Bogus self-employment remains a persistent challenge in European labour markets, distorting fair competition and undermining compliance with labour standards.

Addressing this issue requires stronger cooperation, awareness, and knowledge exchange among institutions, social partners, and researchers.

These were the key themes of the expert meeting “Improving Cooperation and Awareness in Combating Bogus Self-Employment,” held on 27 October 2025 at the European Labour Authority (ELA) headquarters in Bratislava.

The event — organised by the European Labour Authority, in cooperation with the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family of the Slovak Republic and the National Labour Inspectorate — brought together representatives of key institutions from Slovakia and across the EU to discuss how to strengthen cross-border collaboration and ensure fair and lawful employment practices.

Representing the Central European Labour Studies Institute (CELSI), Marta Kahancová, Managing Director, and Simona Brunnerová, researcher, participated in the event.

CELSI contributes to this debate through its long-term research on non-standard forms of work, labour market institutions, and compliance mechanisms, most recently within the INTEGRATE-DIALOGUE and TransEuroWorks projects.

Participants highlighted the need for continued policy attention to bogus self-employment — both because of its social implications and its impact on labour market functioning, fair competition, and occupational safety.

Slovakia is among the EU countries with the highest share of self-employment, making this discussion particularly relevant.

👉 Learn more about the INTEGRATE-DIALOGUE and TransEuroWorks projects at:

https://celsi.sk/en/integrate-dialogue/

https://celsi.sk/en/transeuroworks/

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