Opinion on the White Paper on European social policy: 'A way forward for the Union' (95/C 210/10)

The Committee of the Regions decided on 26 July 1994, in accordance with Article 198c of the Treaty establishing the European Community, to draw up an own-initiative Opinion on the above-mentioned White Paper.

The commission on Economic and Social Cohesion, Social Policy and Public Health, which was responsible for preparing the Committee's work on the subject, adopted its Opinion on 12 October 1994. The Rapporteur was Mr Bodfish.

At its 5th plenary session (meeting of 16 November 1994) the Committee of the Regions adopted the following Opinion.

Introduction

1. The Committee of the Regions welcomes the opportunity to contribute to the vigorous discussion currently taking place in the European Union on the future of social policy and gives a strong welcome to the White Paper and the debate it has stimulated. The Committee of the Regions wishes to emphasize the crucial role of local and regional authorities in the process of social and economic development, which it feels is not always adequately represented in the White Paper. It is, however, disappointed that consultation on social policy is not specifically provided for in the Treaties.

2. The Committee of the Regions stresses the interdependence between the White Paper on Social Policy and the White Paper on Employment, Growth and Competitiveness and welcomes the focus that both documents place on unemployment, which the Committee of the Regions agrees is the single most important economic and social problem and challenge for the Union. The two documents taken together represent a comprehensive set of proposals for developing the economic and social policy of the Union into the next millennium.

3. The Committee of the Regions:

- believing that local and regional government already de facto plays a major role in social policy in all countries of the Union, underlines the critical nature of developing this involvement if the White Paper objectives are to be achieved;

- noting that local and regional authorities are large scale employers, employing in some countries of the Union up to 25 % of the workforce and that as major employers they have a responsibility not only to their employees on issues relating to working conditions, equal opportunities, training and health and safety, but to the Union to help underpin the conditions necessary for economic growth, seek full recognition by the Commission of the important role local and regional authorities have in this regard;

- acknowledging the key strategic role played by regional and local authorities in stimulating and coordinating local economic development, through involvement in urban regeneration and rural development schemes, infrastructure redevelopment and by facilitating or providing training or retraining in anticipation of local changes in the labour market, seeks for consultation on all proposed European Union policy development in such fields;

- notes and fully endorses the Council of Europe's Charter for Local Self Government which acknowledges the need to support and nurture diversity through the granting of strong general powers to local and regional authorities, and

- above all, emphasizing the role played by local and regional authorities in many Member States as primary service providers in the fields of eduction, training, social housing, social and welfare services, transport, health promotion and the environment, asserts its pivotal position in representing the interests of local communities.

Jobs - the top priority

4. The Committee of the Regions agrees with the European Council that the seven areas identified at its meeting in Brussels in December 1993 require particular attention by Member States in its action plan resulting from the Commission's White Paper on Employment, Growth and Competitiveness, namely:

(i) improving education and training systems, especially continuing education;

(ii)

improving flexibility within enterprises and in the labour market;

(iii)

the reorganization of work at enterprise level;

(iv)

targeted reductions in the indirect costs of labour (statutory contributions), particularly of less skilled work;

(v) better use of public funds set aside for combating unemployment;

(vi)

specific measures concerning young people without adequate training;

(vii)

developing employment in connection with new requirements.

5. The Committee of the Regions endorses these principles. These are being implemented by the Member States - albeit with varying priority - in order to reduce high levels of unemployment. A uniform and rigid set of objectives in all Member States would, however, preclude a flexible and rapid response to regional labour market trends, which differ by virtue of the general conditions obtaining in each region.

The aim should be to operate complementary employment policies at EU, Member State and sub-national level with closer coordination within the European Union. Therefore the Committee welcomes the Commission's proposal that cooperation with the relevant national, regional and local bodies be stepped up and given encouragement at Union Level.

6. The Committee of the Regions welcomes the focus on the promotion of job creation as the top priority and the recognition in the White Paper on Social Policy of the contribution of different kinds of enterprises to this task in particular, locally-based initiatives and partnerships, very often initiated and coordinated by local and regional authorities with the assistance of European Union funding. These have encouraged positive and active labour market measures, emphasizing the need to involve the community in developing creative solutions, while being responsive to national and local labour market needs in accordance with the subsidiarity principle. The Committee of the Regions strongly recommends that best practice from such innovative measures at local level should be fed into the debate on social policy and the forthcoming employment action plan.

