"The role of the social partners in the European Union is increasing, both at national and international level. In this regard, building the capacity of organizations is crucial so that they can be reliable partners of governments. The social partners must be actively involved not only in the development but also in the implementation of policies in order to balance interests and ensure that policy-making is linked to the reality of businesses and workers, and is accepted and supported by stakeholders."
This was said by Mariya Mincheva, Vice-President and Member of the Management Board of the Bulgarian Industrial Association (BIA) and member of the Employers' Group of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), during the high-level forum "Towards successful EU Enlargement”, which is taking place today (24 October 2024), in Brussels. The forum is organized by the European Commission and the EESC. More than 100 representatives of EU member states, candidate countries and potential candidate countries participate in the forum. The event aims to highlight the role of social dialogue and civil society in advancing the accession path, including the importance of upholding the EU's fundamental values. It is also an occasion to consider what the EESC has achieved so far.
Mariya Mincheva is among the panelists in the afternoon session of the forum, and the topic of the panel is "The role of social partners in fostering a competitive, green and digital transition". Together with Mariya Mincheva, the panelists are the heads of the Competitiveness Department of the Federation of Employers of Ukraine, the Independent Trade Unions Confederation of Serbia and the Spanish Union of Workers (UGT).
In her speech, Mariya Mincheva emphasized that there are certain differences in social dialogue in the different geographical regions of the EU – it differs from north to south and from east to west, but nevertheless, the usefulness of social dialogue cannot be questioned, regardless of the existing different national models.
"The European Green Deal was announced in 2019 just a year later (2020) the Covid-19 crisis appeared. Since 2022, we have also had a war in Ukraine. In just a few years, we have experienced dramatic crises and transformations – not at the regional level, but at the global level. This has led to supply chain disruptions, investment shifts from Asia back to Europe, energy price spikes, inflation and the consequent consequences of reduced competitiveness. This is the context in which companies operate. These are the conditions in which people live. The way we deal with these crises determines the benefits for the whole society," Mariya Mincheva said.
According to the Vice-President of BIA, the European Union is not where we would like to see it – as an investment destination and on the world technological map. In this context, Mariya Mincheva also asked several rhetorical questions: "Do we have the conditions to inspire young people to dream and innovate here in Europe, or should our talents go to the United States, to find the right conditions? Does our education system equip us with the right skills to prepare us for the future? Are we flexible? Are we sustainable? “. According to her, if we want the EU to serve as a role model in policy-making and standard-setting worldwide, we need to demonstrate our ability to deliver results, and the social partners have a say in all these topics and issues.
"When we talk about enlargement, coming from Bulgaria, I look at our region in the Balkans. We are judged on our ability to absorb investments, the workforce, the transport network and connectivity, energy networks and energy prices, the levels of the rule of law, the efficiency of the judiciary and public administration. I look at our region and I see the untapped potential of the regional market, the missed opportunities for accelerated pace of economic and social cohesion, the competitiveness and well-being of society. The social partners can and should push governments in this direction by cooperating more," Mariya Mincheva concluded.
