Skip to main content
Image of man in protective suit and mask disinfecting warehouse full of food products

COVID-19

COVID-19 brought change to many aspects of our working and family lives and, likewise, all of Eurofound’s research areas have been marked by COVID-19. The Agency rolled out several rounds of the now landmark Living and Working in the EU online survey to analyse the rapid change that ensued after the outbreak of the pandemic. Simultaneously, the analyses in existing surveys and other research have specifically looked at the impacts of the pandemic across the board.

The long-term impacts of the pandemic on life and the world of work continues to be a part of upcoming research, looking at labour market change, how digitisation has changed the workplace, how COVID-19 has impacted business continuity and how crises impact equality and cohesion in Europe.
 

Topic

Recent updates

Eurofound research

Eurofound’s work on COVID-19 examines the far-reaching socioeconomic implications of the pandemic across Europe and their impact on living and working conditions. Drawing on its Network of Eurofound Correspondents, while also adapting the focus of its in-house resources, Eurofound monitors the critical changes the crisis has brought to the labour market, working conditions and quality of life across the EU and aims to map how different Member States have responded to the challenges that have emerged. In response to COVID-19, Eurofound adjusted its research to:

  • collect data regarding the impact of this unprecedented situation on the lives of Europeans via its unique online survey launched in April 2020, as well as monitor measures taken by policy actors to combat the effects of the pandemic on employment, working conditions and living conditions
  • provide an analysis of specific topics, such as employment effects, effects on specific sectors, effectiveness of specific measures (for example, short-time work schemes).

Other relevant resources

Data: Living and Working in the EU e-survey

Restructuring events database: impact of COVID-19 on the employment effects of large-scale restructuring events in Europe

European Jobs Monitor: the changing employment structure in Europe in view of the crisis

EU PolicyWatch: database on the responses of government and social partners to the crisis, based on research from the Network of Eurofound Correspondents

Restructuring support instruments - EU PolicyWatch: recording measures which support companies that are restructuring, as well as the employees affected, highlighting when a case is relevant to COVID-19

Platform economy initiatives - COVID-19: how the crisis impacts platform work and platform workers 

Key outputs

ef20059-card.jpg

This report presents the findings of the Living, working and COVID-19 e-survey, carried out by Eurofound to capture the far-reaching implications of the pandemic for the way people live and...

28 September 2020
Publication
Research report
ef20050_card_cover.png

Disclaimer - Please note that this report was updated with revised data (specifically for Bulgaria) on 23 March 2021.This report sets out to assess the initial impact of the COVID-19...

11 March 2021
Publication
Research report

EU context

Since 2020, national and EU authorities have launched a range of support measures to respond to the impact of the COVID-19 crisis, which has affected the regular life and work of people in the EU. Specific sectors, many self-employed people and SMEs have been particularly affected by the fallout of the pandemic. 

While the EU does not have direct legislative power over health matters (this being the responsibility of individual Member States), the response of the EU – and particularly the European Commission – has focused on stabilising the EU economy, putting in place border control measures, reinforcing our public health sectors, securing the production of vaccines for citizens, as well as supporting various business sectors. 

On 10 February 2021, the Commission welcomed the European Parliament’s approval of the €672.5 billion Recovery and Resilience Facility available to EU Member States to support reforms and investments under NextGenerationEU, the temporary instrument designed to boost recovery and help Europe emerge stronger from the crisis. The Facility runs until end of December 2026 and is closely linked with the Commission priorities for a greener, more digital and more resilient Europe.

 

European Industrial Relations Dictionary 

Eurofound expert(s)

eszter-sandor-2023.png

Eszter Sandor is a senior research manager in the Social Policies unit at Eurofound. She has expertise in survey methodology and statistical analysis, has worked on the preparation...

Senior research manager,
Social policies research unit
daphne-ahrendt-2023.png

Daphne Ahrendt is a senior research manager in the Social Policies unit at Eurofound. Since joining Eurofound in 2013, her work has covered a broad range of social policy areas. At...

Senior research manager,
Social policies research unit
Publications results (46)

This report describes the implementation and changing features of job retention schemes in the EU between 2020 and 2022. In response to the COVID-19 health emergency, EU governments swiftly deployed job retention schemes to preserve employment, support businesses and maintain individual incomes.

23 September 2024

The fast and steady recovery in employment following the COVID-19 pandemic in the EU benefited from proactive policy responses to the crisis and from resilient labour markets. Almost 90% of regions across the EU had exceeded their pre-pandemic employment levels by 2022; however, significant regional

03 September 2024

This report examines trends in income inequality in the EU and explores whether the middle class is becoming smaller due to disparities in household disposable income.

