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Economy

Social Europe is an award-winning digital media publisher driven by the core values of freedom, sustainability, and equality. These principles guide our exploration of society’s most pressing challenges. This archive page curates Social Europe articles focused on economic issues, offering a rich resource for innovative thinking and informed debate.

Two men walking in a cityscape, Social Europe.

Are labour disputes here to stay?

Victoria Cojocariu

Workers across Europe are increasingly dissatisfied with the increased cost of living which is often not matched by their payslips.

Two businessmen in suits with briefcases climbing a bar graph.

Why Haven’t Full-Time Workers Cut Hours Since the 1980s?

Enrique Fernández-Macías

Full-time workers in Europe still clock the same hours as in the 1980s.

Socialeurope.eu — logo on red background, Social Europe.

The High-Stakes Gamble of Doing Nothing: Why Business Must Act Now

Stefan Stern

In a world teetering on the edge of chaos, disengagement is a dangerous delusion. Here's why smart leaders know that stepping up.

Socialeurope.eu — logo on red background, Social Europe.

Labour shortages – an opportunity to rebalance bargaining power?

Wouter Zwysen

Labour shortages have become one of the most pressing issues in the labour market across Europe.

Socialeurope.eu — logo on red background, Social Europe.

Germany’s Minimum Wage Controversy: Will the EU Directive Be Enforced?

Thorsten Schulten

The EU pushes for a 60 per cent median wage standard—yet Germany resists. What’s at stake for fair wages?

Socialeurope.eu — logo on red background, Social Europe.

Can the EU’s Tariffs on Chinese EVs Save Its Auto Industry?

Béla Galgóczi

EU imposes tariffs on Chinese EVs—but can this safeguard jobs and competitiveness, or must Europe rethink its clean tech strategy?

Socialeurope.eu — logo on red background, Social Europe.

Why social investment holds the key to delivering on the Draghi report

Anton Hemerijck and David Bokhorst

A vast untapped potential for improving economic progress and social well-being across the EU needs to be unlocked through social investment.

Socialeurope.eu — logo on red background, Social Europe.

Nobel Prize in Economics: Do Democracy and Prosperity Really Go Hand in Hand?

Bo Rothstein

This year’s Nobel laureates link democracy to economic success, but their theory ignores autocratic growth and rehashes old ideas.

Socialeurope.eu — logo on red background, Social Europe.

Industrial relations, work and climate change

Valeria Pulignano, Jane Parker and Bianca Luna Fabris

Addressing the contradiction between economic growth and green transitions requires rethinking industrial relations.

Socialeurope.eu — logo on red background, Social Europe.

How to fight inflation without subsidizing bankers at taxpayer’s expense

Paul De Grauwe

Central banks are paying billions in interest to commercial banks through remunerated reserves.

Socialeurope.eu — logo on red background, Social Europe.

An analysis of the new European fiscal rules

Sebastian Gechert, Dario Guarascio, Philipp Heimberger and Francesco Zezza

EU member states submit fiscal plans, influencing economic stability and public debt for years to come.

Socialeurope.eu — logo on red background, Social Europe.

Is Europe losing the innovation race?

Jean Tirole

Europe faces the challenge of fostering an innovation-driven economy to compete globally and lead in technological advancements.

Socialeurope.eu — logo on red background, Social Europe.

Amazon’s office mandate: The hidden power play behind workplace control

Nicola Countouris and Valerio De Stefano

Amazon’s office mandate exposes workplace power dynamics and the need to rethink employer control.

Socialeurope.eu — logo on red background, Social Europe.

Why the Draghi Report on EU markets matters

Howard Davies

Can Europe overcome its capital market flaws and catch up to the US? The Draghi Report sounds a critical alarm for the EU’s future.

Socialeurope.eu — logo on red background, Social Europe.

Draghi on ‘competitiveness’: new wine in an old bottle

Werner Raza, Michael Ertl and Michael Soder

The Draghi report contains some useful proposals but fails to match up to the challenges the European Union is facing.

Socialeurope.eu — logo on red background, Social Europe.

Draghi, Putin and economic warfare in Europe

Paul Mason

It has yet to dawn on Europe’s leaders, Paul Mason writes, that the whole continent is implicated in Russia’s war on Ukraine.

Socialeurope.eu — logo on red background, Social Europe.

Ireland, the EU and the Apple tax case

Paul Sweeney

Ireland led the ‘race to the bottom’ on corporate taxation. The tide is beginning to turn.

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S&D Housing Storytelling

Europeans are struggling with rising housing and rental costs, and we have been working in various ways to address this, because we believe a home is a right for everyone.
 Recently, we travelled across Europe to hear directly from people who struggle to afford a decent place to live. They shared a glimpse of how the housing crisis has affected their lives and why having a home is so important to them. Take a moment to check out their stories. They remind us why it is so urgent to act.

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New Edition - Social policy in the European Union: state of play 2025

Can Europe preserve its distinctive social model while simultaneously rearming, reindustrialising, and reorganising its economy in a more conflictual and competitive world? This is the central question raised in this new edition of the Bilan social, a reference publication released every spring for more than 25 years by the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI) and the European Social Observatory (OSE).

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Is financial resilience and trust in Europe faltering?

In this episode of Eurofound Talks, host Mary McCaughey and senior researcher Eszter Sandor unpack the results of the 2025 Living and Working in the EU e-survey. While headline inflation has stabilised at 2.1%, the data reveals a continent gripped by chronic precariousness, with 57% of respondents now at risk of depression. Mary and Eszter explore how this economic insecurity is impacting institutional trust and democratic engagement.

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The Summer issue of The Progressive Post is out! 

The EU is belatedly awakening to a changing Mediterranean sea, where more assertive regional powers are reclaiming a role.

The new issue of the magazine also reflects on how we struggle to keep pace with AI innovations, examines the uncertainties surrounding the execution of the Pact on Migration and Asylum and the risk to human rights posed by the Return Regulation, and focuses on the EU Commission's newly proposed Industrial Accelerator Act.

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In the face of escalating crises, we need a strong understanding of just transition that includes a democratisation of the economy and imagines the socio-ecological transformation from an internationalist perspective.

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“What is the actual purpose of the state?” – this central question is the focus of the analysis. At a time when bureaucratic processes are making life difficult for citizens, the paper proposes a three-part model. It aims at a conception of the state as a platform that helps society build the capabilities it needs to address its problems effectively.

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