**2. Methodology**

For a good grasp of the extent to which public employment services regarding job loss and job search are able to contribute to mitigation of the current phenomena generated by the health and economic crisis, we reviewed the institutional, procedural and legislative framework and their digitalization degree across four European countries. The institutional actors, the legal framework, the specific

<sup>2</sup> https://ec.europa.eu/eures/eures-searchengine/page/main?lang=ro#/jvStatistics

*Comparative Study on Public Electronic Employment Services: Austria, Spain, Estonia, Romania DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.97052*

procedures were identified and analyzed with the comparative method. The analysis process for conducting the study was iterative and interactive, and the results of the analysis derive from the processing and interpretation of data available from public sources: the legal framework and websites of institutions with responsibilities in the field of employment in the four countries considered.

The study provides evidence of the degree of digitalization of employment services in four countries, in a comparative approach. The limitations of the research are that in order to access the information needed, the electronic form templates and online procedures, it is often required to log in - with user/password, which must be confirmed in advance by entering credentials generated by the electronic signature of the mobile phone, or by using the electronic identification card - "citizen Card ID".