7. Furthermore, the Committee of the Regions considers that the White Paper should accord more importance to territorial cohesion policies, not only on grounds of social justice, but as a way of boosting economic growth and job creation in the European Union. Regional disparities continue to be the reason for, and consequence of, the inefficient use of productive potential, resulting in social inequalities. Consequently, to achieve maximum growth and job creation, special attention should be given to the exploitation of the productive resources of Europe's less developed regions; this can be done by providing them with infrastructures designed to bring about regional balance and increase the economic output of these regions. This will not only further economic and social cohesion, but also help growth and job creation in Europe. It is also a good formula for integrating economic efficiency with the objectives of equality and social welfare.

Investing in a world class labour force

8. The Committee of the Regions endorses the right to training for life and the expression of commitment to the development of life-long learning opportunities for adults which do not concentrate solely on job-related training but also seek to improve general knowledge. In-service and continuing training should cover a combination of general and job-related skills. This would not only raise the education and skills level of the whole population, but would also contribute to the reduction of the human, social and economic costs of unemployment. Local and regional authorities are major providers of education and training and have a positive contribution to make in the development of skills, in liaison with firms. Local and regional authorities also can help to meet the training needs of SMEs and have a strong tradition in many Member States of collaboration and partnership with the private sector in the provision of training.

9. The Committee of the Regions

- welcomes the proposal to build a Union-wide guarantee that no person under the age of 18 can be unemployed; however it recognizes that this can only be achieved with the support and availability of high quality, appropriate education and training, with no displacement of the existing labour supply, and adequate funds;

- underlines the important role local and regional authorities have in tackling illiteracy, not just for young people leaving the eduction system but also for adults entering re-training and supports the setting of targets for its elimination, which must be supported by the provision of appropriate training and resources;

- believes that extending the scope and range of existing apprenticeship schemes can most appropriately be achieved through the mutual recognition and promotion of broad and modularized training to develop competencies;

- in welcoming the proposal to increase and improve the coordinated provision of guidance and placement services, believes that this must be part of a continuum of guidance which supports progression through life and is available to all entrants to, and members of, the labour force;

- advances the suggestion that there should be an examination of tax incentives to promote training, which should include exploration of the idea of a training levy.

The European Social Fund

10. The Committee of the Regions wishes to strongly emphasize the importance of strengthening the involvement of local and regional authorities in the ESF partnership arrangements. It is important for the provisions to specify that Member States are responsible for ensuring that regional and local authorities, the social partners and educational establishments are involved in prepatory work. The Committee of the Regions welcomes the White Paper's emphasis on targeting more ESF funds within a regional and local framework and participation in the decision-making process to provide for quality, innovative training which effectively addresses local labour market needs and which covers both job-related and broader, more general skills, rather than the use of ESF funds for mainstream national programmes.

11. The Committee of the Regions further welcomes the use of the new Objective 4 of the ESF and especially the need for pilot projects on retraining to adapt to industrial change to be supported under the Adapt Initiative, and suggests that Objective 4 funds be administered at regional level. The Committee of the Regions welcomes the broadening of Objective 3 from a purely training approach to encompass other areas of social policy. However, the extension of Objective 3 into new areas of exclusion combined with rising unemployment requires that much of the limited resources available must remain concentrated on Objective 3.

12. Furthermore, the broadening of the range of ESF, also to include a new Objective 4, means that in future there is an urgent need for an increase in resources to pursue these objectives.

Encouraging high labour standards as part of a competitive Europe

13. The Committee of the Regions agree that the Commission must prioritize the successful conclusion of those aspects of the Social Charter Action Programme yet to be invoked, notably proposals dealing with the information and consultation of workers, non-standard employment and the posting of workers.

14. The Committee of the Regions believes that the Social Charter and Social Protocol can play a key role in promoting a healthy economic environment based on social justice. However, further progress in this area is needed so that the Single Market can be achieved and the workforce throughout the Union can expect common minimum standards. To this end the Committee of the Regions supports binding and enforceable minimum standards in the field of health and safety at work, whereas common minimum standards on working conditions should be dealt with within the framework of convergence of policies, not in the form of binding Directives. This approach will provide a framework which the various national systems can fit into as well as room for collective bargaining between the social partners.

