New Forms of Work and the Future of Work

 

How should policymakers respond to New Forms of Work?

Global changes affecting the world of work are driving policymakers worldwide to review how policies in different areas – labour market, skills, social protection – can best respond. Many countries have seen growth in particular contract types that diverge from the “standard employment contract”, i.e. a full-time dependent employment contract of indefinite duration. While the use of temporary or casual contracts and the emergence of platform work may bring advantages, including flexibility for both employers and workers, concerns are being voiced around job quality and the potential negative impact of excessive and/or improper use of such contracts on equality, productivity and growth, fair competition among firms, and the sustainability of social protection systems. The main question for policymakers is how to balance the opportunity offered by a diversity of employment contracts, on the one hand, with protections for workers and businesses, on the other.

‌

---

Joint OECD-European Commission survey on policy responses to new forms of work

The OECD and the European Commission has completed a project which maps recent policy responses to new forms of work. The project draws on the results of a survey carried out between June and September in 2018 in OECD, EU and G20 countries. The covered a range of policy areas including labour market regulation, social protection, collective bargaining and skills. The report has been published on March 21, 2019.

• Final report: Policy Responses to New Forms of Work (March 21, 2019)

• Launch slides

---

Conference on New Forms of Work

On 7 November 2018, the OECD brought together policy makers, employers, unions and experts to discuss some of the key policy challenges and solutions in the areas of labour market regulation, social protection, skills and social dialogue, with a view to maximising the benefits, and minimising the risks, associated with the emergence of new forms of work.

Conference agenda and presentations

 

The OECD is carrying out a new series of reviews to help countries identify policies that will shape a future of work with fairer access to high quality jobs. One key issue that countries may wish to focus on is how to respond to the emergence of new forms of work.