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10.1.3. Figure 1: Self-employment in the EU, 1983-1995 (1985 = 100%)

10.1.4. Figure 2: Self-employment in the EU, 1983-1995 (1985 = 100%)

10.1.5. Self-employment rates in the EU, 1995

The importance of self-employment in each EU Member State can be compared in the form of self-employment rates.

The standard definition (cf. European Commission 1995; OECD 1992; Meager 1993; Bögenhold & Staber 1990) sets the number of self-employed in relation to total employment (cf. Figure 3, left-hand columns). In 1995, the self-employment rate for the EU as a whole was just over 15%. This figure conceals major differences between the various Member States, however. High self-employment rates are recorded by the southern European states and Ireland, with Greece topping the ranking at 38.5%. In Denmark and Germany, by contrast, self-employment accounts for less than 10% of total employment. To some extent, the high self-employment rates in southern Europe and Ireland are due to the importance of the agricultural sector for employment. Excluding the self-employed in this sector (cf. Figure 3, middle columns), there is a shift in level in all countries, but the six highest rates are still exhibited by the same six countries (with only slight differences in rankings). This is due not least to the importance of very small businesses (Wiethölter & Bogai 1997).

It should be noted that this definition of the self-employment rate takes no account of national differences in participation rates and unemployment. An alternative definition that reduces the possibility of distortions for these two reasons, and therefore appears better suited to cross-country comparisons, calculates the number of self-employed with respect to the population of working age (15-64) (cf. Figure 3, right-hand columns). Under this definition, too, the three southern European countries and Ireland exhibit the highest self-employment rates, at between 10% and 20%, while in the other Member States between 6% and 9% of the working-age population is self-employed. The use of this definition "improves" the ranking of Sweden and Denmark, countries with high participation rates. Yet there is little change in the position of Belgium, although its participation rate is rather low.

Although self-employment rates permit statements to be made about the level of employment on a self-employed basis, they are unsuited to telling us anything about the stability of such employment relations. The self-employment rate in a country may remain constant over a period of years because there are neither inflows into nor outflows out of self-employment, thus the self-employed are firmly entrenched. But the rate will also remain constant given high rates of both inflow and outflow, provided they are of equal magnitude.

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10.1.6. Figure 3: Self-employment rates in the EU, 1995

10.1.7. Flows into and out of self-employment

Figure 4 enables the flows into and out of self-employment in 1995 to be compared. Flows out of self-employment can be calculated because, for most EU Member States, data are available both on total flows into self-employment and on changes in the number of self-employed in consecutive years.

In 1995, inflows into self-employment were higher - in some cases considerably so - than outflows in most Member States, particularly in the Netherlands, Ireland and the United Kingdom. Only in Greece and - marginally - France did the outflow exceed the inflow. At EU level, this could mark a change in trend, for in the previous four years the flow out of self-employment exceeded that into this category on the EU average (excluding Italy). It was only in Germany (excluding eastern Germany), Luxembourg, the Netherlands and - marginally - Greece that inflows exceeded outflows in this period (cf. European Commission 1995). On the other hand, in a number of EU Member States, the rates of inflow were significantly lower than during the 1990-1994 period. This is shown, for instance, by the fact that between 1990 and 1994 four countries (Portugal, the United Kingdom, Germany and the Netherlands) exhibited inflow rates of 15% or greater, whereas this was the case in just one country in 1995 (Germany, at around 16%).

With the help of the analysis of inflows and outflows, the self-employment trends in the EU portrayed in Figures 1 and 2 can be described in a more highly differentiated way. The number of self-employed persons has increased consistently since 1985 in the Netherlands and Germany. In the Netherlands, this was due primarily to a decline in the outflow rate: between 1987 and 1990, the difference between the inflow and outflow rate was around 2 percentage points; between 1990 and 1994, this differential widened to around 6 percentage points. In 1995, the outflow rate in the Netherlands was around 4 percentage points below the inflow rate. In Germany, by contrast, the rise in the number of self-employed persons can be traced back to an increase in the flow into self-employment. The inflows into self-employment have been only slightly higher than outflows since 1987. But whereas the inflow rate between 1987 and 1990 remained roughly constant at around 10%, it rose to around 20% from 1990 to 1994 and in 1995 amounted to around 16%.

