Towards a European academic labour market: Regulating beyond frontiers

The academic diaspora faces tremendous challenges, both in their home institution and abroad. Globalisation has been impacting academia for some time, and internationalisation has become an integral part of academic work. Many universities have established bilateral and multilateral partnerships, enhancing both virtual and physical collaboration among scholars. A major challenge in this context is the development of standardised human resources policies, particularly in the light of a rising European labour market for academics. This contribution examines the challenges related to the international and cross-border employment of academics, focusing on human resources and recruitment practices, as well as on working conditions during both short and long-term mobility. In doing so, it analyses the role of (fixed-term) contracts, employment security and the legal environment in building sound careers and facilitating academic mobility. The underlying question is how to address the internationalisation of professions in academia in the European labour market.