitancy is especially high among heavy users of social media. The spread of misinformation on s

23 June 2021
Sanna Nivakoski
Blog
Living and working in Europe
Quality of society
COVID-19
Living conditions and quality of life
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COVID-19: Could businesses have done better?

COVID-19 has shown that some things can hit us out of the blue. The pandemic sent a shockwave through businesses all over the world and has brought massive changes to work organisation, internal communication and day-to-day operations for many companies. Doubtless, the depth of the pandemic’s impact

21 June 2021
Franz Ferdinand Eiffe
Blog
Participation at work
Working conditions and sustainable work
Teleworking
Work organisation
Anticipating and managing the impact of change
COVID-19
Job quality
Podcasts results (2)
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Episode 4 – Gender equality

This podcast, launched on International Women’s Day this year in conjunction with the European Institute for Gender Equality, debates issues related to closing the gender gaps across pay, employment and caring, and explores innovative options to promote change.

7 March 2022
Podcast
Gender equality
COVID-19
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Episode 3 – The impact of COVID-19 on young people in the EU

New day, new data highlighting the devastating impact of COVID-19 on young people across the European Union – most recently Eurofound’s unique pan-European Living, working and COVID-19 e-survey. We know this has taken an unprecedented toll on young people particularly – their mental well-being, thei

16 December 2021
Podcast
Youth
COVID-19
Publications results (21)
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EU convergence: Geographical dimension, impact of COVID-19 and the role of policy

Historically, the political debate around EU convergence has gathered momentum in the aftermath of a crisis. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the purpose of this report is to take stock of the last two decades of convergence trends. The study begins with an empirical investigation of economic

22 March 2023
Publication
Research report
Social policies
Promoting social cohesion and convergence
COVID-19
Labour market policies
Inequality
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Economic and social inequalities in Europe in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic had varying impacts on social groups, depending on existing disadvantages, and it was widely believed that it triggered a rise in inequalities across different areas of life. Using indicators from the EU’s Multidimensional Inequality Monitoring Framework (MIMF), this report sho

24 January 2023
Publication
Research report
Social policies
Social inclusion
Pay and income
Promoting social cohesion and convergence
Working conditions
Work-life balance
Gender equality
COVID-19
Disability and chronic disease
Living conditions
Inequality
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The rise in telework: Impact on working conditions and regulations

This report presents Eurofound’s research on telework during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021. It explores changes in the incidence of telework, working conditions experienced by employees working from home and changes to regulations addressing issues related to this working arrangement.

08 December 2022
Publication
Research report
New forms of employment
Working conditions and sustainable work
Working conditions
Teleworking
Employment relationship
COVID-19
Digitalisation
Labour and social regulation
Working time
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Living, working and COVID-19 in the European Union and 10 EU neighbouring countries

The Living, working and COVID-19 survey, first launched by Eurofound in early 2020, aims to capture the wide-ranging impact of the pandemic on the work and lives of EU citizens. The fifth round of the Eurofound survey, which was implemented in spring 2022, also sheds light on a new uncertain reality

07 December 2022
Publication
Research report
Living and working in Europe
Skills and training
Social policies
Social inclusion
Psychosocial risks
Youth
Working conditions
Teleworking
Subjective well-being
Work-life balance
COVID-19
Living conditions and quality of life
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Social dialogue and collective bargaining in the civil aviation sector during the COVID-19 pandemic

This report analyses the role of social dialogue and collective bargaining in addressing the challenges faced by the civil aviation sector during the COVID-19 pandemic. Social partner involvement in the measures introduced to mitigate the negative impacts of the pandemic varies across European

01 December 2022
Publication
Research report
Social dialogue
Working conditions
Work organisation
Health and well-being
Collective bargaining
COVID-19
Industrial relations and social dialogue
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Social dialogue and collective bargaining in the hospital sector during the COVID-19 pandemic

This report analyses the role of social dialogue and collective bargaining in addressing the challenges created or exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic in the hospital sector. It also explores whether existing social dialogue and collective bargaining processes at national level were adapted in

01 December 2022
Publication
Research report
Social dialogue
Working conditions
Work organisation
Health and well-being
Care
Collective bargaining
COVID-19
Industrial relations and social dialogue
Cover image for Eurofound's publication entitled 'Maintaining trust during the COVID-19 pandemic'

Maintaining trust during the COVID-19 pandemic

The report examines how citizens’ trust in institutions – including national governments, the EU, science and the media – evolved during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021. The role of the media is analysed, in particular the relationship between the use of social media and trust and the impact

16 November 2022
Publication
Research report
Quality of society
Promoting social cohesion and convergence
Trust
COVID-19
Inequality
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Recovery from COVID-19: The changing structure of employment in the EU

European labour markets have recovered strongly from COVID-19. By the end of 2021, little more than 18 months after the start of the pandemic, employment rates in the EU were almost at pre-crisis levels. This report summarises labour market developments in 2020 and 2021 using quarterly data from the

20 October 2022
Publication
Research report
Structural change
Teleworking
Employment structure
Gender equality
Employment and labour markets
COVID-19
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COVID-19 pandemic and the gender divide at work and home

The COVID-19 pandemic has accentuated inequalities in many dimensions of European societies, including inequalities between women and men in several key domains. This report looks at gender inequalities that existed prior to the COVID-19 crisis and describes in what ways the pandemic has impacted on

13 October 2022
Publication
Research report
Subjective well-being
Work-life balance
Employment structure
European Pillar of Social Rights
Gender equality
Care
COVID-19
Living conditions
Living conditions and quality of life
Inequality
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Fifth round of the Living, working and COVID-19 e-survey: Living in a new era of uncertainty

The fifth round of Eurofound's e-survey, fielded from 25 March to 2 May 2022, sheds light on the social and economic situation of people across Europe two years after COVID-19 was first detected on the European continent. It also explores the reality of living in a new era of uncertainty caused by t

07 July 2022
Publication
Other
Stand with Ukraine
Psychosocial risks
Youth
Teleworking
Subjective well-being
Trust
Work-life balance
Unemployment
Health and well-being
COVID-19
Living conditions
Living conditions and quality of life
Working papers results (5)

COVID-19: Implications for employment and working life – Supporting materials

10 March 2021
Working paper

Living, working and COVID-19: Codebook for Round 1 and 2 datasets (release 20.10.2020)

6 November 2020
Working paper

Teleworkability and the COVID-19 crisis: a new digital divide?

28 September 2020
Working paper
COVID-19
Teleworking

Living, working and COVID-19 – Methodological Annex to Round 2

28 September 2020
Working paper
COVID-19

Living, working and COVID-19 – Methodological Annex to Round 1

11 May 2020
Working paper
COVID-19

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