Aliki Mouriki
4.2. Four typical pathways to flexicurity
Conscious of the diversity of labour market and welfare regimes prevailing across the EU, the
European Commission suggests four typical pathways to flexicurity, depending on the challenges that
each country has to address. 16
The fi rst pathway aims at tackling contractual segmentation. It is useful for countries with segment-
ed labour markets, with insiders and outsiders, as it would permit them to distribute flexibility and se-
curity more evenly over the workforce. This could happen, for example, by providing entry ports into
employment for newcomers and promote their progress into better jobs. In these countries, security
tends to rely on job protection rather than social benefits; unemployment benefits are low and social
assistance systems are weak. Effective measures to address the issue of contractual segmentation
could include improving the position of workers on fixed-term contracts, agency work, on-call work,
etc. by offering them adequate protection and minimum rights, training opportunities, and social se-
curity rights with portability of entitlements (see for example the relevant Dutch experience).
In this respect, an interesting idea that is worth further consideration is put forward by the Com-
mission. The consecutive use of fixed-term contracts could be restricted through legislation and
collective agreements, whilst the open-ended contracts could be redesigned so as to include a pro-
gressive built-up of job protection: it could start with a basic level of job protection and protection
would gradually increase with job tenure, until full protection is achieved. This is termed the “tenure
track approach” that guarantees an automatic progress into better contractual conditions (European
Commission, 2007b).
The second pathway suggested aims at developing flexicurity within the enterprise and offering
transition security. This pathway is useful for countries with low job flows, as it would allow workers
to continuously update their skills, but also provide safe and successful transitions to another job,
thus enhancing the mobility between the companies /organizations. The measures proposed in this
pathway include a continuous investment in lifelong learning policies, preventive actions to avoid re-
dundancies or long-term unemployment, joint initiatives by all parties concerned in organizing safe
16 Ibid.
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