Employment in Europe 2004. Recent Trends and Prospects

The 16th edition of the annual Employment in Europe report presents a panorama of recent developments in the labour markets of the enlarged EU. This year, the report discusses several important themes of relevance to the new European Employment Strategy in that it investigates the relationship between labour market institutions and employment rates, as well as interactions between the different components of active labour market policies. It furthermore reflects on employment structures in the services sector in particular, with respect to the US. A closer look at labour market transitions helps to reflect on the debate between flexibility and security. Finally, some aspects of globalisation and its impact on labour markets are discussed, namely the impact of further economic integration and of offshoring.