This report contains a case study for the Study supporting the Impact assessment of the future European Social Fund proposal. Achieving structural change: conditions for success in the areas of ESF intervention. The reform under assessment focuses on "Reinforcing social protection, especially...

This edition of the Employment and Social Developments in Europe (ESDE) review examines patterns and developments of social convergence in the EU over the last decade, showing important catching-up trends among Member States. It discusses the role of social investment in supporting social and...

This edition of the Employment and Social Developments in Europe (ESDE) review examines patterns and developments of social convergence in the EU over the last decade, showing important catching-up trends among Member States. It discusses the role of social investment in supporting social and...

A competitive and sustainable economy with a high level of employment is the basis for the European economic and social model which also contributes to better economic and social convergence. Enhancing productivity based on skills and knowledge is the only sound recipe for maintaining the...

This document seeks to provide input, albeit not comprehensive, to the Global Coalition for Social Justice. It highlights key messages from EESC opinions on the six priority areas identified by the International Labour Organization (ILO) for immediate action: 1. Addressing inequality,...

This document seeks to provide input, albeit not comprehensive, to the Global Coalition for Social Justice. It highlights key messages from EESC opinions on the six priority areas identified by the International Labour Organization (ILO) for immediate action: 1. Addressing inequality,...

The European Pillar of Social Rights (EPSR) was adopted at the 2017 Gothenburg Social Summit. It sets the ambitions of strengthening the social dimension of the EU and covers 20 key principles and rights essential for fair and well-functioning labour markets and social protection systems. - The...

A strong Social Europe is about people and their well-being. Europe is home to the most equal societies in the world, with the highest standards in working conditions and broad social protection. This unique model is pivotal for Europe's social and economic resilience, delivering well-being for...

In 2019, the European Union set a new, ambitious course towards a fair and inclusive Europe that protects its citizens and creates opportunities. At the 2021 Porto Social Summit, EU leaders, institutions and social partners agreed to put social at the heart of our policies. We set three EU-wide...

The original full study reviews the potential of the European Social Security Pass (ESSPASS) as a tool for the enforcement of labour and social security rights. It first explains the initiative's background, discussing how the current conceptualisation of ESSPASS links with other EU...

In 2019, the European Union set a new, ambitious course towards a fair and inclusive Europe that protects its citizens and creates opportunities. At the 2021 Porto Social Summit, EU leaders, institutions and social partners agreed to put social at the heart of our policies. We set three EU-wide...

This article explored the influence of unemployment perceptions on attitudes towards an EU‐wide social policy that guarantees a minimum standard of living for the poor across 18 European countries. The article relied on a theoretical framework that highlights the interaction among economic...

The EU committed to meet the poverty reduction target set in the European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan, which entails to reduce the number of children at risk of poverty or social exclusion by 5 million by 2030. The paper assesses the impact of child-contingent cash support in EU-27 in...

The format of this report was established for the 2021 Semester, as part of the work programme of the Commission's European Disability Expertise (EDE) network and building on previous work by the Academic Network of European Disability experts (ANED) project. This updated report provides a...

Drawing on a wide array of sources and literature, this study examines the role of the European Parliament in the establishment of the European Community's social policy. It argues that Parliament played a key role in placing this nascent policy issue on the agenda. It influenced the definition...

Between 1969 and 1993, a genuine ‘European welfare state’ was forged at the level of the European Economic Community (EEC), even though this expression was not used per se. After a definition of the welfare state as a three-pronged set of policies, the article develops first the flourishing...

Social Europe is back on the political agenda - as a result of severe economic crises, prior austerity policies and a change in the European discourse framework. Six years after being announced, the European Pillar of Social Rights - although legally non-binding - has become the central...

This study considers the potential of the European Social Security Pass (ESSPASS) as a tool for the enforcement of labour and social security rights. It explains the challenges in social security coordination and considers whether the current conceptualisation of ESSPASS can alleviate these...

The concept of "Social Europe" encompasses the European Union's social policy framework. This paper argues that the financial crisis of 2007-2009, the subsequent Euro crisis, and the ensuing austerity measures diverted significant attention away from Social Europe. This neglect led to declining...

This chapter engages with the tensions and contradictions of EU citizenship by introducing the status as a double-edged sword for European social security. Reviewing both law and practice in the Member States, the chapter argues that EU citizenship continues to create extra layers of protection...

This book examines the potential role of European Union law in combating poverty and social exclusion in the European Union. Anti-poverty strategies have been part of the European Union agenda for decades. Most saliently, over a decade ago, the EU’s Member States pledged to lift 20 million...

The social policy of the European Union from the very beginning of its implementation has been a very specific area of ​​EU activity for two fundamental reasons: on the one hand, the importance of social problems in the modern world is constantly increasing, but on the other hand, with the...

This paper analyzes the EU’s efforts in designing a social taxonomy for sustainable investments. Examining the draft Social Taxonomy proposed by the Platform for Sustainable Finance in early 2022, we challenge the decision to follow the methodology provided by the EU’s environmental taxonomy...

This paper explores the EU recovery strategy with a specific focus on its potentially transformative aspects vis-à-vis European integration and on its implications for the social dimension of the EU's socio-economic governance. It aims, in particular, to provide a reflection on whether the...

The Spring of 2021 was a good season for Social Europe, with the European Commission coming forward with an Action Plan to implement the European Pillar of Social Rights, and the Portuguese Presidency of the Council staging an informal summit (i.e. a high level conference with heads of state and...

Das EU-Mehrebenensystem verhandelt den Einfluss der europäischen Organe auf die einzelstaatliche Souveränität fortlaufend neu. Sozialpolitik gilt dabei traditionell als Domäne der Mitgliedsstaaten. Kann man jedoch an dieser Stelle noch von politischer Autonomie der Nationalstaaten sprechen...