In Ireland and Luxembourg, on the other hand, inflow rates that were rather low compared with the EU average led to a positive and relatively continuous expansion of self-employment because they were consistently higher than the outflow rates. In the United Kingdom, the above-average inflow rates in the period 1991 to 1993 were exceeded by the outflow rate, causing a fall in self-employment in this period.

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10.1.8. Figure 4: Flows into and out of self-employment, 1995

10.1.9. Net effect of the transition between dependent employment and self-employment

Table 1 describes the flows between dependent employment and self-employment in the EU Member States for 1992 and 1995 (excluding Denmark and Sweden; Finland and Austria: 1995 only). The first four columns (1 to 4) relate to the overall flows into and out of dependent employment, that is, all flows between dependent employment and unemployment, self-employment, inactivity and education/training. In the next four columns (5 to 8), the sub-flows between dependent employment and self-employment, their sum and difference are given. The last (column 8) is to be interpreted as follows: a negative value means that more people moved from dependent employment into self-employment than left self-employment for dependent employment; a positive figure means that more people left self-employment for dependent employment than moved in the opposite direction.

In both 1992 and 1995, the flows out of dependent employment into self-employment were higher than those from self-employment into dependent employment in most of the EU Member States. In 1992, it was only in Italy that more people moved from self-employment to dependent employment than the other way around, while in Ireland and the Netherlands the flows were of approximately equal magnitude for that year. Three years later, however, the flows from self-employment into dependent employment exceeded those in the opposite direction in Finland and Ireland. Whereas in most EU Member States the flows from self-employment into dependent employment declined slightly between 1992 and 1995, they rose in Luxembourg, the United Kingdom and, above all, in Ireland.

Column 9 of Table 1 gives the inflows from self-employment as a proportion of all inflows into dependent employment. It emerges that this form of transition is generally of subordinate importance in the Member States. In the three countries with the highest relative shares in 1995 (Austria, Italy and Portugal), only around one in ten of those entering dependent employment had been self-employed a year earlier. Moreover, this proportion declined in most EU countries between 1992 and 1995. Even so, the transition from self-employment to dependent employment in 1995 seems to have contributed to the positive overall employment trend, particularly in Austria (Table 1, column 4). Although Greece had an average relative share and Portugal the highest proportion of entries into dependent employment coming from self-employment, the overall employment trend in these two countries was negative.

These trends must be interpreted with caution with a view to their relevance for employment policy, as an increase in the flow from dependent employment into self-employment can be due both to long-term sectoral changes2 and to displacement effects3. As a result of changes in corporate strategies (the increased use of subcontracting and franchising, etc.), some of those now recorded as self-employed can be expected to be performing the same tasks as when they were dependently employed (cf. European Commission 1995). The phenomenon of the "pseudo self-employed" needs to be mentioned in this context: they exhibit some of the defining characteristics of dependent employment - in particular, working more or less exclusively for a single "client"/employer - but do not pay contributions to the social insurance system (Wiethölter & Bogai 1997). It cannot be determined using the available Eurostat data to what extent such pseudo self-employment plays a role in the various EU Member States. Nor have studies yet been made of the dynamics of such forms of employment. Yet there are grounds for the belief that pseudo self-employment is beginning to appear in branches in which it was previously unheard of and in new industries (Hanke 1996).

