Labour market reforms in Europe

The premise underlying this paper is that policy choices are shaped by the institutional and economic context in which they operate. We focus on employment policy making in EU countries before, during and after the immediate effects of the Great Recession in order to highlight trends in policy goals and aims. One such goal was the emergence of flexicurity as a key theme of the EU policy framework for labour market reforms and its subsequent implementation at the national level (i.e. intensity and direction of policy changes). Our analysis provides a lens though which we can consider policies targeted towards the inclusion in employment, particularly for young people. We chart shifting policy models and the underlying implications for young people focusing, on the one hand, on the Country Specific Recommendations (CSRs) issued annually by the European Commission and the Council and, on the other hand, on the intensity and direction of policy activity by member states, as recorded in the LABREF database on labour market reforms. The period considered (2000-2013) allows for changes both in the institutions of the labour market and in the general economic conditions. Over this period, the European Employment Strategy has exercised its influence on member states policy making through the ‘open method of coordination’, by establishing the employment guidelines, setting quantitative targets to be reached by the EU as a whole and giving guidance at the national level through CSRs on their employment policy. This has also been the period in which European countries have been encouraged to make their labour markets more flexible (i.e. more responsive to changes), with an emphasis on moving from job security (i.e. high employment protection) to employment security (i.e. high flexibility matched by active labour market policies). The underlying assumption being that an increase in flexibility should lead to higher employment opportunities for all.