This project was carried out in the OECD Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs (ELS), under the senior leadership of Stefano Scarpetta (Director of ELS), Mark Pearson (Deputy Director of ELS), and Monika Queisser (Senior Counsellor and Head of Social Policy). Doron Wijker and Valentina Patrini co‑ordinated the report and co‑authored it with Lyydia Alajääskö, with guidance and support from Valerie Frey (Senior Economist).
The authors received valuable feedback from OECD colleagues, namely Monika Queisser, Mark Pearson, Stefano Scarpetta and many Delegates in the OECD Employment, Labour and Social Affairs Committee. Kiho Noguchi provided analytical support, and Marie‑Aurélie Elkurd, Jayne Maddock, Hanna Varkki and Maxime Ladaique provided logistical, publication and communication support.
The authors are grateful to officials in the following government institutions who generously gave their time and knowledge in a series of in-depth consultations for the preparation of the case studies in 2025: Belgium (the Federal Public Service Employment, Labour and Social Dialogue), France (the Directorate‑General for Labour, Ministry of Labour and Solidarity), Portugal (Commission for Equality on Labour and Employment – CITE) and Spain (the Women’s Institute).
The OECD gratefully acknowledges financial support from Italy’s National Institute for Public Policy Analysis (Istituto Nazionale per l’Analisi delle Politiche Pubbliche – INAPP) and the Ministry of Labour and Social Policies, including support and feedback from Valentina Cardinali, Monica Esposito, Francesca Pelaia and colleagues.