10.1.10. Table 1: Flows into and out of dependent employment and self-employment (in %), 1992 and 1995

	Total flows into and out				Flows between dependent employment
	of dependent employment (a)				and self-employment (b)
	Flow	Flow	Sum	Difference	Flow	Flow	Sum	Difference	Inflow (b)	Outflow (b)
	into	out of	(1+2)	(1-2)	into	out of	(5+6)	(5+6)	as a % of	as a % of
	dependent	dependent			dependent	dependent			inflow (a)	outflow (a)
	employment	employment			employment	employment			(col. 5 /	(col. 6 /
									col. 1 × 100)	col. 2 × 100)
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
1992
B	5,3	5,9	11,2	-0,6	0,2	0,5	0,7	-0,3	4,3	8,5
D	7,2	9,5	16,7	-2,3	0,6	1,0	1,6	-0,4	8,3	10,0
E	15,7	14,2	29,9	1,5	0,6	1,0	1,5	-0,4	3,6	6,7
F	9,9	10,1	20,0	-0,2	0,6	0,8	1,4	-0,2	5,6	8,0
G	8,3	10,0	18,3	-1,7	0,8	1,2	2,0	-0,5	9,5	12,3
IRL	10,3	9,9	20,2	0,4	0,5	0,5	1,0	0,0	5,0	5,4
I	12,3	10,5	22,7	1,8	1,7	1,7	3,4	0,1	14,0	15,8
L	5,3	4,7	10,0	0,6	0,3	0,5	0,8	-0,2	5,9	10,4
NL	10,2	8,1	18,4	2,1	0,5	0,4	0,9	0,0	4,6	5,4
P	8,1	7,6	15,7	0,5	1,0	1,4	2,4	-0,3	12,9	17,8
UK	9,8	11,5	21,3	-1,7	0,5	1,1	1,6	-0,6	5,0	9,9
1995
A	11,0	6,8	17,8	4,1	1,2	1,4	2,6	-0,2	11,0	20,0
B	5,8	6,8	12,6	-1,0	0,2	0,4	0,6	-0,2	3,7	6,2
D	8,5	7,8	16,3	0,7	0,6	1,4	2,0	-0,8	6,9	17,6
E	17,0	12,2	29,3	4,8	0,5	0,9	1,4	-0,4	3,0	7,0
FIN	14,7	12,2	26,9	2,6	0,3	0,0	0,3	0,2	1,7	0,4
F	11,0	9,2	20,1	1,8	0,4	0,7	1,0	-0,3	3,2	7,4
GR	8,3	10,3	18,6	-2,0	0,6	1,1	1,6	-0,5	6,7	10,2
IRL	13,0	7,5	20,5	5,6	0,8	0,7	1,5	0,1	6,3	9,4
I	13,0	10,6	23,6	2,4	1,4	1,8	3,1	-0,4	10,4	16,8
L	5,7	5,1	10,9	0,6	0,4	0,4	0,8	-0,1	6,4	8,7
NL	9,5	9,2	18,6	0,3	0,3	0,6	0,9	-0,4	2,7	6,7
P	8,3	8,7	17,0	-0,4	0,9	1,7	2,7	-0,8	11,5	20,1
UK	10,9	8,8	19,7	2,2	0,6	1,1	1,7	-0,4	5,8	12,0

Sources: Eurostat; own calculations.

10.1.11. Subsequent labour market status of those leaving self-employment

Figure 5 presents transitions from self-employment to dependent employment as a proportion of all transitions out of self-employment in nine EU Member States. Although in 1995, in five out of nine EU Member States - Belgium, Portugal, Italy, the United Kingdom and Germany - more than one in three persons leaving self-employment moved directly into a dependent employment relation, direct transitions from self-employment to dependent employment declined from 1989 to 1995 in most of the countries considered here, the exceptions being Belgium and Portugal. Most of these countries exhibited the same pattern of change over time: between 1989 and 1993, the transition to dependent employment declined as a share of total transitions, only to increase once more between 1993 and 1995, though without reaching the 1989 level. In Greece and particularly in Germany, on the other hand, a continuous decline was recorded. One striking feature is that, particularly in Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, i.e. those countries exhibiting the highest rates of growth in the number in self-employment up to 1995, transitions to dependent employment as a proportion of all exits from self-employment declined most sharply between 1989 and 1995 (cf. Figures 1 and 2).

In Portugal, transition patterns developed differently, however: in 1995, almost every second person leaving self-employment entered into a dependent employment relation. The fact that in France, Spain and Greece the transition to dependent employment consistently accounted for a relatively small proportion of exits from self-employment is largely due to the higher outflow rates into inactivity (in particular retirement). In 1989, between 55% and almost 60% of persons - including family workers - leaving self-employment entered inactivity status (OECD 1992). It was only in Portugal that a similarly high rate of transition to inactivity (62.2%) was recorded in 1989; this confirms the fundamental changes that have occurred in the area of self-employment in Portugal since 1989.

