23-09-2004: "Employment in Europe" report: EU can and must boost employment with the right policies

The EU is falling short of its Lisbon employment targets for 2010 but with more labour-market reforms it can get back on track, says the European Commission in this year's Employment in Europe report, released today. The moderate recovery in economic growth in 2003 has not yet translated into more jobs in the EU. However, performances are mixed and some Member States have overtaken the US in creating jobs. The employment gap with the US in the services sector has narrowed but still shows a large job-creation potential. The enlarged EU is well placed to benefit from globalisation if it boosts its efforts, under the Employment Strategy, to apply the right mix of policies.

The report is available at: http://europa.eu.int/comm/employment_social/employment_analysis/employ_2004_en.htm