Doc. 9998

21 November 2003

Boosting social cohesion and employment: more and better jobs

Motion for a recommendation

presented by Mrs Belohorská and others

1.       European governments are currently faced with the difficult task of harmonising two relatively opposing trends: the pressures of a globalised economy to contain public expenditure and reduce labour costs in order to remain competitive; and a justified demand by European citizens to strengthen the European social model as a basis for a stable and socially prosperous Europe.

2.       Raising unemployment levels and rapid population ageing in Europe are of strong concern to all governments, demanding wide ranging and long term political responses. The time has come to rethink social policies and employment patterns in Europe in order to take up these challenges.

3.       The issues raised in Recommendation 1591 (2003) on “challenges of social policy in Europe’s ageing societies” would merit to be taken further, namely to look into necessary measures from a perspective of an employment-oriented social policy : to increase levels of employment of the working age population, to improve quality of jobs and working conditions in order to reconcile paid work with family life, to better mobilise under-represented groups, to achieve more equal sharing of paid and unpaid work between men and women, and to reduce labour costs through possible shifts in taxation.

Signed (see overleaf)

Signed ¹:

Belohorská, Slovakia, EDG

Çavuşoğlu, Turkey, LDR

Flynn, United Kingdom, SOC

Giertych, Poland, EDG

Hancock, United Kingdom, LDR

Hurskainen, Finland, SOC

Lomakin-Rumiantsev, Russia, EDG

Marty, Switzerland, LDR

Mccafferty, United Kingdom, SOC

Sysas, Lithuania, SOC

Tirelli, Italy, NR

Vis, United Kingdom, SOC

¹        SOC: Socialist Group

      EPP/CD: Group of the European People’s Party

      EDG: European Democratic Group

      LDR : Liberal, Democratic and Reformers’ Group

      UEL: Group of the Unified European Left

      NR: not registered in a group