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10.1.12. Figure 5: Transitions from self-employment to dependent employment

10.1.13. Labour market status prior to the transition to self-employment

From the point of view of employment policy, entries into self-employment can be evaluated in different ways. Studies have shown that the chances of survival of new businesses are higher in cases where the founder originates from dependent employment than where he or she had not been employed the previous year (cf. OECD 1992). On the other hand, a transition from dependent employment to self-employment, as we have already seen, does not necessarily imply an increase in the overall volume of employment. Transitions from unemployment to self-employment, on the other hand, serve to reduce unemployment, while transitions from inactivity to self-employment raise the overall participation rate.

In most EU Member States, dependent employment is the most important source status for the flows into self-employment. In 1992 and 1995, on the average for the EU as a whole, almost 60% of those entering self-employed activity had been in dependent employment the previous year; in Luxembourg, Portugal, Austria and Germany, the proportion was over two-thirds. Whereas in most EU Member States transitions out of dependent employment into self-employment as a proportion of all transitions into self-employment increased from 1989 to 1995, they declined in the Netherlands, Portugal and the United Kingdom.

In all EU Member States - with the sole exception of the Netherlands - transitions to self-employment originating from inactivity (cf. Figure 6) declined in relative terms between 1989 and 1995. In the Netherlands, the figure initially rose between 1989 and 1992 to more than 53%, subsequently declining between 1992 and 1995 to just over 46%. In Finland and Italy, inflows from inactivity were also significant, at 33% and 31% respectively in 1995. In the Netherlands, the considerable proportion of inflows into self-employment originating from inactivity is at least partially due to the labour market policy of making new business start-up support programmes available to recipients of unemployment benefits and other social benefits (Basic Information Report [BIR] Netherlands). In Italy, too, labour market policy support for business start-ups also plays an important role. Support from labour market policy programmes is focused here on new businesses set up by women and young people4, the majority of whom had not previously been in employment5. However, the considerable importance of self-employment for female employment in general in Italy - in 1995 almost 17% of economically active women were self-employed, compared with an EU average of just 9.4% (Eurostat 1995) - may have played a contributory role here. Particularly striking in terms of the inflows from unemployment (cf. Figure 6) is the very substantial rate in Finland. Almost 60% of persons entering self-employment in 1995 had been unemployed a year earlier. The very high unemployment rate in Finland6 - due not least to the collapse of trading relations with the former USSR - is likely to have had a determining influence on the patterns of transition into self-employment. In addition, the programme of support for unemployed persons setting up their own business was expanded in Finland: between 1992 and 1994 alone, funding was almost doubled to FIM 290 million (BIR Finland).

With the exceptions of Ireland and the Netherlands, between 1989 and 1995 inflows to self-employment originating from unemployment rose as a share of the total in all the EU Member States considered here. While in Greece, Luxembourg, Portugal and the United Kingdom a relatively continuous increase was recorded, in the remaining Member States for which data are available for the three observation years the same pattern of change over time was observed: in Belgium, Spain, France, Ireland, Italy and - to a lesser extent - the Netherlands, the proportion fell from 1989 to 1992, only to rise once again by 1995. It is interesting to note that in the majority of these countries unemployment was falling between 1989 and 1992. Only in Spain and France did unemployment rates rise marginally in this period. Whereas in Belgium, Ireland, Italy and the Netherlands the decline in unemployment was clearly a contributory factor to the decline in inflows from unemployment to self-employment, in Spain the cutbacks in support for business start-ups for the unemployed played a central role, as the number of beneficiaries there fell by almost one-fifth between 1990 and 1992 (cf. BIR Spain). In France, too, the increase in inflows from unemployment between 1992 and 1995 can be partly explained with reference to labour market policy programmes to support business start-ups by the unemployed, as funding for these programmes was expanded markedly in this period (cf. Table 2) and is thus likely to have led to higher demand.

