Action Programme

3.5 Reinforcing Welfare and Social Protection

State of Play and Challenges

3.5.1  Over the last few years, workers’ living standards and health have been eroded by cuts in public services and the weakening of our social protection systems. The lack of public investment and spending in key areas such as health and social care, education, public transport, affordable housing, internet or public administration negatively impacts living standards and well-being. The ETUC and affiliates defend the right of all workers and their families to universal and high-quality public services and social protection.

3.5.2  The cost of living crisis has shown that poverty can happen to anyone. More and more families, including those from the low-wage and middle class, struggle to make ends meet. The COVID pandemic has already exacerbated societal inequalities: this crisis will increase them even further if Member States and the EU fail to tackle this it appropriately. The cost of living crisis can have a long-lasting impact on workers, families and society. Living in poverty can lead to stress, social health inequalities and social exclusion.

3.5.3  It is necessary to have a fully inclusive intergenerational solidarity-based approach to welfare, rooted in decent work as the guarantee for fair social security and adequate social protection for all. Member States struggle with increasing and emerging forms of poverty, social exclusion, inequalities and unmet basic needs such as health and care – disproportionately affecting women and vulnerable groups. Regional, rural, and group divides across societies are growing and worsening. The EU economic governance rules and national fiscal positions hinder reforms, ensuring adequate minimum standards and full coverage, as well as the adequacy and effectiveness of social protection systems for all workers and the self-employed, thus hindering the implementation of the EPSR. Coordination among social and fiscal priorities is slow and not systematically tackled via monitoring of progress towards the achievements of the headline 2030 Porto targets. Lack of gender equality, equal opportunities and inclusiveness in labour markets penalise all social protection systems.

3.5.4  Public authorities must deliver universal access to affordable, high-quality social and public services via consistent resources, including the NGEU. The marketisation of public services and PPPs (public-private partnerships) must be rejected. Social clauses must be streamlined in public procurement. In this respect, the synergy between trade unions and the social economy could strengthen their respective roles.

3.5.5  The cost of living crisis and energy and housing poverty disproportionally affect the working poor and pensioners – especially women. Indexation and alignment to the cost of living of pensions and minimum standards are needed.

3.5.6 Workers’ living standards and health have been eroded by cuts in public services and the weakening of our social protection systems. The lack of public investment and spending in critical areas such as health and social care, education, public transport, affordable housing, internet or public administration negatively impacts living standards and well-being. The ETUC and affiliates defend the right of all workers and their families to universal and quality public services and social protection.

Actions

3.5.7 The ETUC will:

• demand public investment in social and enabling services, eradicating and preventing poverty and inequalities, and ensuring social inclusion and protection;
• call for enhanced education and care from the earliest stage of life and along the whole life-cycle – especially in critical socio-economic junctures;
• formulate policy demands and actions based on the annual reviews of the “Status of implementation of the EPSR” to monitor progress and ensure new social risks are effectively prevented.

3.5.8 The ETUC shall:

• set up an interactive trade union monitoring and consultation system to implement the Council Recommendation on access to Social Protection for workers and the self-employed, including national feedback on any reform and development;
• build on this monitoring to support their affiliates, including in their interaction with EU institutions, and ensure greater support to oppose any reforms that undermine the right to social protection.

3.5.9 The ETUC will:

• reinforce the narrative of Dignity of Ageing based on a comprehensive approach to welfare rights, including minimum dignifying safety nets, adequate minimum income, and long-term care for all ages and on the intergenerational solidarity principle.

3.5.10  The ETUC:

• demands that social protection needs are addressed firstly by ensuring quality jobs across all ages and enabling women participation in the labour market;
• focuses on policies allowing to reduce the gender pension gap;
• collects evidence on the fiscal potential of the fight against undeclared work in all sectors.

3.5.11  The ETUC will:

• advocate for an approach to pension policy in line with the EPSR, embedding a fair and people-centred retirement age and eradicating the gender pension gap. The pension income has to be adequate, income- and work-related, with the guarantee of adequate minimum pensions for all generations and indexation of pensions according to the rise of inflation and cost of life. With income-related pensions and adequate minimum pensions above poverty protection fully in line with the principles of universal coverage, adequacy effectiveness;

3.5.12  The ETUC will:

• make the ETUC SociAll a Trade Union platform to design an EU social protection model, which is a leader in the welfare economy based on modernised trade union demands for rights and upward convergence.