Recommendations on convergence might include:

- Individual protection rights on dismissal;

- protection of the privacy of workers;

- the requirement of equal treatment in case of part-time work (where opted for) and work on fixed-term contracts;

- the prohibition of discrimination against workers who uphold their rights to refuse to perform illegal tasks;

- the right to payment of wages on public holidays and during illness;

- the right of a worker to be heard in internal private company matters which concern him or her personally;

- abolition of indirect discrimination against women in the fields of social protection and individual workers' rights.

15. There is a need for immediate action in these areas without waiting for further developments in the individual Member States, as the Commission intends to do. Great care will have to be taken to ensure that the measures focus on binding minimum standards, which will form a framework for national systems and the social partners' collective bargaining. The Committee of the Regions seeks an unequivocal undertaking from Member States to provide the necessary resources in the public sector to bring such policies to fruition.

16. In noting the emphasis placed on the Social Agreement of the Treaty on European Union, based on a consensus between employers on the one hand and employees' organizations on the other, the Committee of the Regions believes that regional and local government should have its important role fully recognized. Without such recognition, the future progress of the social dialogue must be doubted, since strengthening and broadening of the social dialogue cannot be reached without the involvement of local and regional authorities, which are such significant employers.

17. The Committee of the Regions is a ready-make forum for discussion of labour market and social policy issues particularly in so far as they impact upon the competences across local government.

Building a European labour market

18. The Committee of the Regions supports moves to remove the remaining legal barriers to free movement of workers as proposed in the White Paper and notes that an important part of this process is the mutual recognition of qualifications.

The Committee of the Regions would point out, however, that the further alignment of social welfare benefits and immigration policies is a sine qua non for complete freedom of movement of all EU citizens.

The rights of third-country nationals who are legally resident in the EU Member States cannot be extended towards full freedom of movement until Member States' provisions on immigration and asylum have been harmonized.

19. In terms of the fight for jobs and against racism and xenophobia, the Committee of the Regions believes that local and regional authorities have a crucial role; the Union should look at the many positive examples of the promotion of harmonious community relations at the local level. Local and regional government is in the unique position of being the principal arm of governance at the community level and are well placed to tackle the disproportionately high levels of unemployment faced by ethnic minorities because of the role they play in providing the social care, education, language facilities and conditions of services appropriate to recruit and integrate ethnic minorities into the workforce.

20. The Committee of the Regions welcomes measures in the White Paper designed to encourage free movement of persons and the development of EURES.

21. Racial harmony is one of the keys to a European Union built on solidarity between its citizens and the Committee of the Regions believes that the Union should provide increased financial support for the exchange of experience among local and regional authorities to encourage best practice in this area.

22. The Committee of the Regions supports the European Commission's intention to debate the question of explicit reference in the Treaties to combating discrimination on the grounds of sex, race, religion, age and disability. The Committee of the Regions intends to play a full part in the debate on revision of the Treaties particularly with reference to issues of particular concern to local and regional authorities and regrets that there is no requirement in the present Treaty for consultation with the Committee on the negotiations for the review of the Treaties in 1996.

Equality of treatment between women and men

23. The Committee of the Regions, noting that local and regional authorities employ a high percentage of women therefore have much good practice to share on positive policies towards women, and have promoted better working conditions for 'atypical' workers, (the vast majority of whom are women), believes that the Commission should promote exchanges of experience between local and regional authorities in their capacity as employers to allow them to further develop best employment practices, and in order that this experience can be better shared.

24. The Committee of the Regions welcomes the intention to:

- follow up the Childcare Recommendation, but believes that Member States and regional and local authorities of the EU should take a greater lead in stressing the value of nursery education, kindergarten and other forms of pre-compulsory schooling by promoting exchange of experience and good practice guidelines;

- press for the adoption of the proposed Directive on parental leave, but would also wish the Commission to research the development of new forms of work, including job sharing, job splitting, flexitime, moving to and from part time work, annualized hours, seasonal working, term time working and the use of information technology for home working: all of these, which local and regional authorities have pioneered, have advantages to the employer as well as the employee and have a vital role to play in encouraging women into the labour market;

- encourage the adoption of the outstanding proposal for a Directive on the burden of proof;

- develop mechanisms to integrate the equality dimension in the operation of the Structural Funds and the Community Initiatives through the use of more precise targets, data collection and monitoring.

