Európsky hospodársky a sociálny výbor
The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) is calling upon the EU and its Member States to develop strategic policy measures aimed at drawing citizens closer to the European project by strengthening their knowledge about the EU and its achievements, values and rights.
The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) has adopted in its March plenary session on 20 March, an opinion proposing an EU-led global peace-building strategy which includes the creation of the WhiteDoveWay, a path of peace from Northern Ireland to Nicosia, to promote dialogue, reconciliation and conflict prevention following in the initial footsteps of the sixth century Irish pilgrim Columbanus.
The EESC draws mixed conclusions from the European Commission's growth survey
Appropriate skills, social protection and diversity in the workplace will all be crucial for the future, as will social dialogue about the introduction of new technologies
The European economy loses over 2% of productivity per year due to a mismatch of skills, according to a recent study commissioned by the European Economic and Social Committee. This means a loss of 80 eurocents for each hour of work. The situation will get even worse in the future due to demographic trends and ongoing technological developments, if no reforms are undertaken.
The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) has used an own-initiative opinion to call for sufficient funding resources to be put in place for implementing the European Pillar of Social Rights. Adopted at its plenary session on 19 April 2018, the opinion calls for improvements in the Member States and a robust commitment in terms of budget, investment and current spending to make the Social Pillar a reality.
In order to bridge the skills gap, we must first identify precisely which skills are needed for the future. This remains difficult, due to the rapid pace of change we are seeing today. Adaptation of education systems, development of lifelong learning systems and close cooperation between employers, policy-makers and academics are some of the ways to help people adapt their skills to the demands of future labour markets. These were among the conclusions reached at the conference on Bridging the Skills Gap for Growth and Job Creation – the Business Perspective
, which took place on 22 March 2018 in Sofia, Bulgaria.
On 7 and 8 February, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) and the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (Cedefop) held a "policy learning forum" to explore ways of creating new learning and training opportunities for low-skilled adults, who account for 25% of Europe's workforce and total more than 64 million people.
Technological developments are full of opportunities, but also risks, disability organisations warn at an EESC public hearing
The EU Disability strategy for 2020-2030 should ensure that people with disabilities have equal access to a fully digitalised world, a conference on “The future of the EU Disability strategy after 2020” heard this month at the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC).
The EU needs a concrete plan to champion culture as a vital element in open, tolerant societies, according to Europe’s leading organised civil society body. The 350-member EESC held a debate with Culture Commissioner Tibor Navracsics and voted through its opinion on the EU’s recent strategy for international cultural relations on Wednesday at its May plenary in Brussels. Culture has an enormous untapped potential for becoming a unifying and mobilising instrument in Europe.
