European Restructuring Monitor (ERM)
Eurofound's ERM database on restructuring-related legal regulations provides information on regulations in the Member States of the European Union and Norway which are explicitly or implicitly linked to anticipating and managing change.
Act on energy services and other energy efficiency measures, articles 8, 8a-c, 12
Large companies (that is, companies that do not qualify as small and medium-sized enterprises) have been obliged to provide evidence of their first energy audit – as defined by DIN EN 16247 – by 5 December 2015 and to conduct at least one energy audit every fourth year since the date of the first audit. Companies with an ISO 50001 certificated energy management system or an environmental management system are exempted from the obligation.
The Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control (BAFA) will undertake random samples to check compliance and impose sanctions (up to €50,000) if non-compliance is detected.
This provision was created in order to implement article 8 of the European energy efficiency directive into domestic law.
Eurofound (2021), Germany: Obligation to undertake energy efficiency audits, Restructuring legislation database, Dublin, https://apps.eurofound.europa.eu/legislationdb/obligation-to-undertake-energy-efficiency-audits/germany
Between the end of 2022 and the first half of 2023, almost 300,000 employees working for ‘big tech’ companies were laid off across the world, making headlines for months in global media. This development has been a shock, considering the high numbers of jobs in well-known tech corporations with a reputation for offering good working conditions and well-paid positions.
The retail banking sector is fertile ground for studying the impacts of digitalisation on work and employment. Financial services are increasingly provided online, without the intermediary of customer-facing institutions. Many banks in the sector have been undergoing serial restructuring since the global financial crisis, and it is one of the few service sectors with stagnant or declining employment.
Since 2011, the Restructuring support instruments database of the EU PolicyWatch has been collecting information on measures that assist companies and workers to anticipate and manage restructuring. This article looks at measures in the database aimed at supporting employees and employers during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020–2022).
Eurofound’s European Restructuring Monitor database reveals the impact of the energy crisis on employment in the EU. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, energy prices have hit record highs. The European Commission imposed sanctions and limitations on the import of oil and gas from Russia, which has reacted by reneging on supply commitments to many Member States.
