The tale of transparent and predictable working conditions intertwined with work-life balance: Assessing the impact of the new social policy directives on decent working conditions and social protection

Abstract

Precarious employment is often associated with job insecurity and limited corollary entitlements to income support. More specifically, what makes the jobs precarious are factors such as in-work poverty and low pay, insufficient labour law and social security protection, high levels of stress and health problems, limited career development and training options or low levels of collective rights. Precarious workers engaged in atypical forms of employment such as casual work, zero-hours contracts or platform-mediated work are particularly prone to experiencing precarious working conditions and often consequently, in-work poverty and thus social exclusion. A question therefore emerges as to the adequate response at EU level to combat precarious employment and provide for decent jobs with fair working conditions including protection against discrimination and also access to adequate social protection. Against this background, this article takes stock of the two first legally binding roll-out initiatives from the European Pillar of Social Rights (EPSR), namely Directive (EU) 2019/1152 on transparent and predictable working conditions in the European Union and Directive (EU) 2019/1158 on work-life balance for parents and carers, to assess their impact on decent working and employment conditions, and social protection, while also exploring in greater detail their coverage and potential limitations.