The plenary session of the EESC was attended by Maria Mincheva – Vice President of BIA
At the Plenary Session of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), held on 14 and 15 June 2023 in Brussels, an opinion in favour of the inclusion of a Protocol on Social Progress in the European Treaties (proposed by European trade unions) was adopted with the votes of the trade union and civil society group representatives. According to the proposal made by the European Workers' Federation (ETUC), the Protocol should establish the primacy of fundamental social, labour and trade union rights, not only in terms of their interaction with economic freedoms, but also in relation to the internal market, competition and any other EU policy, including EU economic governance, trade, digitalisation and the environment. The opinion was prepared at the request of the forthcoming Spanish Presidency of the Council of the EU by rapporteurs from the trade union and civil society groups.
The Employers' Group of the EESC does not support the proposal, which asks that in the event of a conflict between social rights and economic freedoms, social rights should prevail. According to the employers' counter-opinion, fundamental rights and freedoms should have the same degree of protection. A restriction on the exercise of fundamental freedoms is only permissible if it pursues legitimate aims compatible with the Treaties and is justified by 'imperative reasons relating to the public interest'. Compliance with these restrictions can be ensured by applying the principles of proportionality and subsidiarity at European level.
"The proposal to incorporate the Social Progress Protocol into the Treaties would change the nature and functioning of the EU's social market economy by prioritising social rights over economic freedoms. Giving general primacy to social rights over economic freedoms would be just as wrong as giving general primacy to economic freedoms," reads the position paper submitted by the Employers' Group of the EESC, represented by Maria Mincheva, BIA’s Vice-President.
"Instead of the EU proposing a Protocol on Social Progress that would upset the balance between economic freedoms and social rights and affect clearly defined powers of the EU and Member States, it is important to make progress towards a common understanding of what constitutes the added value of EU in terms of employment and social policies", consider the representatives of employers in the EESC, adding that "competitiveness and higher productivity based on skills and knowledge are a sure way to maintain the well-being of European societies" .
