EESC info

In a spontaneous debate initiated by the EESC president Christa Schweng during the February plenary session, the members of the European Economic and Social Committee condemned the unjustified and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation. EESC members expressed their solidarity with the Ukrainian people and called for firm actions at both EU and national level in a spirit of unity in this dramatic time.

Opening the debate, president Christa Schweng underlined the critical nature of this situation for Europe and stated: "Today we witnessed an aggression at the doorstep of the EU. Such a move constitutes a blatant violation of international law and international agreements, including the Minsk Agreements. In these hours, our thoughts are with Ukraine and its civil society, the innocent women, men and children as they face this unprovoked attack and fear for their lives. Europe needs to stand with Ukraine and its civil society!" president Schweng said.

Stefano Mallia, president of the Employers' Group, highlighted: "The EU is certainly united in a desire for firm action. I was there at Maidan Square and one thing I remember clearly is the great desire of civil society to be part of Europe, to be part of the EU. Ukraine cannot be abandoned. We need to be ready to also pay a price for the efforts and actions that need to be taken".

Oliver Röpke, president of the Workers' Group, also added: "This is the time for us to voice our opposition and say clearly that Europe will never allow this. We need to be united and find the response to this aggression and stand side by side in full solidarity with the people of Ukraine".

In the same spirit, Séamus Boland, president of the Diversity Europe Group, expressed his support: "We are standing at a precipice and we must reach out to civil society organisations in Ukraine. Above all, the EU must remain unified and in solidarity with our neighbours".

The president of the EESC External Relations Section, Dimitris Dimitriadis, said that the EESC would strive to continue supporting Ukrainian civil society through our well-established channels, such as the EU-Ukraine Civil Society Platform and through our bilateral contacts. (at)

The EU needs to reassess the priorities of its industrial policy in light of the pandemic and the conflict on Europe's eastern border. This is the message that emerged from the conference on 'A sustainable future for European industry' hosted by the European Economic and Social Committee on 4 March 2022, in cooperation with the European Commission and the French presidency of the Council of the European Union.

Opening the Conference, EESC President Christa Schweng stressed the need for a cooperative approach to shaping EU industrial policy: "We must work in partnership with industry, public authorities, and the social partners when building a sustainable future for EU industry. In this process, we must leave nobody behind".

While the EU is still dealing with the aftermath of the COVID-19 crisis, the dramatic events in Ukraine have shocked the continent. The Executive Vice-President of the European Commission, Margrethe Vestager, said that "Europe's industries must reduce one-sided reliance on others. We must also protect the Single Market from external influence, whether in the form of distortive foreign subsidies or attempts at coercion by foreign governments."

Most speakers saw the conflict as yet another strong argument to keep pushing for green objectives, although some felt that circumstances call for a rethink of our green goals, and even envisaged a return to coal in Europe. "New emerging factors, such as inflation, debt, defence, and energy, are completely changing the industrial strategy we need to pursue. Strategic autonomy and defence must be our new imperative," urged MEP Carlo Calenda.

Thomas Courbe, Director-General for Enterprise at the French Ministry of the Economy, Finance and the Recovery, further believes that the transition to sustainable energy represents an opportunity to modernise Europe's industrial foundations. The twin transition must foster fair and socially just job creation conditions, in line with the principle of leaving no-one behind. "The goal should be to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as much as possible at the lowest possible socioeconomic cost," added Sandra Parthie, EESC rapporteur on Updating the new industrial strategy.

Lastly, Thierry Breton, European Commissioner for the Internal Market, reiterated that in times of growing geopolitical tensions, it is essential to encourage the development of a cohesive vision of the European Union and its industries. (gb/dm)

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) held a conference entitled Shaping Europe Together. The purpose of this conference, organised with a view to the conclusion of the Conference of the Future of Europe, was to wrap up the work done so far by the Committee and to discuss the current state of affairs, the challenges ahead and ambitions for the future.

ESSC president Christa Schweng kicked off the debate, referring to the recent historic developments in Ukraine and answering the opening question as to whether now was the right time to discuss the future of Europe.

"Witnessing the aggression against Ukraine and its people shows the urgent need to further strengthen the European project and Europe's fundamental values, such as peace, freedom and democracy", said Ms Schweng.

She highlighted the importance of this event as a moment to take the pulse of where we were now and to evaluate what had happened in the past few months.

