GERMAN PRESIDENCY: III. A FAIR EUROPE

Strengthening the social dimension and social cohesion

Despite stabilising countermeasures, not only the economy, but also employment and the social situation in Member States have come under pressure to varying degrees in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. We are therefore committed to advancing social and economic upward convergence in Europe in compliance with the division of competences. Our objective, in the context of the implementation the European Pillar of Social Rights, is to reduce inequality within the EU, mitigate disturbances in labour markets owing to external shocks and improve social protection. In particular, we are committed to the development of an EU framework for national minimum wages that strengthens the protection of employees as well as the social partnership and its prominent role in shaping working conditions and which supports income stabilisation also in times of crisis. We want to discuss the Commission’s proposal for a corresponding instrument for fair minimum wages in the Council – building on the consultation process with the social partners – along these lines in order to achieve tangible benefits for the protection of employees.

Poverty and social exclusion remain key challenges in Europe that are continuing to worsen in times of crisis. National minimum guaranteed income benefits in the Member States play an important role with respect to enabling those in need to participate in society and the labour market. We want to develop a framework for national minimum income protection systems in the EU Member States. The proposal for a European Unemployment Reinsurance Scheme announced by the Commission, which we intend to evaluate in the Council, has already been identified in the trio presidency programme as an important step in the further implementation of the European Pillar of Social Rights. On the basis of the Guidance Note announced by the Commission, we will endeavour to adopt Council conclusions to improve the enforcement of labour conditions for seasonal workers on the part of the Member States. The COVID-19 pandemic has drawn further attention to existing shortcomings.

With respect to the implementation of the Commission’s Skills Agenda, we want to place the focus on continuing education and training as the key labour market policy response to digital and environmental structural change and intensify the dialogue between Member States on this issue. In times of digital and environmental transformation, vocational training must prepare people for the workplaces of the future to offer young people and the long-term employed prospects and to tackle the shortage of skilled workers. During our Council Presidency, we want to deepen cross-border vocational cooperation within the framework of the Copenhagen Process and to develop excellent vocational training at university level with the adoption of the Osnabrück Declaration. As a response to the pandemic, we want to undertake particular efforts in the expansion of digital education in order to implement digital solutions compatible with the new Europass platform that qualify teachers and open up new development prospects for members of the public. We are therefore also working to ensure that, within the framework of a European Education Area, learning mobility is increased, the recognition of educational qualifications is facilitated and an umbrella for a follow-up strategy for cooperation in general and vocational education is initiated.

We will support the drafting of the Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan announced by the Commission and discuss this in the Council with the objective of advancing both the prevention and treatment of cancer and also enhancing the potential of the digital transformation for improved cancer treatments. Moreover, we will lend our support to the Commission’s research and innovation mission for cancer.

Equality of women and men

Ensuring the equality of women and men is a mission for us all on which the EU’s ability to meet the challenges of the future will be judged. We firmly believe that ascribing heightened institutional importance to a comprehensive gender equality policy can contribute to greater cohesion in Europe. The priorities in this regard include realising the objective of equal pay for women and men for equivalent work, continuing to promote and raise awareness of the equality of women and men, and tackling gender-based violence. We welcome the Commission’s new Gender Equality Strategy in which, among other issues, questions of gender-based violence and the equality between women and men in the labour market are addressed. In order to strengthen the equal participation of women in working life, we are committed across Europe to the division of gainful employment and care work between women and men and want to send a political signal of support with Council conclusions to this end. The pandemic has underscored the importance of care work. During our Council Presidency, we will work to cushion the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on women, foster women’s independent livelihoods and intensify the exchange of experiences between the Member States within the framework of an informal meeting of the ministers for equal opportunities. In order to promote gen der equity in the cultural domain, we want, among other things, to strengthen equal opportunities and to improve the participation and networking of women in creative processes. We will support the Commission with respect to the adoption of the Gender Action Plan III and intend to adopt Council conclusions to this end.

In order to improve the protection of women against violence also in times of crisis, we will continue to work towards the ratification of the Council of Europe’s Istanbul Convention by the EU and all Member States. During our Presidency, we will advocate the Europe-wide expansion of and access to protection and counselling.

Protecting and ensuring the participation of young people

Young people provide important impetus for the future of our continent and they are particularly vulnerable in times of crisis. We will promote the involvement of young people across Europe. We want to continue to strengthen youth work programmes and therefore support all young people in the development of their personalities with a European Youth Work Agenda.

We must continue to vigorously tackle youth unemployment in order to ensure that Europe remains a continent of opportunity. Young people must, as a priority, be offered a particularly high level of support when entering the labour market. In strengthening the Youth Guarantee, our objective is to lend our active support to young people and to prepare them for the fundamental changes taking place in the world of work – especially in times of crisis.

Promoting an active civil society and social cohesion

participatory EU-wide artwork by Ólafur Elíasson transcending national borders and generational divides. European policy in a democratic Europe requires a European public sphere and the participation of an active civil society that also thrives on cultural and media diversity. The cultural programme of Germany’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union is also in this vein with a participatory EU-wide artwork by Ólafur Elíasson transcending national borders and generational divides.

During Germany’s Council Presidency, we also want to emphasise the importance of social cohesion within Europe and to elaborate ways to promote this issue at local, regional, national and European level. We can only shape the future of the European Union together with the involvement of all European citizens. The Commission’s idea for a Conference on the Future of Europe is also based on this principle. This conference offers a forum for holding a broad-based discourse on the longer term objectives of the European Union, and also on the lessons that we can learn from the COVID-19 pandemic. We will work to ensure that the Council, Commission and the European Parliament rapidly reach agreement on the structure and mandate of the conference. In so doing, we must clarify how such a conference can take place under the changed conditions owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. We will do our part to ensure that the conference is brought to a successful conclusion.