June 2023 Adopted Opinions Workers' Group

SOC 756 Social Progress Protocol

Maria del Carmen Barrera Chamorro

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) emphasizes the need to promote a highly competitive social market economy by integrating the single market and social policy. The Workers' Group supports the inclusion of a social progress protocol (SPP) in the Treaties to advance the European Pillar of Social Rights (EPSR) and its action plan. The SPP aims to prioritize social and fundamental rights over economic freedoms, protect social partners' autonomy, and prevent regression of social rights. The EESC welcomes the European Commission's proposal for Treaty reform and considers the CoFoE conclusions a suitable roadmap. The EESC urges the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the EU to drive this proposal and encourage broad institutional involvement. The Committee believes that implementing the SPP will strengthen the autonomy of social partners and contribute to the EU's economic growth and citizens' well-being.

SOC 747 Green Collective Bargaining (Good practices and future prospects)

Maria del Carmen Barrera Chamorro

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) emphasizes the need for businesses and workers to be involved in environmental protection and climate change efforts. The Workers' Group suggests that green issues should be a stronger focus of collective bargaining, allowing negotiable clauses to be included in collective agreements that directly or indirectly impact the environment. These clauses can cover topics such as the environmental impact of companies, worker protection from environmental effects, the impact of the green transition on work organization and skills, and internal monitoring of environmental implementation. The Committee highlights the potential benefits of green collective bargaining in promoting sustainability and combating climate change. It calls for the involvement of social partners, civil society, and for the development of effective information and consultation rights in addressing the challenges of the green transition. Lastly, the EESC also recommends incentives for businesses to designate environmental transition representatives and provide environmental training.

INT 969 Green Claims

Angelo Pagliara

The proposal for a directive proposes to supplement the regulatory framework for supporting sustainable consumption by addressing specific aspects of environmental claims as regards their substantiation, communication and verification. This is mostly the phenomenon of the "Greenwashing". As the EESC shares the vision of the Commission about moving quickly towards a circular economy, it claims an increased involvement of the Social Partners and Civil Society Organizations in the process.

The EESC urges the EC to ensure that the requirements set in the Green Claims Directive become a model for a minimum level of protection against greenwashing, and to avoid that sectorial legislation could be a way to opt out of them. It also highlights the risk of the proliferation of environmental claims based on compensation via the use of offsetting credits. Lastly, the EESC urges to increase the legal certainty of these claims and to include microenterprises.

INT 1029 Company law/use of digital tools and processes

Franca Salis-Madinier

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) supports the European Commission's proposal to enhance the Business Registers Interconnection System (BRIS) for improved company information reliability and transparency. The proposal should benefit SMEs, stakeholders, creditors, consumers and employees in cross-border activities by reducing costs, supplying information needed and improving the functioning of the single market.

The EESC advocates for further digital tool implementation and inclusivity, expanding the scope to include partnerships, business groups, and third-country branches. It also recommends adding additional information, such as employee numbers and activity sectors, and interconnecting BRIS with other systems. The EESC supports preventive control measures and urges stricter compliance penalties. The Committee endorses the European Company Certificate and suggests improvements to the digital power of attorney. Lastly, it conditionally supports the once-only principle (no resubmission of company information when a company from one MS sets up subsidiaries in another MS) and proposes safeguards for information reliability checks between Member States.

TEN 807 Driving licences and driving disqualifications

Philippe Charry

The European Commission's legislative package aims to achieve zero fatalities on EU roads by 2050. It focuses on introducing a digital driving licence and enhancing road safety. The package addresses bureaucratic delays in exchanging foreign licences by providing a digital driving licence accessible on mobile devices. The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) supports this objective while recommending personalized digital training for all age groups. The EESC suggests removing age-based validity periods for driving licences and implementing non-discriminatory medical assessments for all drivers. The Committee also calls for better safeguards in driving disqualifications to avoid overlap with criminal matters. Lastly, the EESC highlights the need to address road infrastructure management responsibilities and harmonize vocational training for young lorry drivers.

ECO 609  Implementation of EU macro-regional strategies

Stefano Palmieri

Macro-regional strategies (MRS) play an important role in promoting social, territorial, and economic cohesion and fostering the integration of neighbouring countries. The Committee emphasizes the need for cross-sectoral and multi-level cooperation among countries and the various actors involved in MRS to seek for the best national interest and to mitigate the bureaucracy complexities. Efforts should be made to strengthen MRS to inspire confidence, promote European values, and achieve social, territorial, and economic cohesion, as well as the objectives of the 2030 Agenda. The EESC highlights the positive impact of MRS in addressing crises and facilitating integration. It calls for addressing disparities, strengthening the link between green, digital, and social transitions, involving civil society organizations and social partners, and enhancing the governance and involvement of local actors in MRS.

