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Equal pay for equal work is one of the European Union's founding principles, enshrined in Article 157 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). However, the implementation and enforcement of this principle remain a challenge. Owing to a lack of pay transparency, pay discrimination often goes undetected, and victims face difficulties in making claims for redress. On 4 March 2021, the European Commission adopted a legislative proposal on binding pay transparency measures. The proposed ...

Directive 2009/138/EC – also known as Solvency II – sets out the prudential regulatory framework for the insurance sector in the EU. The framework aims to establish the single market for insurance services further, while strengthening policyholders' protection. On 22 September 2021, the European Commission tabled a proposal for a directive that would amend Solvency II in essentially three ways: i) lowering regulatory obligations on small and low-risk profile insurance companies, ii) taking into account ...

Our infographic provides an insight into the economic performance of Australia and New Zealand compared to the EU, and looks at the trade dynamics between the two blocs. Australia and New Zealand are among the most developed countries in the world. Although the COVID-19 pandemic interrupted economic growth in 2020, GDP per capita quickly recovered and reached all-time highs the following year. While low unemployment rates and stable currencies contribute to economic strength, rising public debt and ...

In 2019 the European Universities Initiative started. Since then, 44 European Universities alliances were created, with 340 participating higher education institutions. This study evaluates the selection procedures and assesses the experiences of the first years. It also drafts three scenarios to map future developments. Recommendations to the EP aim to strengthen the sustainability of the EUAs, create better regulatory conditions and improve the learning processes.

The European single market celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. On 1 January 1993, the then 12 Member States abolished border controls between each other, launching free movement of people, goods, services and capital. This infographic celebrates the single market's anniversary, looking at the history of the European Union (EU) in terms of macro-economic indicators as the number of Member States has grown. It shows exports of goods, services and investments; movement of people within the EU ...

On 16 January, during its plenary session, Parliament will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the single market. As well the ceremony, Parliament is to vote on a motion for a resolution, adopted by the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection on 12 December 2022. In its 2023 work programme, the Commission announced a communication on 'the single market at 30', to be issued early in the first quarter of the year.

Most migrants arrive in Europe legally, to work, study or join family members. Over a million of the first residence permits granted to non-EU third-country nationals in 2019 were for work purposes. The EU shares competence on legal migration with Member States but can set conditions for third-country nationals' entry into and legal residence in Member States. However, Member States retain the right to determine admission numbers for third-country nationals seeking work. The Single Permit Directive ...

Governments seek to protect low-income households from the risk of poverty by regulating minimum wages and setting up support programmes that include both social insurance and social assistance transfers. At their centre are guaranteed minimum income schemes as last-resort income support. While minimum income schemes exist in all EU Member States, they are not always adequate; they do not reach all those in need, nor do they motivate people to return to the labour market. In many EU countries, the ...

This study, commissioned by the European Parliament’s Policy Department for Citizens’ Rights and Constitutional Affairs at the request of the LIBE Committee, assesses the European Commission’s 2022 legal migration package on effectiveness, efficiency, legal and practical coherence, and fundamental rights compliance. The study finds that a more coherent and ambitious rights-based legal migration agenda is warranted. In the EU struggle for skilled and talented third-country national workers, social ...

The pandemic led to unprecedented circumstances in the workplace, with millions of people having to work from their homes. With teleworking gradually becoming the new normal, the question is whether employees and employers are aware of and able to deal with potential tax consequences that can arise when employees occasionally work remotely from a country other than that in which their employer is based.