Opinion on the third report from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament and the Economic and Social Committee on the application of the Community Charter of the fundamental social rights of workers (94/C 295/13)

On 18 January 1994 the Commission decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee, under Article 198 of the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, on the third report from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament and the Economic and Social Committee on the application of the Community Charter of the fundamental social rights of workers.

The Section for Social, Family, Educational and Cultural Affairs, which was responsible for preparing the Committee`s work on the subject, adopted its Opinion on 19 May 1994. The Rapporteur was Miss Maddocks.

At its 316th Plenary Session (meeting of 1 June 1994), the Economic and Social Committee adopted the following Opinion by a majority vote in favour, with 12 abstentions.

1. The Committee has already adopted extensive and, in the Commission`s view, 'constructive` Opinions concerning the two previous reports by the Commission on the application of the Community Charter of the Fundamental Social Rights of Workers. In these earlier Opinions, the Committee commented in depth on the Council decision-making process, on the legal basis for achieving more concrete progress, on the application of the Social Protocol Agreement for this purpose and on the integral link between European-wide basic social rights and the 'Citizens` Europe`. Given the stage that has now been reached in this third report, it is considered inopportune to prepare the same sort of analysis as in previous years. Suffice perhaps to make reference to the two earlier Opinions (1). The current Opinion instead highlights what has not been completed and what might be envisaged in setting a new agenda for basic European social rights in the run-up to 1996.

2. With regard to the question of new European social policy initiatives, the Committee has already given its response in its Opinion on the Green Paper on the Future of European Social Policy (2). It is also in the process of preparing Opinions on specific aspects including the White Paper on Growth, Competitivity and Employment, the new programmes on training, education and health and safety at the workplace, the application of the Social Protocol Agreement, the establishment of European committees or procedures in Community-scale undertakings and Community-scale groups of undertakings for the purposes of informing and consulting employees, EC-ILO relations, voting rights, immigration and asylum, etc.

3. The Committee welcomes the Third Report of the Commission on the application of the Community Charter of the Fundamental Social Rights of Workers. Whilst commending the more uniform response by Member Governments to the Commission questionnaire on the application, the Committee once more regrets that the Commission appears unable in this report to produce a comprehensive, up-dated table of progress (this is partly compensated by the incomplete table appended to the Green Paper on the Future of European Social Policy). The Committee also regrets that its proposal to involve the social partners in the drawing-up of the report has not been taken up. The Committee considers that the Commission should continue to prepare annual reports on the application of the Community Charter. It would also request the Commission to refer a comprehensive 'compliance` report both to the European Parliament and to the Economic and Social Committee as regards European social policy directives and regulations.

4. The Committee is pleased to note that sufficient political will has been demonstrated by the Council of Ministers in adopting, albeit by qualified majorities, the Directive on working time and a common position on the protection of young people at work. It continues to regret that Directives on 'core` subjects for which the Social Charter was launched - concerning atypical work, the posting of workers, the European Works Committees and workers with reduced mobility - have still not been adopted in Council. In this context, the application of the Social Charter cannot be judged to be complete nor sufficiently successful in qualitative terms. As stated in previous Opinions, the Committee is confident that progress will finally be made on these vital proposals through the vigorous application of the Social Protocol Agreement provisions. It would also repeat its registered view regretting the UK 'opt-out` from the Agreement, which is looking increasingly untenable, and which might give rise to Directives not covering all the Member States.

5. The Committee highlights once again, in the context of the current Opinion, the backlog of European-wide basic social rights (and obligations) as regards, for example:

- the right of association and of collective bargaining;

- the right of job-seekers to public placement services free of charge;

- parental leave and leave for family reasons;

- modifying the burden of proof in the area of equal pay and equal treatment for women and men;

- 'information and consultation of workers`;

- transferable occupational pension schemes.

5.1. The Committee would again urge the promotion of a 'social clause` within the World Trade Organization procedures with references to established ILO standards especially as regards:

- the prohibition of forced labour (Conventions 29 and 105);

- freedom of association and the right to free collective bargaining (Conventions 87 and 98);

- minimum working age and the abolition of child labour (Convention 138);

- equality of opportunity and treatment (Conventions 100 and 111).

6. Finally, as the model of our society is founded on economic and social progress and, in view of the European Council`s statement in favour of 'an economy geared to solidarity` and the call in the White Paper for 'less passive and more active solidarity`, the Committee would also restate its long-established view that social and economic activity are interdependent. Fundamental social rights and wealth creation go hand-in-hand; each is an equal source and guarantee of the other. They are the twin pillars of the European social market model, whose success has sustained the post-war pacification of Europe, and whose common values can continue to help European democracies to unite.

Done at Brussels, 1 June 1994.

The Chairman

of the Economic and Social Committee

Susanne TIEMANN

(1) OJ No C 287, 4. 11. 1992 and OJ No C 352, 30. 12. 1993.

(2) OJ No C 148, 30. 5. 1994.