SOC 759 Cooperation on Youth

Nicoletta Merlo

The EESC emphasizes the need for accurate data to successfully implement the EU youth strategy and address the impact of crises on and policies directed towards young people. Strengthening the EU Youth Dialogue and involving youth representatives in policymaking is crucial, considering also their engagement through technology and social media. Efforts to increase youth participation in politics and improve turnout are encouraged. Social dialogue should be strengthened, particularly among young members, and laws and policies should undergo a Youth Test to prevent discrimination. Priority should be given to integrating young people into the labor market and addressing specifically NEETs. The EESC also believes that mental health support, sports and cultural activities should be provided, and access to decent housing and work-life balance should be ensured. Lastly, young people should be taken into account in the twin transition and intersectionality should be taken into account for marginalized young people.

SOC 758 Measures to fight stigma against HIV

Nicoletta Merlo

We welcome the Spanish Presidency's initiative of setting the goal to eliminate HIV related stigma and discrimination in Europe by 2030, as available data clearly show the continuation of its harmful consequences in various parts of the world, in specific social contexts and key populations. In order to overcome stigma, discrimination and false stereotypes, it is essential to promote awareness-raising, training and information actions, especially in schools, with the involvement of organised civil society. People with HIV must have equal opportunities for access and professional growth in the world of work. They should also be able to benefit from specific arrangements such as flexible working hours or extended leave for medical visits with guaranteed confidentiality. At the same time, to control the spread of infection, early diagnosis, early start of treatment and continuity of care are essential.

TEN 805 EU Hydrogen bank

Thomas Kattnig

The European Hydrogen Bank is proposed as a financial instrument to kick-start and promote the production and import of green H2 in the EU. Green Hydrogen can be particularly useful in areas where electrification is difficult. It is fundamental to ensure that fossil fuels are not used for intensive electrolysis processes and that H2 financed by the EU complies with the Taxonomy Regulation. Likewise, the funding should also be subject to companies working in a socially and environmentally sustainable manner: the European Hydrogen Bank goals must be linked to the ones of the Just Transition.

TEN 793 Electricity market reform

Christophe Quarez

Electricity is not an ordinary commodity, but rather a service of general interest, and an essential building block of our societies. The electricity market needs to cover sustainability, affordability, and security of supply. However, the recent crisis has shown that the current liberalised energy market cannot meet these goals and does not create enough incentives for renewables past a certain point. For the Workers' Group, taking into account the three main goals and also ensuring the fight against energy poverty and the protection of the most vulnerable, a hybrid system with a government-established facility must be established. This should guarantee a minimum price for producers, a maximum one for consumers, and eliminate the current state of affairs where the marginal pricing system has produced unfair prices and dysfunctional energy mix configurations.

ECO 617 Second set of new resources

Philip von Brockdorff

The EU needs additional funding via its own resources to repay the money borrowed within the NextGenerationEU Scheme, or it risks impacting significantly all the other programmes. There are different options available for additional income, some might include a Financial Transaction Tax or an EU-wide digital transaction tax, provided the OECD/G20 agreement is not respected by other parties.

NAT 892 Towards a European Food Policy Council as a new governance model in the future EU Framework on Sustainable Food Systems

Piroska Kállay

The EU food system is at a crossroads, facing multiple crises stemming from various interrelated environmental, climate, health and social challenges. Given the urgency of the food system crisis and the need for rapid behavioural change in society, the call for the creation of a "European Food Policy Council" (EFPC) is more timely than ever. Such a tool would help achieve a more integrated, participatory and democratic approach to food policymaking, would accelerate the alignment of policies at EU, national and local levels, would contribute to fostering more sustainable and balanced rural and urban development and, most importantly, would increase the quality and legitimacy of EU food policy by creating a basis for inclusiveness and dialogue among the stakeholders concerned.

ECO 610 Harnessing talents in EU regions

Tatjana Babrauskienė

We welcome the Commission's commitment to the design and implementation of regional and territorial strategies based on regions’ specific needs, in line with the European Pillar of Social Rights and the long-term vision of the EU's rural areas, and through the targeted use of existing EU funds. At the same time, freedom of movement in the European labour market also needs to be protected, as it needs to remain a choice rather than a pressure due to lack of prospects in people's own regions. In order to better address the labour and skills shortages, long-term solutions are needed to support regional development, such as better infrastructure, support to the unemployed, improved job quality, education and skills development, etc. Sustainable investment in quality jobs, access to training and essential services, social dialogue, and collective bargaining, respecting the social partners, are key in this framework. And stronger coordination is needed among the EU's recovery, resilience and cohesion funds, including the Just Transition Fund, with a view to ensuring that the funds are used to cater for these needs. These points should be taken into consideration in the mid-term review of the multiannual financial framework.

NAT 901 Fisheries – NAFO

Stefano Palmieri

The conservation and enforcement measures adopted by the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) should be transposed into EU law, with a view to achieving their uniform and effective implementation within the EU. However, the proposal under consideration does not establish an efficient mechanism for transposing the measures adopted by NAFO, and does not resolve the issue of having to update these measures each year. Accordingly, we call for a more efficient, simpler mechanism, and therefore propose drafting a regulation that contains a single article stipulating that the European Union must, without fail, apply NAFO measures to its fleet.