Study on Employment in Rural Areas

Abstract

1. This report is a response to a request by the 2003 Agriculture Council, for a review of rural employment, particularly in relation to young people and women, in order to assess the contribution of the reformed Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and the new Rural Development Regulation (RDR) towards meeting the employment objectives agreed at the 2000 Lisbon Council (70% employment rate overall and 60% female employment rate by 2010). 2. This immediate policy context, together with the 2004 enlargement, are set against a background of more gradual, but nonetheless far-reaching, changes in the role of agriculture, demographic and social changes, and the realignment of the rural economy. 3. The objectives set for the report are therefore both empirical, - to set out a clear, comprehensive and up-to date picture of the European rural labour market, - and evaluative, - by addressing the fundamental issue of the extent to which these trends, are likely to help (or hinder) the EU meet its Lisbon employment objectives. A specific policy dimension is added by the requirement to investigate the role which the reformed CAP (Pillar 1 and Pillar 2) is likely to take in this process.