European Pillar of Social Rights

The European Pillar of Social Rights (EPSR, German: Europäische Säule sozialer Rechte) is an initiative of the European Commission. The EPSR is intended to launch comprehensive reforms of the European labour markets and social systems. The 27 Member States and the UK are committed to common minimum standards, including fair wages, unemployment assistance and reasonable pensions in a declaration made at a summit in Gothenburg on 17 November 2017.

History

The initial preliminary draft of the EPSR was published by the European Commission in March 2016. This was followed by a consultation process with the Member States, authorities, social partners and citizens of the EU: the consultation process was officially concluded with a high-ranking Commission conference in Brussels on 23 January 2017.[1]

Contents

The EPSR contains a preamble and 3 chapters with target values for 20 fields:

  • Chapter I: Equal opportunities and access to the labour market

(general education, professional training and lifelong learning, gender equality, equal opportunities, active support for employment)

  • Chapter II: Fair working conditions

(secure and adaptable employment, wages, information about employment conditions and protection in the event of dismissals, social dialogue and involvement of workers, work-life balance, healthy, safe and well-adapted working environments and data protection)

  • Chapter III: Social protection and inclusion

(childcare and support for children, social protection, unemployment benefits, minimum income, old age income and pensions, healthcare, inclusion of people with disabilities, long-term care, housing and assistance for the homeless, access to essential services)

The EPSR is intended to act as a reference document of sorts, by means of which the labour markets and social standards in the Member States may approach the standards defined in the Pillar in the long term.[2]

The European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan,[3] is an added document which transfers 20 principles laid down in 3 chapters into actions. It also contains goals for the EU to reach by 2030. 80% of the European population considers European Social Rights very important for their future. Targets are as follows:

  • 76% - at least to have a work and be in employment, at least
  • 60% of young people to have participation opportunities in trainings and other educational tools,
  • to reduce by 15 million, people who are in poverty and can not benefit from the social add.

Further development

In March 2018, the Commission proposed the establishment of a European Labour Authority as a specific measure to implement the EPSR and to enable self-employed workers to access social security.[2]

In 2021, Porto Social Summit was organized by the Portuguese Council Presidency. It provided commitments to implement the European Social Rights pillar effectively, on the national and on the European level.[4]

The Social Rights Action Plan was designed Strategic Agenda of 2019-2024. During the Summit, The Porto Declaration [5] was presented and adopted, which evaluated COVID-19 crises, its consequences on European Social Rights and suggested some solutions on these issues.

Criticism

Whether and in what form the EPSR will actually be implemented remains to be seen. While the initiative was generally welcomed, there was also considerable criticism. The Member States fear a shift in competences to the benefit of the EU and/or European Commission and therefore insist on compliance with the principle of subsidiarity.

Moreover, some Member States have been reluctant to the idea of intrusion from the EU into their national welfare systems. The EPSR represents another attempt from the EU to invest in the social dimension but, as history has shown, Member States have kept their distance from that idea. One of the main arguments of the Member States willing to retain full sovereignty over their social competencies has been the need to preserve their national labour laws and their social models.[6] Member States might fear the possible damage that the EU internal market could cause to their social systems. The combination of the direct effect and the supremacy of the EU law over national laws with the constitutionalisation of economic freedoms has been seen as a possible threat by some Member States, as seen in the Viking and Laval case where the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled in favour of economic freedoms over the right to collective action.

The Member States are not under any obligation to implement the EPSR.[3]

Several governments are concerned that it will put an additional burden on national state budgets (e.g. through higher social benefits). Trade unions maintain that the initiative does not go far enough,[7][2][3] while employer associations criticise that the EPSR would make the EU less competitive.[7]

References
  1. European Pillar of Social Rights: Commission prepares next steps towards European Pillar of Social Rights, accessed on 5 February 2018.
  2. Streit um EU-Standards Wirtschaftlich einig, sozial gespalten. (Dispute on EU standards: Economically unified, socially divided). In: Spiegel online. 13 March 2018, accessed on 18 March 2018.
  3. . on: European Commission webpage. accessed on 28 March 2022.
  4. in: Porto Social Summit, accessed on 28 March 2022.
  5. in: European Coucil POrto Declaration, accessed on 28 March 2022.
  6. Rasnača, Zane (5 November 2020). "Bridging the gaps or falling short? The European Pillar of Social Rights and what it can bring to EU-level policymaking". ETUI, The European Trade Union Institute.
  7. ESSR: Gelingt der EU-Kommission der große sozialpolitische Wurf? (EPSR: Will the EU Commission succeed in this big social policy move? In: Makronom. 17 January 2017 (Online [accessed on 19 February 2017]).
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