Published on 28th November 2019
The European Parliament’s election of the new European Commission led by Ursula von der Leyen on 27 November completes the formation of the new leadership of the EU institutions after the European Parliament elections in May of this year. “As voice of the private employment services industry, we are ready to work together with all newly elected Members at both the European Commission and the European Parliament, shaping EU policies for the benefit of people and business in across the EU Member States” said Bettina Schaller, President of the World Employment Confederation-Europe. “Our agenda is one of social innovation, building on the successful best practices and policies, recognizing that new ways of working, learning and social protection are needed to ‘making Europe the best place to work’, which is our commitment to the EU.”
The new President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has already announced several EU policy initiatives in the area of employment and social affairs, which will be followed-up by the new EU Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights Nicolas Schmit. Building on the existing “European Pillar of Social Rights”, the World Employment Confederation-Europe eagerly awaits the Commission’s action plan to be announced in the coming weeks, to reflect new solutions for working. The private employment services industry underlines the need to cater for diverse forms of work, which contribute to job creation, labour market opportunities and respond to the needs of businesses; as evidenced in the recent Social Impact Report by the World Employment Confederation.
The new Commission also announced a mapping of online platforms and action to ensure the appropriate social protection of online platform workers. The World Employment Confederation-Europe welcomes this initiative, while significant progress could be achieved by applying and enforcing existing rules in the online platform economy to ensure the social protection. Shaping the process of digitalisation of the economy and world of work will be an important dimension of EU policies in the coming years. There again, the focus should be laid on taking full advantage of all labour market opportunities. In the area of learning, equipping people with the right skills to succeed in the changing world of work, as well as on the instruments to facilitate up- and reskilling programs, such as individual learning accounts, must be on top of mind for policy makers, businesses and EU citizens alike. All this can and should contribute to “Making Europe the best place to work!” as outlined in the World Employment Confederation-Europe Vision Paper.
