Professor of Economics Maarten Goos chairs EU expert group on the impact of digitisation on the labour market

The European Union wants to give policymakers a better grip on the impact of digitisation on the labour market. It is currently compiling an international group of experts that can provide advice. Maarten Goos, Professor of Economics and Institutions at Utrecht University, will lead this expert group as chairman.

Scientific research has looked into some aspects of digital innovation on work, but many questions remain, says Goos. "Consider, for example, how the UWV in the Netherlands could deal with the increasing demand for certain skills for jobs. What role can the UWV play in educating people for these skills? Or think of the employment protection of people in the platform economy (Deliveroo, Uber) or the question which technology you want to subsidise as a government?"
 
The expert group chaired by Goos will give advice to EU Commissioners Marianne Thyssen (Employment, Social Affairs, Skills and Labour Mobility) and Mariya Gabriel (Digital Economy and Society). The members will mainly come from the European academic community, but it will often invite and consult societal partners, such as trade unions, for a real world perspective on matters. The expert group starts its research this summer.