Browse by: "2017"

Giving people better opportunities to participate actively in the labour market improves well-being. It also helps countries to cope with rapid population ageing by mobilising more fully each country’s potential labour resources. Weak labour market attachment of some groups in society reflects a range of barriers to working or moving up the jobs ladder. This report on Australia is the third country study published in a series of reports looking into strategies to encourage greater labour market participation of all groups in society with a special focus on the most disadvantaged. Labour market and activation policies are well developed in Australia. However, the gap in employment rates is still considerable for some groups of the population, including women with young children, disadvantaged youth, people with disability, people with mental health problems and the indigenous population. This report discusses the size of the gap and the - often multiple - barriers underlying low labour market participation of these groups, and it provides a non-exhaustive number of good practice policies and measures from other OECD countries which could guide Australia's policy development in the coming years.

Cette publication, issue du Programme d’indicateurs de l’entrepreneuriat OCDE-Eurostat, présente une collection originale d’indicateurs pour mesurer l’état de l’entrepreneuriat et ses déterminants. L’édition 2016 présente les données d’une nouvelle enquête en ligne sur les petites et moyennes entreprises conçue par Facebook en collaboration avec l’OCDE et la Banque Mondiale. Elle contient aussi un chapitre spécial sur la productivité des PME, et des indicateurs permettant de suivre les différences hommes-femmes en matière d’entrepreneuriat.

This report, commissioned by the XIX Government of Portugal, provides an evaluation of the comprehensive labour market reforms undertaken in Portugal over the period 2011-2015. It describes reforms in the areas of employment protection legislation, unemployment benefits, activation, collective bargaining, minimum wages and working time. The report reviews the reforms in detail and assesses the available evidence on the impact they have had on the labour market. The report concludes that the Portuguese labour market reforms were a move in the right direction. However, despite the progress made, many challenges remain and some of the reforms may not have gone far enough. Unemployment remains high and this situation has fuelled an increase in both poverty and long-term unemployment The labour market remains highly segmented and, in the context of very low inflation, the presence of downward nominal wage rigidity is likely to remain a barrier to the competitiveness of the Portuguese economy – unless productivity growth is strengthened.

Was sind die Hintergründe und entscheidenden Fragen bei der Förderung einer partnerschaftlichen Aufgabenteilung in Familie und Beruf in Deutschland?  Dieser Bericht soll die Politikverantwortlichen in Deutschland darin bestärken, die wichtigen seit Mitte der 2000er Jahre eingeleiteten Reformen weiterzuführen, um die Vereinbarkeit von beruflichen und familiären Pflichten für Väter und Mütter zu verbessern. Für die Familien heißt das: „Mehr Partnerschaftlichkeit wagen“. Die deutschen Erfahrungen werden dabei im internationalen Vergleich untersucht, u.a. mit Blick auf Frankreich und die nordischen Länder, die seit langem eine Politik zur Förderung der Vereinbarkeit von Familie und Beruf sowie zur Stärkung der Geschlechtergleichstellung verfolgen. Der Bericht beginnt mit einem Übersichtskapitel, in dem erklärt wird, warum und wie sich Partnerschaftlichkeit für Familien, Kinder sowie Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft insgesamt auszahlt. Vorgestellt werden aktuelle Daten, Politiktrends sowie detaillierte Analysen der ausschlaggebenden Faktoren für die Aufteilung von bezahlter und unbezahlter Arbeit, einschließlich der Frage, wie mehr Partnerschaftlichkeit in Familie und Beruf zu höheren Geburtenraten führen kann.  Außerdem werden Politikmaßnahmen zur Förderung der Partnerschaftlichkeit untersucht, wobei sich der Blick sowohl auf nach wie vor bestehende Unzulänglichkeiten als auch auf die Fortschritte richtet, die mit den seit Mitte der 2000er Jahre eingeleiteten Reformen erzielt wurden. Der Bericht enthält eine Reihe von Politikempfehlungen, deren Ziel es ist, Eltern eine ausgewogenere Aufteilung beruflicher und familiärer Pflichten zu ermöglichen.

This review introduces the background to and issues at stake in promoting equal partnerships in families in Germany.  It encourages German policy makers to build on the important reforms since the mid-2000s to enable both fathers and mothers to have careers and children, and urges families to “dare to share”. To those ends it places Germany’s experience in an international comparison, and draws from the experience in, for example, France and the Nordic countries which have longstanding policies to support work-life balance and strengthen gender equality. The review starts with an overview chapter also explaining why and how equal sharing pays for families, children, the economy and society as a whole. The book presents current outcomes, policy trends, as well as detailed analysis of the drivers of paid and unpaid work and how more equal partnerships in families may help sustain fertility rates.  The book examines policies to promote partnership, looking both at persistent shortcomings and progress achieved through reform since the mid-2000s. The book includes a set of policy recommendations designed to enable parents to share work and family responsibilities more equally.

The Flemish economy is extremely diversified with a number of value-added industries and a highly skilled workforce. The shift to a green economy will however require specific knowledge, values and attitudes from the Flemish workforce. This report analyses the skills dimension of the transition to a green economy at the local level, with specific reference to emerging needs in the agro-food, construction and chemicals sectors. It also provides recommendations for the development of green skills and occupational profiles at the organisational level, while advising policy makers on the best method of assisting firms to transition to a green economy.

Mexico is slowly advancing on the path to gender equality. Many public policies aimed at empowering women are now in place: over the past two decades, Mexico has increased investments in girls' education, greatly expanded childcare and preschool, improved gender mainstreaming in government, and ensured that female politicians are well-represented at the ballot box. Yet, despite these efforts, many Mexican women still do not feel the effects of these policies at home, at work, or in public spaces. Large gender gaps remain in educational outcomes, participation in the labour market, pay, informality status, and hours of unpaid childcare and housework. “Unlocking Mexico’s full potential,” as Mexico's National Development Plan prescribes, will depend crucially on how well Mexico closes existing gender gaps in political, social and economic life and promotes real social change. Mexico must continue to invest in social and labour market policies that empower women, and reinvigorate efforts to reduce inequalities in education, labour force participation, job quality, unpaid work, and leadership. This will require embedding gender equality objectives in all public policies and budgets, across all levels of government, and ensuring the effective implementation, enforcement, and evaluation of policies and laws to achieve inclusive outcomes.