An Overview of the 2020-2021 Country-Specific Recommendations (CSRs) in the Social Field : the Impact of COVID-19

This publication provides an overview of the CSRs in the field of employment and social policies and an update of previous ETUI research on the subject. This year’s CSRs present substantial novelties compared to the previous European Semester cycles. A first set of new elements derives from the political priorities of the Von der Leyen Commission. The Commission is determined to promote a ‘new growth model’ (the European Green Deal), entailing a change of approach from the past. If the Juncker Commission’s vision for the European Union was strongly anchored to the objective of achieving growth through investment and by enhancing the efficiency and inclusiveness of labour markets, the current work programme appears more oriented towards ensuring that economic growth is sustainable and grounded in the digital and green transition.A second set of novelties in this year’s European Semester cycle reflects the disruptive socio-economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is predicted that the EU economy will face a dramatic recession and that in all EU countries unemployment will drastically increase. Moreover, the path towards a full recovery is uncertain. The report provides a statistical comparison between the Commission’s proposal for the 2020 CSRs and those adopted in the previous years. It contains a country-by-country overview of the actual texts of the social recommendations, complemented by the relevant recital, with a specific focus on the social CSRs and its potential implicatons for the socialisation of the European Semester