12 July 2024

This report investigates the political dimensions of social cohesion in Europe, offering a 20-year perspective derived from 10 rounds of the European Social Survey. It scrutinises trends and regional variations in political participation, examining correlations with levels of institutional distrust

26 April 2024

Employment levels in the EU27 recovered from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020–2021 much faster than they did after the global financial crisis in 2008–2010. This was despite the immediate job loss effects of the two crises being of comparable scale. Demographic change is affecting labour

28 March 2024

The various economic and social shocks of the past decade and a half – most recently the COVID-19 pandemic – have ongoing consequences for the living standards and prospects of Europeans, and sometimes these outcomes have been uneven across age groups. Social policies – such as those in the areas of

19 December 2023

Using data from the European Working Conditions Telephone Survey 2021 and building on a theoretical model that differentiates between job stressors and job resources, this report examines key psychosocial risks in the workplace and their impact on health.

23 November 2023

During the COVID-19 pandemic, a diverse collection of workers ensured the functioning of our societies. In a time of crisis, they maintained access to healthcare, long-term care and other essential goods and services, including food, water, electricity, the internet and waste treatment.

10 October 2023

This report addresses the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on social services in the EU. While the pandemic negatively affected social services, it nevertheless provided lessons on how to adapt them in response to new challenges and social risks. One lesson, for instance, is that policies should be dev

16 August 2023

As economies begin to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, labour shortages are becoming increasingly evident despite the impact of the war in Ukraine on energy and commodity prices. These include shortages exacerbated by the crisis in some sectors and professions where they had been endemic for some

28 March 2023

Online resources results (23)
ef23014.png

Building resilience after COVID-19: EU measures to protect jobs and promote skills

Since 2011, the Restructuring support instruments database of the EU PolicyWatch has been collecting information on measures that assist companies and workers to anticipate and manage restructuring. This article looks at measures in the database aimed at supporting employees and employers during the

Eurofound presentation to the European Parliament Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (EMPL), Ivailo Kalfin, Executive Director, Eurofound, 24 January 2023.

23 January 2023

The rise in cost of living and energy poverty: Social impact and policy responses. 14 October 2022, Informal Meeting of Employment and Social Affairs Ministers (EPSCO). Presentation by Ivailo Kalfin, Executive Director, Eurofound.

14 October 2022
ef22035.png

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

ef22039.png

Collective bargaining and social dialogue – Back to normal in 2021?

Two years after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, social dialogue continues to make a significant contribution to helping economies recover. Managing the crisis led many governments to rely on tripartite social dialogue to develop the policies that would mitigate the negative impact of the

ef22034.png

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 –

image_news_item_on_podcasts_07032022.png

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
image_news_item_on_podcasts_07032022.png

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
Female teleworker taking notes during video conference on her laptop

Workers want to telework but long working hours, isolation and inadequate equipment must be tackled

The COVID-19 pandemic prompted a surge in telework, with dramatic increases in the number of employees working from home (teleworking) in many European countries. What for many employees started out as a mandatory move seems to have transformed into a preference among the majority for part-time or


Blogs results (35)
image_blog_technology_06042020.png

Fear has been mounting in the debate around new technologies and the implications for the future of work. But the Coronavirus outbreak is unveiling some real positives of technological advances. Digital communication tools are supporting and enhancing working from home, while innovative companies ar

6 April 2020
image_blog_covid_02042020.png

It is less than four weeks since the first large European Coronavirus-related company bankruptcy (Flybe, a British regional airline, on 5 March), but it is clear already that the pandemic is going to disrupt labour markets as seriously as the global financial crisis, if not more so. A large majority

2 April 2020
image_blog_minimum_wages_10032020.png

The coronavirus disease (Covid-19) is having drastic consequences for the world of work. In most European countries workers who are not delivering essential ‘frontline’ services are being asked to stay home. Unfortunately many are out of work, while many of those who are not are minimum-wage and low

1 April 2020
image_blog_covid_31032020.png

Health professionals – doctors, nurses, nursing assistants, paramedics, ambulance workers – are in the vanguard of the battle against COVID-19. They are the ones dealing with sick people, triaging, testing and treating them. They are the ones confronting suffering and death. While some of their coll

31 March 2020
juan_menedez_valdes_director.jpg

To quote John Lennon, these are strange days indeed. This is not a futuristic movie nor a dystopian novel. This is our reality. Every news bulletin reminds us that a new context prevails. Every stark statistic and image, every new measure put in place, reflects the shock of our day-to-day existence.

24 March 2020
Blog

Data results (30)
7 November 2023
Reference period:

Disclaimer

When freely submitting your request, you are consenting Eurofound in handling your personal data to reply to you. Your request will be handled in accordance with the provisions of Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data by the Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies and on the free movement of such data. More information, please read the Data Protection Notice.