Brussels Pillars-EconPol Conference Report

Sunny days and tight labor markets have something in common: they don’t trigger an urge to repair anything. But just as a sunny day is better for fixing the roof, instead of climbing on slippery slates during a downpour, tight-labor periods are good for preparing for more turbulent times ahead. And turbulence is definitely coming to a labor market near you.

That was the purpose of the Pillars conference in Brussels last July: to explore how to master that looming turbulence—aka structural and technological change—on the European labor markets’ horizon. To do that properly, on its first day it cast a highly critical view on the research the Pillars warriors have already carried out, and on the second discussed insights, policies and strategies with EU labor market experts.