What - if anything - is undermining the European Social Model?

The notion of a European social model assumes that European societies have certain features in common which distinguish them positively from the United States, among them most notably the social partnership in labour relations, redistributive welfare state schemes, and cohesive societies with a low degree of social inequality. The paper examines to what extent the social reality in the EU conforms to this normative image and what challenges imperil the sustainability of the European social model. Special attention is drawn to the influence of supranational decision-making in the European Union and to the role of the European Court of Justice. It is shown that Court rulings imperil the viability of national social programs, because they open the schemes to transnational access even though they continue to be nationally financed. This is also in tension with the solidarity concepts of European citizens which continue to be framed in terms of national citizenship. As a possible solution to these tensions, the strengthening of the participation rights of national parliaments and governments on the European level is advocated.