The organization estimates that the real number of such workers may be higher. Unstable employment is particularly common among young people, Euronews reported.
The highest rates are in the countries of Southern Europe. In Italy, the share of workers in a situation of forced precarious employment is 18.4%, the highest in the EU. Spain ranks second with a rate of 17%. In Cyprus, Portugal and Greece, the share of such workers exceeds 12%.
At the same time, the lowest rates are observed in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, which joined the EU relatively recently. In Austria, Germany, Denmark, the Netherlands, Ireland and Germany, the share of workers with involuntary non-standard employment ranges from 4% to 5%.
Discrimination in the labor market
According to Eurofound, precarious employment disproportionately affects workers with low levels of education. Women also face this problem more often than men. The gender gap is most pronounced in France and Germany, and least pronounced in the UK, Poland and Lithuania.
Analysts attribute this situation, among other things, to discrimination in the labor market. Some employers use temporary contracts as a tool for selecting employees whose long-term involvement in work may be questionable due to family obligations.
Despite the general prevalence of the problem, individual countries have managed to make significant progress.
Who is tackling the problem and how in the EU
For example, Poland has demonstrated the most significant reduction in the share of involuntary non-standard employment in the EU. While in 2006 almost 22% of workers were in such a situation, in 2024 the figure has fallen to 7%. Among the reasons, Eurofound cites labor law changes that came into force in 2016. They restricted the use of temporary contracts and increased the associated costs for employers.
Spain has also taken steps to reduce precarious employment. The country introduced a special type of employment contract – fijo discontinuo – for seasonal workers in tourism, hospitality and agriculture. This contract is renewable annually and obliges the employer to re-engage the employee with the start of the new season.
However, the study notes that not all part-time employment is involuntary. In some countries, employees deliberately choose to work reduced hours.
For example, in the Netherlands, 45% of part-time workers preferred this format to full-time work. In Belgium, this figure is 25% after the introduction of a time-credit system aimed at increasing flexibility in employment relations and improving work-life balance.
Eurofound estimates that flexible forms of employment can facilitate labor market participation for people who combine work with caring for children, elderly relatives or family members who need constant assistance.