The EESC has conducted outreach initiatives and events in all Member States in order to guarantee fair representation, to involve employers, workers and the whole of organised civil society, and to convey their points of view to the Conference on the Future of Europe. The Committee also adopted a resolution on the new narrative for Europe and published several ideas on the Conference's online platform. 

In a closing statement, Clément Beaune, Secretary of State for European Affairs to France's Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, said: "Implementing the citizen's proposals will require debates and institutional decisions, and the EESC will act as guardian to ensure that this meets your expectations".

The EESC has played an exceedingly active role in the Conference on the Future of Europe through its ad-hoc group, as an observer on the Conference's executive board, and as a member of the plenary. (ks)

The conference on Women in the Labour Market organised by the EESC to mark International Women's Day was held on 8 March under the shadow of the war. The participants paid tribute to the remarkable Ukrainian women for their strength, bravery and resilience.

In her opening address, EESC president Christa Schweng referred to the Ukrainian women and girls who are being forced to leave their country, putting them at heightened risk of violence.

In the same vein, the president of the ad hoc Group on Equality and EESC member, Maria Nikolopoulou, highlighted: "Women, mothers, spouses are stuck in a war zone, many of them are becoming soldiers themselves, others are trying to escape from the atrocities of the attacks. We join our voices with the civil societies that demand an end to the war, in all countries".

The COVID-19 pandemic has further widened the gender employment gap and it has also contributed to a surge in violence and harassment at work.

Commissioner for Equality, Helena Dalli, announced that the European Commission would present a proposal for a directive on combatting violence against women and domestic violence that would be binding for all Member States.

Regarding the artificial intelligence sector, women make up only 16% of the workforce, which leaves the 84% of men to take all the decisions and the lead. "If women are absent from these sectors, this means our whole new world will be fashioned by men, with their possible bias", said Ms Schweng.  (at)

This year 2022, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) will jointly organise the first EU organic awards with the European Commission, the European Committee of the Regions (CoR), COPA-COGECA and IFOAM Organics Europe,  with the aim of recognising excellence and rewarding the best and most innovative actors in the EU organic value chain.

The #EUOrganic awards comprises 7 categories and 8 awards for best organic:

1. farmer (female and male)
2. region
3. city
4. bio-district
5. small-medium enterprise
6. food retailer
7. restaurant.

The EESC advocating for years for a more sustainable and comprehensive food policy in the EU, will be responsible for three awards: best organic SME, best organic food retailer, and best organic restaurant. Online applications will be open from 25 March to 8 June 2022, and will be available here.

A ceremony will be organised on EU Organic Day on 23 September 2022, where winners will present their innovative projects and be awarded a non-financial recognition.

The Commission has defined a target of 25% of EU agricultural land under organic farming by 2030. In support of that target, the Commission adopted the action plan for the development of organic production in March 2021. This action plan takes the approach that in order to stimulate organic production and consumption, increased public awareness of its characteristics and benefits is critical. The action plan therefore includes annual awards as one of the strategies to reach this goal. (mr)

At its plenary session on 24 February, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) presented its opinion "Fit for 55": delivering the EU's 2030 Climate Target on the way to climate neutrality. The EESC has put forward concrete proposals to help accelerate the energy transition so as to enable the EU to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030.

Reaching the revised 2030 targets, as proposed in the Fit for 55 package, will unevenly affect regions, communities and individuals across Europe.

To address those concerns, the EESC recommends that the European Commission undertake granular mapping of the impact the transition will have on employment and skills in the different countries, regions and sectors, including on subcontractors and downstream value chains.

We need to embark on a model that results in a prosperous, sustainable and competitive economy. That is why the EESC is recommending that all the legislative proposals submitted within the framework of Fit for 55 undergo a competitiveness check so that the full implications for enterprise are properly understood.

Social partners and key civil society organisations have a critical role to play and must be involved in both the planning and implementation phases of the Fit for 55 package.

Therefore, "the EESC supports the establishment of tripartite 'Just Transition Commissions' to allow regional authorities, social partners and civil society organisations to participate in the implementation of the national and regional just transition plans", stressed Mr Lohan.

Addressing climate change will have huge financial, social and environmental implications. "This is why we need to make sure that the Fit for 55 package is an important stepping-stone, rather than a stumbling-block, towards a net-zero European economy by 2050," pointed out Mr Mallia. (mr)

Emergency measures taken by public authorities in extraordinary circumstances should always be strictly proportionate, clearly limited in time and closely monitored. Addressing the EESC plenary on 23 February 2022, Christa Schweng, EESC President and Věra Jourová, European Commission Vice-President for Values and Transparency, took a firm stand.

