Chi fa il welfare? Gli occupati nei settori dell’istruzione, della sanità e dei servizi sociali

The pandemic has highlighted the importance of workers employed in health and social care as well as in education. This has drawn attention to labour market issues in these sectors. The aim of this article is to describe the numbers, composition and main features of employment in these sectors, comparing a selection of Western European countries and investigating main trends in the last decade. Our analyses of the European Labour Force Survey datasets show that these sectors are undersized in Italy compared to other Western European countries.This element contributes to keeping employment rates low, especially female employment rates. International comparison also shows that both employees’ socio-demographic features and occupational conditions are frequently «extreme» in the Italian case. Empirical evidence recommends a carefully planned design of future recruitment policies in the sectors here investigated.