Although a parallel trend between the rates of inflows from unemployment to self-employment and the unemployment rate was observed between 1989 and 1995 in only five of the 12 EU Member States - in Belgium, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg and, very loosely, in the Netherlands - economic parameters, and in particular rising unemployment, almost certainly made a not inconsiderable contribution to self-employment trends in the EU. This appears to be confirmed above all by the fact that during the observation period, in most EU Member States, fewer and fewer persons managed to find dependent employment on leaving self-employment. Moreover, the fact that in most countries the proportion of transitions to self-employment originating from unemployment was on the increase up to 1995 is almost certainly due to the lack of alternatives to unemployment, apart from self-employment, for many unemployed people. On top of this, as unemployment rose during the recent recession, many Member States expanded their programmes of support for unemployed people starting up new businesses (European Commission 1995).

The decline in the proportion of inactives entering self-employment, which was also observed in almost all EU countries, is likely to be at least partly due to cyclical reasons. It appears plausible that a deterioration in the economic situation induces some inactives to postpone or abandon altogether their decision to enter self-employment (Meager 1992). Even in the case of the rising proportion of entries into self-employment originating from dependent employment, a trend observed in the majority of EU Member States, reasons related to the labour market situation cannot be precluded. It is conceivable that the threat of unemployment stimulates transition from dependent employment to self-employment. On the other hand, a deterioration in the economic situation could deter those currently in dependent employment who in fact want to enter self-employment (Meager 1992). When interpreting the interrelationships discussed here, it must be borne in mind that the self-employed in no way constitute a homogeneous group. Consequently, the reactions of individuals to given economic conditions vary considerably.

Also of interest in employment policy terms is a comparison between labour market status prior to and after self-employment. In Germany, around four out of five self-employed persons had previously been in dependent employment in 1995, whereas only one in three of those leaving self-employed activity entered or re-entered dependent employment. In Portugal, by contrast, less than 30% of those entering self-employment had been unemployed or inactive the previous year, whereas almost half of those leaving self-employment had found regular dependent employment one year later. Ideally, therefore, transitional labour markets must be constructed in such a way that labour market policy builds solid bridges into self-employment, while at the same time offering a realistic option of returning to dependent employment.

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10.1.14. Figure 6: Labour market status prior to transition to self-employment, 1989, 1992 and 1995

10.1.15. Support for the unemployed entering self-employment

Labour market policy programmes to support unemployed persons setting up their own business offer some of the unemployed an alternative to unemployment. In addition, the support may generate multiplier effects if beneficiaries subsequently recruit additional labour. As early as the 1980s, in many EU Member States - with the exceptions of Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Austria - the unemployed were permitted to continue to draw unemployment benefits while starting up their own business (European Commission 1995). As unemployment has risen, the promotion of self-employment as an employment opportunity for the unemployed has been of increasing importance in almost all EU countries since the start of the 1990s. New programmes have been set up, and additional financing has been provided for existing programmes and/or their conditions improved7.

However, as can be seen from Table 2, business start-up programmes in the EU Member States considered here directly benefit only a very small group of persons. Correspondingly, expenditure on support for self-employment by the unemployed constitutes a very small proportion of total spending on labour market policy.

Caution must be exerted in drawing conclusions from these data. It is possible that in relative terms spending on start-up support programmes declined merely due to an increase in total public spending on labour market policy measures as a whole. In Finland, for example, public spending on support for business start-ups almost doubled between 1992 and 1994 (BIR Finland), while in Sweden spending actually trebled between 1992/1993 and 1993/1994 (BIR Sweden). The figures are not necessarily a good indicator of the importance of these programmes with respect to the number of participants, either. In Greece, for example (BIR Greece), the number of participants almost doubled between 1992 and 1994, and the number more than doubled in Germany between 1994 and 1995. Moreover, the figures in Table 2 are restricted to labour market policy support funding for the unemployed and exclude other sources of finance that are also available to other categories of persons starting up business8.

Sweden undertook the greatest efforts to expand its business start-up programmes between 1992 and 1995, recording the highest inflow rates to these programmes of all the EU countries considered here for 19959. Yet in France, Finland and Germany10, too, funding of programmes to support unemployed persons taking up a self-employed activity was expanded during this period, with a corresponding rise in the number of participants. By contrast, such programmes were cut back in Greece, Denmark and in particular Spain. It is interesting to note that in these countries, in 1992 support for business start-ups by the unemployed had accounted for a higher share of national labour market policy spending than in other countries.

