Archive:Labour market statistics introduced
- Data from September 2008, most recent data: Further Eurostat information, Main tables and Database.
Labour market statistics are at the heart of many European Union (EU) policies following the introduction of an employment chapter into the Amsterdam Treaty in 1997. The extraordinary European Council of Luxembourg in November 1997 endorsed an ambitious European employment strategy (EES) aimed at reducing unemployment and the gender gap, while promoting sustainable increases of employment rates. The Lisbon summit in the spring of 2000 put full employment with more and better jobs on the European agenda, setting ambitious EU targets for the year 2010, namely:
- 70 % for the total employment rate;
- 60 % for the female employment rate.
The Stockholm Council in the spring of 2001 subsequently added an employment rate target for persons aged between 55 and 64 years to reach 50 % in the EU by 2010.
In its mid-term review of the EES in 2005, the European Commission made a set of new proposals concerning employment guidelines for the period 2005-08, reflecting a switch of emphasis in favour of growth and employment, with the aim of:
- attracting and retaining more people in employment, increasing labour supply and modernising social protection systems;
- improving the adaptability of the workforce and the business sector;
- increasing investment in human capital through better education and skills.
A Council Decision of 7 July 2008 on guidelines for the employment policies of the Member States introduced a follow-on set of integrated guidelines for the period 2008-2010. These are based on three pillars: macroeconomic policies, microeconomic reforms and employment policies. The Decision introduces a range of guidelines and benchmarks designed to set priorities for the Member States employment policies, such that these reflect the revised Lisbon strategy and take account of common social objectives, including the goals of full employment, improving quality and productivity at work and strengthening economic, social and territorial cohesion.