Social policy and protection - an active society for all

25. The Committee of the Regions endorses the view that European social policies should go beyond employment-related issues and be directed towards social and economic integration of all citizens and that all policies aimed at economic and monetary convergence should be subject to regular monitoring and assessment as to their social consequences. Further, the Committee of the Regions supports convergence between Member States and believes that it should be upward convergence. Legislative action at European Union level should seek to set minimum standards for social protection and avoid excessively detailed legislation; the Committee of the Regions believes social protection rights should be individualized. Furthermore, there should be a recommendation to consolidate/implement existing proposed Directives instead of formulating and publishing new ones.

26. In particular, the Committee of the Regions welcomes:

- the White Paper's support for social protection systems throughout Europe based on the concept of the Welfare State, and emphasizes the importance of putting systems in place to protect those who are out of work, in low paid jobs, or who are excluded from full participation in the labour market because of family commitments, illness or disability, whilst maintaining the fight against unemployment;

- the proposal to maintain and adapt the European model of the Welfare State;

- the proposal for a Recommendation on the adaptation of social systems, notably the individualization of rights and contributions on the basis of a comparison of actual gender inequalities in social security;

- the proposal for a Recommendation on the financing of social security setting out common guidelines to promote better adaptation of social security to employment promotion;

- the integrated area-based approach in the European Community's anti-poverty/social exclusion programme which was emphasized in Poverty III and stresses the importance of exchange of experience and innovation in these programmes;

- the commitment to ensuring that the needs of disabled people are taken into account in relevant legislation, programmes and initiatives;

- the proposals for a Decision for further Union wide actions to help meet the challenges of an ageing population;

- the Commission's proposals and measures to do away with gender-related segregation in the labour market and supports the proposals on future action to achieve these goals;

- the Commission's view that consistency is needed in pursuing the task of abolishing labour-law discrimination and initiating union-wide measures to promote the rights of women in the field of gender equality;

- the proposals to deepen social dialogue in the field of equality of treatment, regarding them as a suitable instrument for achieving progress in this area.

27. In relation to housing, the Committee of the Regions:

- asserting that access to affordable and adequate housing is fundamental to achieving the objectives in the areas of health, poverty, education and employment;

- believing that there is a need to strengthen people's rights to housing and for actions to tackle homelessness; and

- in support of the need to review the adequacy, extent and nature of service provision for homeless people, the main conclusion of the European Federation of National Organizations Working with the Homeless (FEANTSA) 1993 report 'Abandoned: Profile of Europe's Homeless People';

warmly welcomes the White Paper's recognition of the importance of housing in combating social exclusion.

28. However, the Committee of the Regions notes that a key factor in employment protection is the need to avoid 'poverty traps'. Therefore, the details in social security systems will have a great impact. In addition, social security systems and housing benefits need to be integrated into strategies to combat low pay.

29. In recognition of the need to provide a framework for legislation which leaves the details of implementation to national policy makers, the Committee of the Regions wishes to propose that the EU focus attention to the outcomes of national social policies as they affect the fight against social exclusion; the development of performance indicators of social exclusion, to be monitored by the EU, would greatly assist in the achievement of this goal.

30. The Committee of the Regions wishes to see clear definition of aims and remit of the new social exclusion programme and above all stresses the need for full and formal recognition of the role of local and regional authorities in combatting social exclusion.

Action in the field of public health

31. The Committee of the Regions, recognizing the role of local and regional authorities in addressing the fundamental determinants of poor health and improving health, finds particularly welcome the emphasis in the White Paper on preventative action, (proactive disease prevention and health promotion), rather than curative action alone. Within this approach, the Committee of the Regions notes that local and regional authorities have a key role in primary preventative measures to ensure good health: this includes in some Member States direct medical services including hospitals, minimization of exposure to risk factors implicated in the causation of disease and ill health, including air pollution, noise nuisance and the quality of drinking water and through the provision and monitoring of a safe and healthy environment in which people live, work and play.

32. The Committee of the Regions therefore welcomes the recognition given in the White Paper to the impact of environmental conditions on health, inequalities in health such as poverty and unemployment, and the importance of accidents, injuries and pollution related diseases. Local and regional authorities make a significant contribution to improvements in the socio-economic and physical environments which provide the minimum framework on which more specific and disease oriented action can be built.