The impact of such programmes on the transition flows into and out of self-employment are influenced by the nature of the programmes, and in particular by:

1. the nature of financial support: in most EU Member States, unemployed persons entering self-employment received a regular allowance in place of unemployment benefits. In France and Greece, on the other hand, support is provided in the form of a one-off grant (cf. the respective national BIRs). In Italy (cf. "Policies" No. 55/1996), an application may be submitted for a one-off payment of accumulated benefit entitlements; this was also possible in Spain until 1992 (cf. BIR Spain);

2. the participants: whereas in most EU Member States labour market policy programmes to promote new businesses are restricted to the unemployed, in the Netherlands employees threatened with unemployment may also benefit. In a number of EU countries, labour market policy target groups receive preferential treatment: for instance, in Greece (women, the long-term unemployed, disabled), in Portugal (youth, unemployed aged over 45, long-term unemployed; cf. "Policies" No. 43/1993), in Italy (women and youth) and in Belgium (youth; cf. BIR Belgium).

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10.1.16. Table 2: Support programmes for the unemployed for business start-ups

	Public spending as a %		Public spending as a %		Inflow of participants
	of GDP		of total labour market		as a % of the working
			policy spending		population
	1992	1995	1992	1995	1992	1995
D	-	0,03	-	0,57	0,1	0,2
DK	0,11	0,09	1,65	1,33	0,2	0,1
E	0,14	0,02	3,84	0,61	0,3	0,1
FIN	0,03	0,04	0,52	1,55	0,2	0,3
F	0,02	0,04	0,07	1,29	0,2	0,3
GR	0,03	0,01	3,75	1,32	0,2	0,1
IRL	0,02	0,02	0,48	0,44	0,1	0,1
P	0,02	0,03	1,22	1,72	0,2	0,2
S	0,04	0,07	0,69		0,2	0,4
UK	0,01	0,01	0,45	0,56	0,1	-

Notes: No data are available for Belgium, Austria, Luxembourg, the Netherlands; Ireland 1992 = 1991; Sweden and United Kingdom 1992 = 1992/93; 1995 = 1995/96.

Sources: OECD: Employment Outlook, 1995, 1996.

10.1.17. Self-employment as an alternative to unemployment

Under certain conditions, self-employment may constitute an alternative to unemployment. This appears to be confirmed by the increasing proportion of persons moving from unemployment to self-employment in most EU Member States. Self-employment may also establish a bridge into dependent employment. However, in recent years the proportion of those entering dependent employment among persons leaving self-employment has declined in many EU countries.

Consequently, labour market policy support for business start-ups must not ignore the possible negative consequences of a phase of self-employment for those required to abandon their dependent-employed activity (indebtedness, loss of entitlement to unemployment benefits11, etc.). For these reasons, it seems that flanking measures are required to cushion the individual risks of embarking on starting up entrepreneurial activity. This could also minimise the macroeconomic costs involved. Countries whose system of entitlement to unemployment benefits is based on the insurance principle could, for instance, permit first-time entrepreneurs to remain as voluntary members of the unemployment insurance system for a transition period (Semlinger 1995).

More detailed analysis is also required of the possible effects of support for business start-ups on the employability of participants, particularly those previously unemployed. This requires longitudinal surveys of a sufficiently long period. However, the increasing importance of self-employment as a transitional labour market can also be shown using the cross-sectional data of the European Labour Force Survey. Yet it is important to consider both the inflows into and outflows from self-employment: temporarily pumping up inflows into self-employment can, if such employment proves unsustainable, create additional problems which will emerge after two to three years. In the context of current debates on the employability of the unemployed, programmes for the unemployed starting up business are likely to become increasingly relevant, particularly if the subsequent bridge from self-employment to dependent employment is also designed in such a way as to ensure that it has sufficient carrying capacity.

10.1.18. Selected bibliography

Acs, Z. J., D. B. Audretsch & D. S. Evans (1992): "The Determinants of Variations." In: Self-Employment Rates Across Countries and Over Time. Discussion Paper FS IV 92-3. Berlin: Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung.

