Is the removal of barriers in the workplace an inevitable phenomenon of modern labor markets? On behalf of the Bertelsmann Foundation, an IZA study analyzed recent trends in the world of labor and examined in how far barriers are actually removed in the workplace. The study explored which boundaries are coming undone, which forms of flexibility will be of increasing importance and what other changes can be expected in the future. The study found that liberalizing flexible or atypical forms of employment has contributed to an increase in jobs. At the same time the authors find that permanent full-time work is remarkably stable - both in the industrial sector and in many service sectors. For the future, a more flexible labor market is to be expected, where individual solutions will play an even greater role, but which also involves greater risk to individuals. Health and safety at the workplace, vocational training and occupational mechanisms to avoid excessive stress at work will also gain more relevance in the future.