33. The Committee of the Regions invites the Commission to consider therefore what further measures can be taken to initiate and support local and regional government programmes to improve the basic living framework on which specific action designed to make health gains and improve healthy choices can be based.

Trade Unions, employers' organizations and voluntary organizations as partners in the process of change

34. The Committee of the Regions believes that the role of local and regional government strategies in the creation of economic growth and employment cannot be too strongly emphasized, and therefore argues that the European Union can play an important role in supporting the development of local initiatives and strengthening the capacity of local areas to sustain and generate employment.

35. Therefore, while the Committee of the Regions applauds the proposals in this section of the White Paper, in particular towards increased participation of the social partners and stronger cooperation between employers' and workers' organizations, and would like to see this involvement covering participation in discussions on the scope and nature of solutions, including the financial arrangements. But there is some disappointment that there is no specific reference in this section to local and regional authorities and it does not feel that sufficient regard is placed on the vital role played by local and regional government. The Committee of the Regions has already argued earlier in the Opinion for full recognition of local and regional government in social policy discussions and has advocated the important role that the Committee can itself play in this regard.

Enforcement and implementation of European law

36. The Committee of the Regions notes that under European law local and regional authorities are recognized as organs of the state with special responsibilities to implement European legislation, especially Directives. However, the relationship between legislation and agreements and the status of agreements (binding or normative) is still very unclear. This point must be clarified to avoid a plethora of different interpretations as to when an agreement is binding and when normative. It may help to establish a common culture of negotiation in which it is clearly stipulated who has the competence to negotiate. The Committee of the Regions also notes that organizations representing local and regional authorities have developed useful mechanisms for monitoring the development and adoption of European employment legislative proposals and the dissemination of advice on the application and implementation of European legislation at local and regional level.

37. The Committee of the Regions therefore believes that the European Commission's enforcement strategies should recognize the contribution and experience of local and regional authority Associations in ensuring the effective and timely implementation of European law. Further support should be given for the development of such mechanisms and the exchange of information between local and regional authorities across Europe and with other European employers who would clearly benefit from this approach.

International cooperation in the role of European social policy

38. While concurring with the general thrust of the White Paper on the role of European social policy in bilateral and multilateral cooperation, the Committee of the Regions considers that a specific reference is required to the pivotal role of good governance in the development of sustainable socio-economic models.

39. The Committee therefore considers that the European Union should recognize the link between good governance and sustainable development. In this context the work programme will seek to enhance capacity building relationships with the less developed countries, with a view to promoting democratic and efficient local self-government and community participation in economic and social development planning.

40. The Committee of the Regions supports the suggestion that the time is ripe for a well-focused policy discussion between the European Union and Central and Eastern European countries on social issues. In addition to organizing cooperation to help formulate responses to difficulties relating to employment policies, the European Commission should extend EU measures aimed at strengthening local and regional democratic structures in Central and Eastern Europe.

41. The European Union should campaign more strongly for the introduction of certain minimum social standards in international trade agreements. However, the formulation and implementation of such standards should not be left solely to the new World Trade Organization as the body responsible for free trade in the world; the International Labour Organization should also be involved.

Next steps

42. In concluding this Opinion on the White Paper, the Committee of the Regions would like to emphasize:

- the need for the Committee to be fully consulted on the European Commission work programme presented in 1995 based on this White Paper;

- the need to place within the context of the 1996 Inter-Governmental Conference and the revision of Treaties the position of local and regional government and the issues of citizens rights. The Committee of the Regions regrets however that there is no requirement in the present Treaty for consultation with the Committee on the negotiations for the review of the Treaties in 1996;

- that it wishes to make a full contribution to the Joint Hearing with the Parliament on the Social Charter in 1995, as another key body of democratically elected representatives and for the reasons stated clearly in the introduction to this Opinion;

- that whilst the proposal to establish a Forum for debate and discussion on social policy is a welcome one, nevertheless feels that for it to meet only every 18 months does not represent an extensive mechanism for fostering debate and involving local and regional levels.

43. Finally, the Committee of the Regions looks forward to making a continuing contribution to the development of the social policy agenda in Europe, and welcomes the impetus that the White Paper will undoubtedly give to this process.

Done at Brussels, 16 November 1994.

The Chairman

of the Committee of the Regions

Jacques BLANC