Policy synthesis and integrative report on Flexicurity

This synthesis report summarises the main objectives and findings of each of the component tasks of WP10 with a focus on examining “flexicurity” as a policy approach for tackling youth joblessness in Europe, both in terms of the effects on employment levels for young people and the quality of their employment. The ‘flexicurity’ concept is by definition controversial. At the core of the concept is the delicate balancing act between flexibility and security that underlines the difficulties in matching labour market security and flexibility simultaneously. Therefore, we have adopted a broad definition in order to analyse labour market policy and outcomes related to flexibility and security, rather than being constrained by specific definitions and controversies. In particular, we discuss finding a balance between social security, as one of the overlooked security dimensions of the initial concept, and the more widely implemented active labour market policies, and labour market flexibility, adopting a more nuanced approach here, with a focus on subjective insecurity and well-being rather than merely taking into account fixed-term employment and the role of employment protection legislation. As a concept Flexicurity in principle has much to offer young people in terms of protection against the insecurities they face in transitioning into secure forms of employment and future careers. However, the details and implementation of the delicate balancing act between flexibility and security means that there are significant risks for young people too, thus a thorough exploration of Flexicurity policies and outcomes is an essential task for the STYLE project.