Quality jobs and fair labour mobility key to Europe’s competitiveness, says EESC

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) held a plenary debate with European Commission Executive Vice-President, Roxana Mînzatu, on how better protection for workers can strengthen Europe’s competitiveness. The debate focused on quality jobs and fair labour mobility, and was followed by the adoption of two related EESC opinions.

With the EU facing demographic change, the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), the green transition and geopolitical uncertainty, the EESC made a clear case: Europe’s competitiveness and its social model must advance together. For the Committee, the best way to protect workers is by implementing a European framework that promotes high-quality jobs and fair labour mobility by improving working conditions, skills and worker protection, while ensuring that the posting of third-country nationals is governed by clear and properly enforced rules.

During the debate, speakers stressed that Europe must maintain trust in both its social model and the Single Market. For the EESC, quality jobs and fair labour mobility are two sides of the same coin: together, they can help Europe tackle labour shortages, attract talent, support the green and digital transitions and protect workers’ rights.

‘Europe’s economic and social model can only be resilient if it is based on quality employment, effective rights, strong enforcement and trust. Quality jobs are not a luxury: they are a condition for sustainable competitiveness, for social cohesion, and for citizens’ confidence in the EU’s capacity to deliver’, said EESC President Séamus Boland.

European Commission Executive Vice-President for Social Rights and Skills, Quality Jobs and Preparedness, Roxana Mînzatu, confirmed that the Commission is preparing a Quality Jobs Act, to be presented by the end of 2026 following consultations with the European social partners. She also announced that the posting of third-country nationals would be an important part of the Fair Labour Mobility Package, due out in September.

‘Both of the opinions that we are debating today speak to the same conviction – that the European Social Model and Europe’s competitiveness are not in opposition, that they go hand-in-hand – and that they will rise together, or that they will fail together (...) I believe that the EESC is uniquely placed to show that our social model and our competitiveness go hand-in-hand’, Mînzatu further highlighted.

Quality jobs are the foundation of sustainable competitiveness

In its opinion on the Quality Jobs Roadmap, the EESC welcomes the Commission’s initiative and underlines that productivity, innovation, competitiveness and social progress must reinforce each other. Quality employment, it argues, is a cornerstone of Europe’s economic resilience and social cohesion.

Rapporteur Claude Rolin stressed that the EU must offer a prospect of shared prosperity, adding: ‘The roadmap for quality jobs offers a promising future for the world of work if it translates into concrete decisions. Europe will only be sustainably competitive if it invests in quality jobs, effective rights and strong social dialogue’. 

The Committee calls for a common European approach to job quality, built on shared indicators covering pay, health and safety, training and skills, equality, working-time quality, social dialogue and workers’ representation. It also calls for the right conditions for investment, innovation and skills development, especially for SMEs, the social economy and sectors facing labour shortages.

The opinion also flags new workplace challenges linked to artificial intelligence, algorithmic management, psychosocial risks, climate-related risks and new forms of work. 

Protecting workers while safeguarding fair labour mobility

The second opinion addresses the posting of third-country nationals (TCNs), a growing issue in the Single Market. The EESC recognises the value of labour mobility and cross-border service provision, but warns that legal uncertainty and uneven application of the rules can expose workers to abuse and distort fair competition. The Committee calls for clearer interpretation and stronger enforcement of EU rules on posting TCNs.

‘Third-country national workers often fall victim to complex posting arrangements involving subcontracting chains and temporary work agencies. The EESC calls for a clear EU framework that protects them from exploitation’, highlighted rapporteur David Hafner.

The EESC also highlights the particular vulnerability of many posted third-country nationals and therefore advocates stronger enforcement, clearer operational criteria, better access to information and a reinforced role for the European Labour Authority.

Further quotes

Christa Schweng, Vice-President of the Employers’ Group:

‘Competitiveness, productivity and job quality are interconnected, as competitiveness and productivity are drivers for quality jobs. As Europe already has extensive labour and social legislation, we should focus on implementing and enforcing existing rules, before considering new regulation’.

Pietro Vittorio Barbieri, Vice-President of the Civil Society Organisations’ Group:

‘At the international level, the EU stands out for its commitment to and respect for fundamental rights. Labour rights play a central role in this. Wage rights are the foundation on which the life plans of every citizen and every family are built’.