The main mission of the department is to produce research that is both excellent and impactful, and more specifically, to analyse the effects of public policies and societal changes on employment and on the workplace. 

The department’s key themes revolve around (i) the impact of public policies on employment in a context of high cross border mobility and (ii) how current socioeconomic challenges (such as digital transformations, diversity and ageing of the workforce) in the workplace impact firms’ modes of organisation and performance, employees’ skills and behaviour, and labour relations. These issues are timely and relevant for Luxembourg as well as for the European Union. 

The department’s research is multidisciplinary (economics, statistics, sociology, political science, law) and makes use of various tools (policy evaluation, quantitative, experimental and qualitative methods). Through the Labour Market Observatory, the department uses its research infrastructure and competences to advise policy makers and inform the public about new findings in these fields.