Public policy and support for restructuring in SMEs

Abstract

Across Europe, restructuring in SMEs receives less public attention than large-scale restructuring. However, the recent economic crisis has sharpened policy focus in this area. The current discussion centres around the anticipation of change and individual forms of restructuring – particularly business expansion and internal restructuring – with the accent on business rather than labour market issues. A wide range of supports for SMEs and their employees in restructuring is available – either as part of the support provided for all restructurings, or specifically targeted at SMEs and their employees. However, there is potential for improvement in terms of technical aspects (for example, the reduction of bureaucracy, greater involvement of social partners and increasing transparency of available support) and contentrelated features (such as provision of diagnostic tools, financial instruments and networking possibilities).