On Wednesday, September 17, CELSI researcher Adam Šumichrast attended the IREC 2025 conference, held at the Chambre des Salariés, where he presented a study on the role of social partners in access to social security in the context of flexible employment.

The IREC 2025 conference provides a platform for researchers to discuss current challenges in the fields of industrial relations, labour law, and social protection in Europe.

This year, the conference focused on digitalisation, decarbonisation, changing forms of work, and the challenges these transformations bring for industrial relations and worker protection.

Keynote lectures were delivered by Prof. Richard Hyman (London School of Economics, UK), Assoc. Prof. Maite Tapia (Michigan State University, US), Assoc. Prof. Renaud Bécot (Sciences Po Grenoble, France), and Dr. Christine Aumayr-Pintar (Eurofound, Dublin).

Adam presented within the panel “The European Union, Europeanisation and Work”, chaired by Nadja Doerflinger, the study “Negotiating Security: The Role of Social Dialogue in Securing Access to Social Protection for Flexible Workers”, which he is working on together with Marta Kahancová.

Their research shows how flexible forms of employment – agency and platform work – affect access to social security rights in selected European countries (Sweden, Denmark, the United Kingdom, Austria, Poland, and Slovakia), and provides important insights for policymakers and social partners seeking to secure social protection for flexible workers.

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