As part of the EDE framework contract, Magdi Birtha is the rapporteur of the ad-hoc thematic report Framework for Social Services of Excellence, and writes the synthesis report to the European Commission, building on 30 national country reports. 

The European Centre teams was responsible for conducting the research for the project Better Functioning of the European Construction Labour Market (FELM) implemented by the European Federation of Building and Woodworkers (EFBWW) and the European Construction Industry Federation (FIEC).

This project aims to map evidence of innovative purchasing arrangements beyond pay-for-performance measures that have been used to strengthen service delivery models for people living with chronic diseases and to identify the mechanisms through which these purchasing arrangements have impacted quality of care.

Training and skills needs are evolving along with new care models and emerging needs of users. The Covid-19 pandemic has brought about additional changes in the organisation of work in the social services sector, for example by further pushing the use of digital technologies. The study aimed to provide a better understanding of care workers’ needs when delivering day to day frontline support and to highlight relevant sector-specific challenges and opportunities to improve the quality of care along with the deinstitutionalisation process and efforts to shift towards integrated care in different EU countries.

This project analysed the effects of an increase of the minimum pension top-up in Austria.