'Triple A social' meeting - Restoring the social dimension to the heart of European policy

The first discussion panel of the "social triple A" meeting on 19 October 2015 in Luxembourg

Chairpersons of the Committees on Social Affairs of Member States as well as MPs of candidate countries for accession met in Luxembourg on 19 October 2015 for a conference regarding the 'Triple A social rating' organised by the Luxembourg Chamber of Deputies.

Participants debated on the integration of the social dimension in all of the European Union's (EU) policies, the re-socialisation of the European semester and common European values. The Minister for Labour and Employment, Nicolas Schmit, and his associate in charge of Social Security, Romain Schneider, participated in the first round table discussion.

By way of introduction, the Chairperson of the Committee on Social Affairs of the Chamber of Deputies, Georges Engel, wondered about the State's 'feebleness' in progressing towards a social Europe 'as it would bring a more tangible added benefit to an increasing number of citizens who doubt the legitimacy of the European project'.

The President of the Chamber, Mars Di Bartolomeo, deemed it 'essential' to re-introduce the social dimension as central to the European project. This issue 'has too often been pushed aside, neglected and stigmatised as having negative effects on our budgeting balance', he said. Yet the major social problems that Europe faces 'demand a re-centring of the European project around the social dimension', otherwise we risk 'a social fracture, disengagement from or even opposition to the European project from our citizens'.

Mars Di Bartolomeo noted that social imbalances are just as much a threat to EU cohesion as economic imbalances and that we must 're-balance' these two dimensions. 'Although our financial regulations are very strict, a social Europe should not be limited to setting vague objectives to be achieved by everyone using different methods; instead, we need common tools and objectives', he said. It is a matter of evaluating all the policies, in particular the said structural adjustment programmes, in terms of their social impact. In this respect, the conference organised in Luxembourg is an opportunity to put forward arguments on this according to which 'an effective social policy is not the cause of our financial problems; on the contrary, it provides added value and a solution to current problems.'

A positive development after seven years of severe economic crisis

The European Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs, Skills and Labour Mobility, Marianne Thyssen i, spoke about the positive development after seven years of severe economic crisis. 23 out of 28 Member States managed to reduce their unemployment figures and the number of persons at risk of poverty and social exclusion fell. 'This shows that the reforms put in place in the Member States, together with favourable external factors, are starting to have a positive impact', she said.

The Commissioner assured that 'the Commission is taking action and will continue to take action to achieve the triple A social rating in the EU', calling for 'growth that allows the creation of decent employment and provides adequate protection for everyone within the EU'.

The Commissioner presented the concrete measures put in place by the Commission that will help lead to a triple A social rating: the Juncker investment plan which intends to create 1.3 million new jobs, the youth guarantee that has enabled 500,000 young adults to find employment over the last year, and the recommendations to Member States addressed by the Commission in September 2015 to tackle long-term unemployment.

In this context, the Commission is also in the process of reviewing the legislation on health and safety at work, she announced. It will also be equally important to tackle low female representation within the labour market. Furthermore, the Commission will present an agenda on competencies in 2016. Finally, the Commission will endeavour to promote worker mobility, which is one of the fundamental rights enshrined in the Treaty, and promises to review the Posting of Workers Directive.

In conclusion, Marianne Thyssen pointed out that if the Commission had the right of initiative, nothing would be decided without close cooperation with the Member States, the European Parliament, national parliaments and social partners.

Regaining the external and internal convergence of Member States

In his speech, the former Belgian Minister for Social Affairs, Frank Vandenbroucke - now a professor at KU Leuven University - reiterated the issue of increasing inequalities within the EU.

In this regard, he deemed it necessary to revive the original ambition of the founding fathers of the EU and to acquire the appropriate tools to achieve this. He is convinced that, on the one hand, the European project would encourage convergence between the Member States, allowing those countries lagging behind economically to catch up with the others and, on the other hand, that the development of the welfare State within each country would allow the benefits of this convergence to be redistributed, he noted.

'The EU will deserve a triple A social rating if it actively promotes upward convergence between Member States toward the highest levels of prosperity and well-being and, at the same time, convergence for greater equality in terms of prosperity and well-being within Member States', he said. However, the current reality is different, he continued, as we are witnessing growing disparities between the EU countries, in particular within the eurozone, as well as an increase in inequalities within a number of countries, with child and youth poverty an example of this.

'There is a real risk of entering a vicious circle in terms of formation of human capital in our societies, which depend on health care and child care services, education and continuing education', he said, noting that we know that 'it is easier to develop the workforce if children's social conditions are sufficiently equal'. 'Yet today we are creating conditions in a number of countries that make it more difficult to form human capital', which is key to economic growth, added the lecturer. He cited lower public expenditure compared with pre-crisis levels in ten Member States 'that encourage divergence'.

In this context, the professor called on the EU to put in place dual policies that promote the internal and external convergence of Member States. 'Upward convergence toward higher levels of quality in the human capital is a key condition for long-term convergence in matters of prosperity and well-being in Europe', he added. In this respect, the EU should particularly support the development of national social protection systems by defining general standards and common objectives, he concluded.

The entire governance of the EU, and in particular within the eurozone, should be reconsidered

The Minister for Labour, Nicolas Schmit, queried whether it was possible to separate social issues from the economic dimension. 'We always behave as if the social dimension was to be added or had a corrective function with respect to economic policies', he said, adding that, according to him, we should reconsider the entire governance of the EU, and in particular the governance of the eurozone. In practice, 'there are two separate worlds: the economic world with its constraints, its disciplines and its objectives does not consider what is happening in the social domain and does little to evaluate the impacts at a social level', the Minister explained. But in theory, it is the same world, he indicated, calling for a rebalancing of macroeconomic and budgetary policies.

Nicolas Schmit outlined three propositions to renew growth in Europe. Firstly, it will involve relaunching the social dialogue, for which the Minister noted a 'positive development at a national and European level'. We must better balance mobility and social standards in order to guarantee the credibility of Europe, and reflect on structural reforms because, according to him, this term has negative connotations. Finally, the major challenge is the digitisation of the economy, which 'disrupts how businesses function and the basis on which social systems are built', stated Nicolas Schmit.

In conclusion, the Minister indicated that social policy concerned all European countries, but that the constraints imposed on the countries belonging to the European Monetary Union (EMU) are different from those of the Member States that do not form part of the Union. 'The EMU needs additional social governance that is in line with its budgetary and economic governance', he said.

Making social governance an integral part of the European semester

The Minister for Social Security, Romain Schneider, called tomake social governance an integral part of the European semester. 'We must be more ambitious in terms of our social protection systems and aim for upward social convergence in order to strengthen the well-being and prosperity of our citizens', the Minister explained, calling on the States to remain sovereign when it comes to defining the social protection system that they want. 'It is not a matter of calling into question this sovereignty but, above all, of agreeing on the definition of common social standards', assured Romain Schneider.