A European Unemployment Benefit to Protect Atypical Workers?

Abstract

This paper evaluates the potential of a common unemployment insurance scheme for the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU-UI) to improve income protection of atypical workers, namely those in part-time and temporary contracts. Our approach relies on simulating entitlements to national unemployment insurance and the EMU-UI to assess their effects on the household disposable income of atypical workers in the event of unemployment. Our results show that the introduction of an EMU-UI would reduce coverage gaps and increase net replacement rates, especially for atypical workers, and would protect a large share of the workforce against the risk of poverty. Extending eligibility for the EMU-UI to the self-employed would further improve income protection, reducing their risk of falling into poverty in the event of unemployment.