Varieties of flexicurity : reflections on key elements of flexibility and security ; Background paper

At European level, the debate on flexicurity is currently high on the employment and social policy agenda. Member States are reflecting on the best way to adapt their systems to the "new reality" of maintaining the balance between the need for flexibility in the labour market to allow companies to adapt their production methods and their workforce as a result of pressure from globalisation and technological progress while providing the necessary security for workers at the same time. This background paper was prepared for a hearing on the Commission's Green Paper "Modernising labour law to meet the challenges of the 21st century" held by the European Parliament Committee on Employment and Social Affairs on 21 March 2007.