Working conditions in the acceding and candidate countries

The Foundation carried out its Third European Working Conditions Survey in the 15 Member States of the EU in 2000. In 2001, the survey was extended to cover the 12 acceding and candidate countries and the following year the survey included Turkey. The aim was to provide an overview for EU policymakers as they set about shaping the contours of the new European Union. This document summarises some of the main findings in the survey that was carried out in the 12 acceding and candidate countries in 2001. The 12 acceding and candidate countries comprise a total population of 96 million, with approximately 43 million persons in paid employment. Two countries alone - Poland and Romania - account for over half the total population and workforce of the candidate countries (25 million). There are considerable structural differences to be found in comparison with the EU labour market. For example, a higher proportion of workers are engaged in agriculture: this accounts for one fifth (21%) of all jobs in the acceding and candidate countries, in contrast to only one twentieth (5%) in the EU. Conversely, the services sector is less important in the acceding and candidate countries, accounting for 47% of all jobs, compared to 66% in the EU. This last fact has a bearing on the numbers of employees and self-employed workers in the workforce. In the acceding and candidate countries, 77% of workers are employees (compared to 83% in the EU), with 3% of these on temporary employment agency contracts (2% in the EU). Until recently, such contracts were unheard of in the former communist countries. It will be interesting to monitor the evolution of this kind of work in the future, given the recent rapid growth. A higher proportion of workers in the acceding and candidate countries hold down a second job (10%) than in the EU (6%). They also devote more time to their second job, on average 17.8 hours a week. Finally, the average age of workers in the acceding and candidate countries is higher: over half of all workers (51%) are above t