BIR = MISEP Basic Information Reports. All EU Member States, 1995. Edited by I.A.S. Berlin on behalf of the European Commission.

Bögenhold, D. & U. Staber (1990): "Selbständigkeit als ein Reflex auf Arbeitslosigkeit? Makrosoziologische Befunde einer international-komparativen Studie." In: Kölner Zeitschrift für Soziologie und Sozialpsychologie, No. 2, pp. 265-279.

Bundesanstalt für Arbeit (1996): Arbeitsmarkt 1995. Sondernummer der Amtlichen Nachrichten der Bundesanstalt für Arbeit, 14 June 1996. Nürnberg.

Denys, J. & L. Denolf (1997): "Activation of Labour Market Policy in Luxemburg." In: SYSDEM "Trends" No. 28, pp. 47-48. Berlin: I.A.S., Secretariat of the European Employment Observatory.

European Commission (ed.) (1993): Wachstum, Wettbewerbsfähigkeit, Beschäftigung. Herausforderungen der Gegenwart und Wege ins 21. Jahrhundert. Weißbuch. Brussels, Luxembourg.

European Commission (1995): Employment in Europe 1995. Brussels, Luxembourg.

Eurostat (1995): Labour Force Survey. Luxembourg.

Eurostat (1988): Labour Force Survey. Method and Definitions. Luxembourg.

Hanke, T. (1996): "Arme Unternehmer. Mehr als eine halbe Million Menschen sind Scheinselbständige - zum Vorteil des Arbeitgebers, zum Nachteil von Sozialkassen und Steuerzahlern." In: Die Zeit, 8 August 1996.

Meager, N. (1992): "Does Unemployment Lead to Self-Employment?" In: Small Business Economics, No. 4, pp. 87-103.

Meager, N. (1993): Self-Employment and Labour Market Policy in the European Community. Discussion Paper FS I 93-201. Berlin: Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung.

Meager, N. (1996): "From Unemployment to Self-Employment: Labour Market Policies for Business Start-up." In: G. Schmid, J. O'Reilly & K. Schömann (eds.): International Handbook of Labour Market Policy and Evaluation. Cheltenham, pp. 489-519.

OECD (1992): Employment Outlook 1992. Chapter 5: Labour Market Participation and Retirement of Older Workers. Paris, pp. 195-237.

OECD (1997): OECD Economic Surveys: Finland 1996. Paris.

Schmid, G. (1993): Übergänge in die Vollbeschäftigung. Formen und Finanzierung einer zukunftsgerechten Arbeitsmarktpolitik. Discussion Paper FS I 93-208. Berlin: Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung.

Schömann, K. & T. Kruppe (1996): "The Dynamic of Employment in the European Union." In: inforMISEP "Policies", No. 55, pp. 33-43.

Schömann, K., T. Kruppe & H. Oschmiansky (1998): Beschäftigungsdynamik und Arbeitslosigkeit in der Europäischen Union. Discussion Paper FS I 98-203. Berlin: Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung.

Semlinger, K. (1995): Arbeitsmarktpolitik für Existenzgründer. Plädoyer für eine arbeitsmarktpolitische Unterstützung des Existenzgründungsgeschehens. Discussion Paper FS I 95-204. Berlin: Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung.

Vuorinen, P. (1995): "Finland: From the Crisis of the Century to a Slow Recovery with Active Labour Market Policy." In: inforMISEP "Policies", No. 51, pp. 36-39.

Wießner, F. (1998): "Positive Zwischenbilanz für 'Überbrückungsgeld-Empfänger'." In: IAB-Kurzbericht, No. 1, 19 January 1998. Nuremberg.

Wiethölter, D. & D. Bogai (1997): "Kleinere und mittlere Unternehmen, Existenzgründungen und neue Selbständige: Beschäftigungspolitische Hoffnungsträger?" In: arbeit und beruf, No. 7, pp. 225-230.

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EU – European Commission DG EMPL/A/2 J II 27, Rue de la Loi 200, B-1049 Brussels – Belgium GHK Consulting Ltd 30 St. Paul's Square, Birmingham. B3 1QZ E-mail: eeo@ghkint.com