EU: the ETUC’s 11th Congress launched the offensive for a social Europe

The European trade union confederation (ETUC) 11th congress, which started today and will end on May 24, groups together 700 participants to define the strategy for European organization of the four upcoming years. Meeting under the banner "offensive" union delegates from 81 union organizations are going to decide if they are ready to support and enable the ETUC to pull out of its defensive position, as admitted John Monks, its general secretary, and to enable it to act in favor of a "labor market with stronger social rights" and for "the development of the EU's social construction". (Ref. 070445)
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Fortified by its balance sheet from the four years spent at the head of the ETUC (three large European mobilizations, two of which forced the European Commission and the governments from the member States to back up on the Bolkenstein directive,) the leading team (which was invested during the former congress,) proposed that is members turn to an “offensive position,” as John Monks put it: 1/ “offensive to create a labor market recognizing social rights and protecting migrant workers;” 2/ “offe

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