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A cross-border worker may pay unemployment contributions in one country but receive benefits from another. The EU is revising how its national social security systems coordinate, including the rules for unemployment benefits. Silvia Kersemakers of the European Commission explains the proposed changes. Mandy Noesen of the Luxembourg based trade union LCGB asks how they will work in practice, while researcher Frédéric de Wispelaere looks at the gap between rights on paper and the help workers can actually access.
In the final episode of our series, we ask how Europe can make free movement work for the people who rely on...

What happens when a cross-border worker falls ill, loses a job or needs to claim a pension? The answer can depend on rules and deadlines in more than one country. Nicole Steil-Elenz of the LCGB describes the cases that arrive at the union’s advice centre near the Luxembourg–German border. In the Upper Rhine region, Daniela Zink explains how employment services, trade unions and other specialists work together to help people find the right authority. The second episode of our series asks who takes responsibility when a worker’s life spans two national systems.
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Around 1.9 million people in Europe live in one country and work in another. In Luxembourg, cross-border workers make up almost half the workforce. Yet an open border does not mean that tax and social security rules disappear. Axel Ludwig, a staff representative at the Luxembourg Post Office, explains why commuting and limits on working from home are making cross-border jobs less attractive. Mandy Noesen of the trade union LCGB, an EZA member, shows how the trade union supports workers on both sides of the border. What does it take to make a single labour market work in everyday life?...

Factories that used to manufacture trains or steel are now being used by the arms industry. Companies such as Rheinmetall, Thales and Leonardo are offering workers new jobs. Consulting firms promise an economic boost thanks to investments in rearmament. However, economist Nan Tian of SIPRI is sceptical. From an economic perspective, he argues against these investments. They would be better spent on infrastructure, healthcare or education.

Matteo Bracciali, vice-president of ACLI (the Christian Association of Italian Workers), also criticises the EU's approach to spending. He suggests a unified European army and much less money for military purposes. According to Bracciali...

In a 2025 press conference, EU president Ursula von der Leyen claimed that we are living in an era of rearmament. Consequently, Europe must invest more in defence and security. An EU-wide strategy would be highly effective, according to Annegret Bendiek, a political scientist at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs. However, the EU's strength is also its weakness: its 27 members do not always agree on everything.

Meanwhile, questions are being asked about whether powering the arms industry brings security and peace. Scientists such as Nan Tian of SIPRI advocate a different approach.

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In February 2022, Russia attacked Ukraine. Since then, many people have lost their lives and large parts of the country have been destroyed. The population continues to fight back to this day, while also trying to lead normal lives. Meet Lyudmyla Vysotska, a kindergarten teacher in Lviv, who juggles her work with children with the constant pressure of having family on the front line.

Eleanor Hitchman, a psychologist at the International Committee of the Red Cross, manages her organisation's mental health programmes in Ukraine, but faces structural challenges.

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Reducing working hours is a phenomenon that started in the 20th century. The third and final episode of this mini-series focuses on science. At the University of Münster, Germany, Julia Backmann and her team research the impact of the four-day-work week. She has conducted an experiment with dozens of organizations that have reduced working hours. Her results are in favor of this model and in line with studies all around the world. Reducing working hours may be a challenge at first, but not only workers but also employers can benefit from it.

For Giorgos Valasis a regular work week consists of 6 days. After his shift as a bus driver in Athens he finds himself constantly exhausted. He’s frightened by the fact that his government passed a law to enable 13 hours per day. While Giorgios and a lot of his working colleges take this fight into the streets of Athens to prevent the liberalisation of working hours, a German CEO changed his company to four-day-working-week. In this second episode, Carsten Graf tells his story of how he has changed the structure of his business and what has changed since then.

Questioning working time has always been a big issue for both workers and employers. In a three-part series of We Work Europe, we take a closer look at different models. The first episode follows the Greek government’s attempt to increase working time. It’s purpose is to fight the shortage of skilled workforce as well as undeclared work. Deputy minister of labour and social security, Konstantinos Karagkounis, explains how changed legislation might bring new opportunities to its country. On the other hand there is Antonis Karras, president of one of Greece’s largest trade unions DAKE, an EZA member. He believes new...

What happens when you wait 25 years for EU membership – and are still told you’re not ready? In this episode, we look at Bosnia and Herzegovina, where hopes for accession remain high but frustrations are growing.
We hear from politicians and experts about stalled reforms, mass emigration, and the risk of losing the country’s future to other powers. Can Bosnia still find its place in the European Union – and what lessons can be drawn from past enlargements?