Human Capital Flight Impact on the Greek Economy Post the 2008 Global Financial Crisis

Historically, Greece has been a nation that focused heavily on the trading of goods for its economic success, due to its ideal geographic location serving as a conduit to the near east. However, in recent years the Greek economy has undergone changes that have altered its exports and the structure of the labor market. Greece continues to suffer repercussions from the 2008 Global Economic Crisis, which has caused a large outward migration of skilled workers. During the years of 2010-2015, between 280,000 and 350,000 skilled migrants had fled Greece to work in other nations abroad (Labrianidis & Pratsinakis 2016). Greece’s main export is human capital, valued at $13.9 billion, which is larger than its oil, aluminum, and drug exports combined (Endeavor 2016). Human capital refers to the economic value of the experience and skills of a worker, which are created through education, training, and intelligence (Kenton 2023). Greece is one of the nations within the European Union which is experiencing the highest rates of human capital flight. The phenomenon of human capital flight in Greece was exacerbated by the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. Human capital flight, also known as brain drain, is the emigration of skilled workers from a less developed country to a more developed country. Skilled workers can be defined as those who work in the tertiary sector of the economy, for example; doctors, lawyers, or engineers. These workers migrate to highly developed nations for reasons such as an increase in wages, improved quality of life, less government corruption, etc. Highly skilled workers are a vital aspect of a country’s economy because they create higher amounts of economic output which fuels a nation’s development. Greece is an example of a nation which is affected by human capital flight, especially after its inability to recover economically from the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. This research prompts the question: how does human capital flight impact Greece’s economy in the aftermath of the 2008 Global Financial Crisis? Works from previous scholars lay out the theoretical frameworks for human capital flight discussing how and why it occurs

Impacts of the Crisis on Access to Healthcare Services in the EU

[Excerpt] This report is the first output of Eurofound’s research project on the impacts of the recent financial and economic crisis on access to publicly financed healthcare services in the EU. It aims to provide an overview of context and developments, setting the scene for the ongoing research project. A final overview report, incorporating findings from various country studies, will be published in 2014. Following a description of the policy context, this report goes on to explore how the crisis has impacted demand for and supply of healthcare services. It characterises different dimensions of access and discusses how the crisis may have impacted on barriers to access. It highlights groups that have traditionally been in vulnerable situations with regard to access, as well as those that may have been particularly affected by the crisis. Examples of past initiatives that have sought to enhance access to healthcare are identified. The final section presents how this research project aims to improve understanding of the impacts of the crisis on access to healthcare and of the ways in which access may be maintained. This report takes a broad perspective on access to healthcare services, referring to different understandings of access and various indicators. It draws on a review of the literature and primary data analysis. One key indicator concerns people’s perceptions of difficulties they face in accessing a doctor; in this regard, data are analysed from Eurofound’s 2007 and 2011 European Quality of Life Surveys (EQLS). A second key indicator concerns people’s perceptions of not having received medical care when they felt they needed it. Here, the main source of data is the ‘EU Statistics on Income and Living Conditions’ (EU-SILC). These indicators are used to explore how access has changed since the onset of the crisis in autumn 2007. Other perspectives on access are also discussed, including for example legal entitlements and views on appropriate care provision by service providers. Sources of data include complaints to the Ombudsman and surveys of general practitioners (GPs). The forthcoming overview report will expand on such sources, and will include more in-depth information from studies of specific countries

Social Justice in the EU – Index Report 2016 Social Inclusion Monitor Europe

1. Social justice in the EU – participation opportunities have improved in the majority of EU member states, but are still a long way behind precrisis levels Social justice has improved slightly in the majority of EU member states compared with last year’s Social Justice Index (SJI 2015). It appears that, after years of decline, the majority of countries reached their lowest point between 2012 and 2014. Whether the improvement is a genuine, stable turnaround or just a slight temporary easing will only become apparent in future reports. At least the downward trend observed since 2008 in terms of equal participation opportunities has halted in the majority of member states. However, even seven years after the global economic crisis first hit, participation opportunities in the vast majority of EU states – with a few exceptions – are still noticeably worse than before the crisis. Only five of the 28 EU countries – the Czech Republic, Germany, Luxembourg, the UK, and Poland – are showing moderate improvements in terms of participation opportunities, compared with the situation before the economic and financial crisis

Health Inequalities in Europe: Setting the Stage for Progressive Policy Action

While the health of Europeans has improved over recent years, differences by gender, birthplace, and/or socioeconomic background persist. This report maps the extent of such health inequalities, its determinants, and costs to society. The findings indicate that differences in health between and within countries are attributable not only to social and health policies, but also depend on economic policy and the social determinants of health. Thus, holistic policy interventions are required to tackle health inequalities

Determinants Of Healthy Ageing For Older People In European Countries – A Spatio-Temporal Approach

The article aims to investigate the relationship between the length of the further life in healthy for men and women aged 65 years and selected factors in European countries in the period 2005-2012. For this purpose, following methods were used: 1/ spatial distribution of characteristics - rates of change in selected periods: 2005 and 2012, 2/ tests for dependencies using correlograms and Spearman’s rank correlation coefficients, 3/ cluster analysis: on the basis of Ward’s methods spatial similarities (among countries) were indicated. As the source of data the Eurostat database were used

The divided continent: Understanding Europe’s social landscape in 2020 and beyond. European Policy Centre 11 February 2020

The political upheaval and dysfunction of recent years have focused political minds on better understanding the volatility underpinning European electorates. Interest in public opinion research has soared, yet it can be difficult to draw the findings of such surveys and focus groups into something meaningful and cohesive, from which genuine insights can be drawn. It is pertinent that policymakers at both the national and EU institutional levels grasp a clear and incisive idea of what is taking place culturally, socially and politically in EU member states, and that these tea leaves can be interpreted and harnessed to produce responsive, targeted policies. This research analysis report sets out the findings of a major survey conducted across 13 EU member states (i.e. Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Spain, the Netherlands), which were selected to provide a representative snapshot of the bloc as a whole. This survey was expansive in its scope and unique in its focus on social and cultural issues, as well as politics, leadership and economic security. The data is interpreted through three distinct themes, each of which is likely to play a critical role in Europe’s ‘mood music’ over its coming parliamentary term: nostalgia, intergenerational conflict and democratic legitimacy. These themes have become the subject of much amateur punditry, although institutional understanding of their complex nature is often shallow. Therefore, this paper seeks to shine a more evidenced-based contextual light around their formation and nuances of application