Transatlantic relations and the international promotion of the ESM

Transatlantic relations and the international promotion of the ESM

Recommendations and conclusions:

 

Collective social protection systems, public services and social dialogue symbolise the "European social model". The EESC invites all EU institutions not only to represent this model, which citizens identify with, but also to promote it wherever possible, particularly in transatlantic dialogue. Making the social aspect one of the EU's general priorities would enable Europeans to be better prepared to do this within the framework of the existing dialogues of the "Transatlantic Economic Council" (TEC) and the "Transatlantic Labour Dialogue" (TALD). In order to encourage greater awareness of the EU's social values in the United States of America and better understanding between the two sides on social issues, such as promoting equality and combating discrimination, ensuring that rights can be exercised and promoting social understanding, the EESC would like the EU to inform American civil society about the "European social model." The TALD could be one way of achieving this. For the EESC, promoting the European social model entails raising the EU's profile in the United States of America.

 

The objectives of transatlantic dialogue should include learning from each other and contributing in practical terms to promoting human, political and civil rights, but also economic and social rights. People's economic and social rights should be presented by the EU in the transatlantic dialogue as an integral part of its own position. The EESC believes that jointly established standards would allow evaluation and comparison of the social and working conditions of both sides in the dialogue.

 

The EESC would like to include the representatives of organised civil society in transatlantic dialogue on an institutional basis. It believes that the EU still lacks being "European" in the social context. In the Committee's view, any dialogue, report, study or agreement developed as part of transatlantic relations should include a chapter on the social impact of planned measures.