Nine out of 10 EU workers nowadays rely on computers, mobile devices and office software to perform their work, while 30% use AI tools, in particular AI chatbots powered by large language models (LLMs). Nearly four out of 10 (37%) employees in the EU are monitored for their working hours.
These are the results of a new survey, conducted in 2024-2025 in collaboration with the Commission’s Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion. The survey involved 70,316 workers from all 27 EU Member States, and the findings are published in the JRC study Digital monitoring, algorithmic management and the platformisation of work in Europe.
The study focuses on the use of digital tools in the workplace, including AI, and examines the prevalence and characteristics of digital monitoring, as well as the extent and variations of algorithmic management throughout the EU.
The authors outline how digitalisation is impacting work dynamics, raising questions about privacy, autonomy, and work intensity.
Digital tools ubiquity and the rise of AI
A vast majority (90%) of EU workers now rely on digital devices to perform their jobs, reshaping the work environment across all sectors. AI usage at work is becoming increasingly common, with 30% of EU workers using it particularly in text-related tasks like writing and translation.
Writing accounts for 65% of all uses, followed by translation (59%), processing of data and discussion of ideas (38%), transcription (28%), image generation (27%), planning and scheduling (24%) and customer advice (19%).
AI use is notably high in Northern and Central European countries. The employment of AI varies considerably among different occupational sectors, with office-based jobs leading adoption.
Digital monitoring: increasing ability to collect workers data
Digital monitoring is now a significant aspect of oversight in workplaces, with 37% of EU workers monitored for working hours and 36% for entry/exit times. Monitoring the physical location of workers and monitoring the worker activities through digital tools are generally less frequent.
However, the first type of monitoring is more prevalent in sectors such as transport, construction or manufacturing, while the second is commonly used in finance, public administration and the ICT sector, among others.
Beyond the two most common types of digital monitoring – of working time and entry/exit movements through swipe cards – there are others. Monitoring of internet usage, the use of CCTV and the monitoring of calls, internet use, and vehicle location is quite common in Central and Eastern European countries.
Algorithmic management: automation in workforce coordination
Algorithmic management, though less common than digital monitoring, is gaining traction, presenting a quite diverse pattern across European countries and workplaces.
Survey results indicate that 24% of EU workers have their working time allocated automatically. This approach is often paired with algorithms that determine task prioritisation.
Another present yet less common form of algorithmic management concerns 13% of EU workers, where performance is assessed and rewarded automatically.
Platformisation: the new work paradigm
According to their degree of ‘platformisation’, that is, the combination of digital tool usage and exposure to digital monitoring and algorithmic management, the study puts forward six categories of workers, and provides their share in the EU workforce as a whole:
6% make no use of digital tools and are foreign to any form of platformisation.33% of workers use digital tools without platformisation, they are not subject to digital monitoring nor algorithmic management.42% fall under partial platformisation, they are exposed to at least one form of digital monitoring and one form of algorithmic management.9% of workers experience informational platformisation, that is, activity monitoring and algorithmic evaluation. This is most frequent in the financial and insurance sectors.7% face physical platformisation, mostly in sectors such as mining, transportation and logistics.2% of EU workers are fully platformised.
Impact on working conditions
The findings suggest that full and physical platformisation often correlate with negative working conditions, including increased stress and reduced autonomy. In contrast, informational platformisation, characterised by activity monitoring and algorithmic evaluation, appears to have fewer negative implications. It is distinctively linked to work at home.
Implications for policymaking and future research
Some combined forms of digital monitoring and algorithmic management should be carefully considered in terms of their potentially negative implications for working conditions. This new study offers unique data to better understand the impact of digitalisation of work, and offers a valuable resource to support European Commission’s efforts on the matter, including the Quality Jobs Roadmap and its initiative on algorithmic management.
The report highlights the need for coordinated action from social partners and policymakers to ensure that the ongoing digitalisation of work unfolds in a manner that is both economically beneficial and socially responsible.
Background
The digital transformation of work is set against a backdrop of rapid technological advancement and evolving EU policies aimed at fostering innovation while safeguarding worker rights. JRC’s JRC Algorithmic Management and Platform Work (AMPWork) survey and its comprehensive analysis provides a thorough and updated snapshot of how the digital revolution continues to reshape the European world of work in profound and uneven ways.
It builds on previous JRC surveys, providing a broader perspective on the digitalisation of work across the EU. The study highlights the importance of continued research to understand the diverse impacts of digital tools, monitoring, and AI across different sectors and regions.
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