Absenteeism due to sickness and accidents depends on labour supply and demand factors. The propensity to be sick varies with age and gender; in the EU the sick leave rate tends to be higher for women than for men; exceptions are Austria, Germany and Belgium. The sick leave rate is highest for...

A representative survey of Austrian firms and several case studies reveal that the Austrian labour market is severely segmented. Qualifications and wages differ markedly by firm size. Large firms have well developed internal labour markets, which facilitate the adjustment of the labour force to...

The end of the Cold War, the increasing importance of international operations, and the development of a co-ordinated European security and defence strategy have led many countries in Europe to reform their national system of military defence – Belgium in 1994, the Netherlands in the second...

The Waldviertel is a structurally challenged region in the north-west of Lower Austria. Located in the north-east of Austria and extending from a long border with the Czech Republic as an incipient EU member in the north and the Danube river in the south, its population had been declining for...

Family policy is getting increasing public policy attention in the EU as a result of population ageing and the challenge of the sustainability of economic growth. It is being recognised that a sustainable rise in the fertility rate is needed in order to put a break on population ageing....