European Pillar of Social Rights put forward
“USF has been an affiliate of the European Movement for decades, currently in the “international” branch of the Movement, the EMI.
USF is happy to see the latest update of the positioning of EMI towards a more social Europe.
The European Union and its Institutions have increasingly been perceived by European citizens as a force that essentially adapts to business needs, not so much to the needs of workers.
Although this perception does not do justice to the achievements in the social area at european level, it is good that all actors at that european level reinforce the social dimension of Europe and care for its perception by the citizens and workers.” …
Expression of the European Movement International
On 26 April, the Commission put forward its proposal on the European Pillar of Social Rights. By setting out 20 key principles, the proposed Pillar is designed to enable convergence regarding better working and living conditions within the EMU. To support fair and well-functioning labour markets these principles evolve around three main categories: equal opportunities and access to the labour market, fair working conditions and social protection and inclusion.
In parallel, the Commission published its reflection paper on the social dimension of Europe, highlighting three possible scenarios with different levels of integration. Furthermore, an online tool to monitor the implementation process of Social Pillar, the social scoreboard, has been launched.
As we stress in our Policy Position on the European Pillar of Social Rights, the Social Pillar could enable social justice and equality not just within the EMU but in the EU as a whole. In our position we also touch upon the issues of achieving equality among self- and other employed workers, gender equality concerning equal parental leave for mothers and fathers, as well as streamlining the social dimension into current processes, such as the European Semester.
Input from the European Movement International
The European Movement International strongly believes in the need of having a social rights pillar and welcomes the Commissions actions taken to ensure a successful implementation process. However, in our Policy Position we emphasise that in order to see it prosper, Europe needs to change the narrative that perceives a social model as an obstacle to competitiveness and economic growth.
In addition, more focus should be laid on people without a secure job and on achieving equality regarding flexible and secure labour contracts for all types of employees. In our Policy Position we also discuss the European Pillar’s role in the Future of Europe scenarios in more detail, while looking at newly emerging factors and pressing issues such as technological progress, social security and pension systems, education and training as well as health and youth unemployment.
