1 December 2023
On Monday, following the announcement that the social partners’ negotiations for an Agreement on Telework and the Right to Disconnect have concluded without agreement, Valeria Ronzitti, SGI Europe General Secretary, commented:
“After one year of negotiations, we are disappointed by this final outcome. In line with the commitment from the Social Partners’ joint work programme, SGI Europe was ready to put forward the proposal to a vote within its decision-making bodies. In the next steps, we now call on the European Commission to take inspiration from the compromises which were reached amongst social partners.”
“This negative outcome must serve as a lesson for us all, and we stand ready to engage in a process to identify how the EU social dialogue can deliver moving forward. We will now need the genuine commitment of all involved – employers, trade unions and institutions – in order to make social dialogue strong again.”
Contact: Guillaume Afellat
On Tuesday 28 November 2023, SGI Europe General Secretary, Valeria Ronzitti, and SGI Europe Policy Officer for Institutional Relations, Benoît Cassorla, met and exchanged views with a delegation from the EU Affairs Committee of the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions, which came to Brussels for a study visit.
This meeting was the occasion for Valeria Ronzitti to update our members and their representatives on what SGI Europe does at the EU level, how the association works with our affiliates and how we work in synergy with other organisations at the European level. SGI Europe’s presentation followed short exchanges with a representative from the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR). SGI Europe took the opportunity of this meeting to show locally elected representatives from SALAR the coordinated work we are conducting with our European counterparts, primarily through the SGIs Network.
The SGIs Network gathers associations representing providers and employers of services of general interest (SGIs) and public services such as SGI Europe, HOSPEEM, EBU, EFEE, CER, CEMR, UITP, PostEurop and Eurelectric. SGIs Network’s members share core common values and messages promoting that SGIs are a cornerstone of the EU Social Model and have a central role in ensuring citizens’ quality of life, supporting economic growth, contributing to the EU competitiveness, and balancing the economic and social dimension.
Contact: Benoît Cassorla
On 30 November and 1 December 2023, the EU Social partners (SGI Europe, ETUC, BusinessEurope/SMEunited) organised the second cluster seminar "Supporting the implementation of the Autonomous Framework Agreement on Digitalisation", focusing on the state of play in Spain, Denmark, Malta and the Netherlands.
Over two days, representatives of the social partners - employers and trade unions - exchanged practices, examples, and views on the state of play on the implementation of the EU social partners' Framework Agreeemnt on Digitalisation agreed in 2020. The sessions focused specifically on the main areas of action identified in the Agreement, namely Digital Skills and Securing Employment, Modealities of Connecting and Disconnecting, AI and Guaranteeing the Human in Control Principle and Respect of Human Dignity and Surveillance. Dedicated national exchanges of views also took place, engaging employers and trade unions in sharing their respective views on the implementation in their country.
SGI Europe members from the Netherlands (Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations - central administration - and VNG - local and regional authorities) were present, and brought forward the specific issues raised by the digital transformation of SGIs and public services, and how the integration of digital tools can help their modernisation.
Two more similar cluster seminars will take place in the coming months (in Poland and in Austria), and the final conference - during which will also be presented the digital tool developed in the context of this project - is foressen to take place in May 2024.
Contact: Guillaume Afellat
On 28 and 29 November 2023, the Employment Committee (EMCO) convened in Brussels, bringing together representatives from both the EU and national social partners. Over the years, the involvement of social partners has become a significant part of the EMCO activities, with a specific focus on assessing the challenges related to social dialogue identified within the European Semester. Building on this cooperation, in 2023, these meetings provided an invaluable opportunity to comprehensively assess recent socioeconomic developments and address practical arrangements pertaining to the contributions of social partners in shaping the Committee's future agenda.
On November 28th in the morning a special tripartite meeting was held with the active participation of representatives from both EU Social Partners and national social partners. The meeting was aimed at responding to the Commission’s invitation to organise tripartite discussions in EMCO and will focus on a thematic discussion about skills and labour shortages in the EU, guided by a note provided by the Commission. EU cross-industry social partners Later on the 28th and then on the 29th, the 2023 Social Dialogue Review took center stage: the EMCO delegates and the EU Social Partners engaged in an exchange of views concerning the monitoring of the Council Recommendation regarding the reinforcement of social dialogue in the European Union, on the basis of a Secretariat note, and following the initial views expressed by Member States during the meeting hosted by the Spanish Presidency on 2-3 October.
On the 29th (14.00 – 16.30), the final session was dedicated to evaluating the state of social dialogue and related progress via country-specific reviews for a number of Member States identified within recent European Semester cycles (EE, HU, LT, PL, RO). For this session, national social partners from the Member States under review were invited to join the meeting in Brussels.
Contact: Guillaume Afellat
On 29 November, the European Commission presented its Passenger Mobility Package, aimed at bringing more clarity on passengers' and traveller's rights. The aim is to provide more seamless travelling across Europe by directly supporting travellers and providing real-time information. Special attention was laid to passengers with disabilities or reduced mobility to address and facilitate the switch between transport modes and improve quality assistance where needed.
The package contains three proposals:
Developing innovative transport services and data-driven transport policy-making, it will be important to develop European harmonised data management and development of a future-proof digitalised transport sector. SGI Europe has put forward further recommendations in our Data Sharing in the Mobility Sector paper to boost green mobility via using responsibly data from the public transport operators on a level-playing field with other competitors.
The Transport Task Force will further analyse the package and explore if the new revisions align with existing data-sharing regulations and appropriately use data travelling information from the different providers.
Contact: Henriette Gleau
On 27-28 November, Ministers of Employment and Social Affairs (EPSCO) gathered in Brussels and achieved many results. This final EPSCO meeting of the Spanish presidency of the Council of the EU was chaired by Yolanda Diaz, Spanish Vice-President and Minister for Work and Social Economy, Pablo Bustinduy, Spanish Minister for Social Rights, Consumer Affairs and 2030 Agenda, and Elma Saiz, Minister for inclusion, Social Security and Migration. The European Commission was represented by Nicolas Schmit, Commission for Jobs and Social Rights, and Helena Dalli, Commissioner for Equality.
Amongst others, EPSCO Ministers exchanged views on the role of social investment and related reforms, and on measures to implement evidence-based social policies. This exchange of views was held in the context of the work to support ministers in developing a coordinated approach to social investment.
Ministers also endorsed the conclusion on more democracy at work and green collective bargaining for decent work and sustainable and inclusive growth (2024 European Semester). This conclusion stressed the importance of developing different forms of democracy at work in national legislation, through social dialogue and inviting Member states and the Commission to develop green collective bargaining at the cross-sectoral level, in cooperation with social partners. The Council invited member states to provide affordable early childcare and education services and address the shortage of skilled care workers.
Finally, the Ministers approved conclusions on digitalisation in social security coordination, as well as the Council’s position (general approach) on the proposal for establishing a “European disability card” and a “European Parking card”.
Contact: Guillaume Afellat
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