Referring to the COVID-19 crisis and the state of emergency declared by many EU Member States to protect public health, resulting in restrictions on several fundamental rights and freedoms, Ms Schweng said: "The pandemic is a stress test for our societies and for our democracies. From the perspective of fundamental rights, the rule of law and democracy, the EESC felt it was essential to closely monitor the situation. We have particularly listened to civil society actors regarding the consequences, challenges, and exit strategies related to the crisis. The EU needs to come out of the COVID-19 crisis reinforcing its common values."

Ms Jourová underlined that the COVID-19 pandemic had forcefully illustrated how vital our fundamental rights and democratic values were for our daily lives and how they could not be taken for granted: "An important lesson from the health crisis has been that measures necessary to combat the pandemic should not be taken at the expense of protecting democratic values and fundamental rights. We need to be vigilant and uphold our fundamental rights and common values, which should be central to our response to COVID-19."

The EESC's position on the impact of COVID-19 on fundamental rights and the rule of law across the EU and the future of democracy, was outlined in the opinion presented by the EESC Fundamental Rights and Rule of Law Group, drafted by José Antonio Moreno Díaz and Cristian Pîrvulescu. In the document, adopted by the plenary, the Committee points out that the special measures to address the COVID-19 crisis should remain exceptional and time-limited, and should not go against the rule of law or endanger democracy, the separation of powers and the fundamental rights of European inhabitants. (mp)

The greening of maritime and inland waterway transport must take into account the health and quality of life of those living and working near to navigation channels and ports. This is the main message of the EESC opinion drawn up by Pierre Jean Coulon and adopted at the Committee's February plenary session.

In the document, the EESC addresses the societal dimension of local and regional maritime transport issues, making recommendations that are key to the future enhancement of the blue economy, and complementing the conclusions of two other recently adopted opinions: FuelEU Maritime (TEN/751) and NAIADES III (TEN/752).

Speaking on the sidelines of the plenary, Mr Coulon said "we need an innovative and sustainable approach that combines green and health objectives. In maritime transport, close cooperation with all stakeholders in the cluster and supply chain is needed to reach the ultimate goal. Close cooperation is also needed to ensure the obvious benefits of creating intermodal terminals, allowing for the development of inland waterway transport in cities and contributing to a better quality of life".

Maritime transport makes up approximately 75% of EU freight transport. It is therefore extremely important to strike a balance between the economic, social and environmental aspects through an integrated approach. Port authorities and transport stakeholders should work together with local and regional authorities to rethink the links between cities, ports, and modes of transport.

Other concerns that need to be addressed are staff training, employment prospects, unequal treatment between men and women, and the profound changes brought about by job digitalisation and automation. (mp)

The EESC and DG ECFIN held an online conference on the EU economic governance framework as part of the related public debate. The event aimed to engage civil society with a view to building consensus on the future of the economic governance framework.

EESC president Christa Schweng opened by stating that "instead of a return to normal, we advocate for a turn to a revised and rebalanced prosperity-oriented economic governance framework." She also highlighted the need to involve all key stakeholders, including civil society organisations. The Commissioner for Economy, Paolo Gentiloni, then followed, stating that "building a consensus in time for 2023 will not be an easy task, but we must seize this unique opportunity to align our fiscal rules with our ambition for strong, sustainable and inclusive growth in Europe". Margarida Marques MEP then presented the EP's report on the review of the macroeconomic legislative framework, and was followed by a panel discussion. The last part was dedicated to how a renewed economic governance framework could resolve the investment gap challenge in order to achieve the twin transition. EESC rapporteur Dominika Biegon presented her own-initiative opinion "Reshaping the EU fiscal framework for a sustainable recovery and a just transition". (tk)

Alexander Kleinig is the new EESC Director for Communication and Interinstitutional Relations. Mr Kleinig began his career in the European Parliament in 1996 as an administrator for the Employment and Social affairs Committee. In 2005, he joined the European Parliament's DG COMM as project manager for the visitors' centre, launching and managing the Parlamentarium between 2011 and 2018.

''I am impressed by the level of quality of the debates and the professionalism of the Committee's staff. Everywhere I go, I meet colleagues who are committed, proud of their work and enthusiastic. I am also sincerely touched by the friendly welcome that I have received from Directorate D staff. I would like to take this opportunity to thank my predecessor, Ms Eleonora Di Nicolantonio, who has managed the directorate so well in the past.''