SOLIDAR’s Social Rights Monitor 2019 provides an insight into the state of social rights in 16 European countries: 15 from the European Union – Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, The Netherlands, United Kingdom – and one candidate country, Serbia.
Changes to France’s jobs market are entering into force on Friday as part of President Emmanuel Macron’s plan to make the labor market more flexible and revitalize economic growth. The new rules make it more difficult for the unemployed to claim benefits, which could encourage more people to seek work. Critics argue they fray an important social safety net.
OECD’s biennial report on the pension systems across OECD and G20 countries. Each edition opens with an overview comparing pension policies of OECD countries and recent reforms. This is followed by at least one thematic chapter and a range of indicators including pension projections for today’s workers.
The fate of Emmanuel Macron’s presidency of France may lie in the fate of his planned overhaul of the retirement system, which has already prompted strikes and protests. Knowing that it’s not going to be the easiest of sells following the yellow vest movement that brought France to a near-standstill last winter, Macron’s government launched Thursday a series of public meetings to try to convince skeptical workers that reform is exactly what France’s stretched and hugely complicated pension system needs to survive into the long-term.
In a report, Jean-Paul Delevoye, said workers could still retire at 62 as promised by President Emmanuel Macron during his campaign, but they would have to work two years longer to draw a full pension without any discount in a new system due to take effect in 2025. The French retirement scheme currently faces a major budget deficit and the changes are designed to save public money.
Youth participation in programs designed to enhance their employability is usually low. This paper reports the results from a large randomized experiment in which young, unskilled jobseekers in France receive a monthly cash transfer for a two-year period totaling up to €4,800, conditional on their participation in the French national career guidance program. Cash transfers lead to a significant increase in program participation (which mainly entails meetings with counselors), and sharply reduced drop-out rates.
Emmanuel Macron is taking aim at French unemployment benefits, sparking the wrath of the country’s labor unions just as the Yellow Vest protests subside.