10 June 2022
Confirmed speakers: MEP Ismail Ertug (S&D/DE, AFIR Rapporteur), Axel Volkery (European Commission), Antoine Grange (CEO Europe, Transdev), Michael Villa (Executive Director, Smarten), Julien Martin (Head of Regulation, EDF Mobility), Elisa Schenner (Head of EU office, Wiener Stadtwerke GmBH)
Decarbonising urban and peri-urban mobility is essential to achieve the EU's climate neutrality in 2050, with the relationship between transport and energy more crucial than ever. With SGI Europe members at the core of this interconnection between energy and transport, the event will gather key stakeholders, enabling the transition towards zero-emission mobility from energy suppliers to public transport providers. More information.
Contact: Ariel Carpanini
On Wednesday 8 June, SGI Europe held its statutory meetings, hosted by Nantes Métropole in the City Hall of Nantes. The meeting was a unique opportunity to update members on the recent policy developments, activities and the way forward for SGI Europe.
The war in Ukraine, and its consequences on EU citizens and economy, were at the centre of the discussions, including the disruption of supply chains and the accompanying economic uncertainty. More specifically, members discussed the contribution of SGI Europe to the REPowerEU plan and the crucial role of SGI employers and providers in ensuring the continued provision of essential services. In addition, challenges related to the humanitarian dimension of the war were discussed, including managing the flow of refugees. SGI Europe also updated members on the current EU policy priorities, such as the European Commission's social agenda and the financing of the green and digital transitions (including the role of the EU taxonomy of sustainable activities).
The meeting also featured the exceptional participation of representatives of water providers from Lviv (from Ukraine) who reported on the situation of their enterprise in time of war, the adaptation of their operation to keep water systems running despite the threat of Russian missiles, and how SGI Europe and the EU can support them. Following the presentation and discussion, SGI Europe General Assembly invited them to attend the upcoming meeting of the Water Task Force on 6 July 2022 to continue the discussions and provide further support in preparing for the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine.
Contact: Maxime Staelens
In the margins of the statutory meetings, several events were also organised by Nantes Métropole and the City of Nantes, with the support of La Maison de l’Europe à Nantes.
Amongst those, a dedicated event, "European Union: a job for every young person?" (organised in the context of the European Year of Youth), provided a dedicated platform to discuss youth policies and, more specifically, the role of SGI employers in supporting youth employment. Following introductory remarks from Isabelle Maquet (Economic Adviser of the Representative Office of the European Commission in France), SGI Europe's Presidential Team – President Pascal Bolo and Vice-Presidents Milena Angelova, Filippo Brandolini and Ingbert Liebing – presented the challenges, solutions and opportunities from the respective countries, addressing, amongst others, the emergence of new jobs, skills mismatches, the need for adapting training schemes and the role of social dialogue. A dedicated focus was also put on the articulation between the EU and local levels: a second panel presented local initiatives of professional reintegration, including testimonies from young beneficiaries of those programmes.
Other activities included a walking tour of the city of Nantes, a visit to SEMITAN (Nantes public transport company) and the Chinon nuclear plant (organised by EDF).
Contact: Maxime Staelens
On Tuesday 9 June, the French presidency of the Council and the European Parliament reached a provisional political agreement on the minimum wage directive. Building upon the European Commission's proposal and considering some critical requests from SGI Europe, the provisional agreement features some significant improvements.
First, it takes into account the legal diversity of Member States as labour systems wherein the minimum wage is defined exclusively by collective agreements do not have an obligation to introduce a national scheme nor make collective agreements universally applicable. Furthermore, the directive promotes the centrality of social partners in collective bargainings, such as in minimum wage settings. This focus is particularly relevant in the current climate of high inflation pressuring wage negotiations.
The directive is foreseen to facilitate the provisioning of a decent standard of living by setting adequate minimum wages in the national contexts of each Member State. Moreover, since improving the economic and social resilience is at the centre of the green and digital transition, an agreement on the directive is a sign of EU-level political cooperation in social affairs.
In line with the European Pillar of Social Rights, the directive is a welcomed step toward addressing inequalities through social dialogue. Regarding the future developments of the directive, SGI Europe will remain vigilant on crucial topics that ensure the autonomy of social partners, such as indicative reference values, the list of criteria, the monitoring and control measures.
Contact: Guillaume Afellat
This week, the plenary session of the European Parliament debated and voted on a set of proposals from the Fit-for-55 package. In that context, on Wednesday 8 June, the European Parliament rejected the report on the Revision of the EU Emission Trading System (ETS2) by 340 votes against, 265 votes in favour and 34 abstentions. Green and left-wing MEPs commented on the lack of ambition of the report, criticising the proposals of the EPP and Renew on the timetable and targets.
A significant bone of contention between Parliament's political groups was the emission reduction target from sectors subject to the European carbon market by 2030 and the timetable for eliminating the free emissions allowances granted to European industry. The draft report will now be referred back to the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI), where MEPs will have to find a compromise on the ambition, targets and timeline for the EU ETS2. As a direct consequence of the rejection of the ETS report, MEPs also agreed to refer back the CBAM (Carbon-Border Adjustment Mechanism) report to the ENVI committee, in order to ensure coherence between the two reports.
In its position paper, SGI Europe welcomed the ambition of the EU ETS to strengthen and extend the ETS, as it remains one of the main EU instruments to fight climate change. SGI Europe also calls for a meaningful carbon price to drive cost-effective energy transition by promoting renewable and low-carbon technology investments.
The European Parliament supported the proposals for a new CO2 standard for cars, meaning all new vehicles will need to be zero-emission by 2035. Finally, MEPs also voted to raise the overall target in the Effort Sharing Regulation — which covers pollution from non-ETS sectors — from 30 to 40% by 2030, as proposed by the Commission.
Contact: Ariel Carpanini
On 9 June, SGI Europe attended the Plenary Meeting of the ESF+ Committee, where several topics were discussed, including REPowerEU Communication, best practices for welcoming Ukrainian refugees and the ESF Social Innovation+ guidance on 2023 thematic priorities.
SGI Europe welcomed the principles of the REPowerEU initiative published on 8 March. It underlined that the Green Deal remains the only way forward in the long term, emphasising the increased ambition while allowing for flexibility and technology neutrality.
Likewise, SGI Europe has warned about realising the current scenario with anticipated heavy social consequences. To face the present crisis, households, enterprises and energy, transport, water providers, and waste management need support to prevent damaging impacts.
SGI Europe expressed its full support for the EU efforts to mobilise financial resources and concrete tools for facilitating the welcoming and integration of the Ukrainian refugees. Together with the CARE and REACT-EU initiatives, the ESF+ should play a key role in providing short-term access to shelter and food, housing, healthcare, and education, and in the long run facilitating integration into the labour market through training, skills and qualifications recognition and professional guidance.
Contact: Stefan Enica
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