With the Juncker Commission’s five years in office having come to an end, there is a feeling of business being unfinished when it comes to social Europe. As the former European Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs, Skills and Labour Mobility, Marianne Thyssen, prepares to pass the torch on to her successor, Nicolas Schmit, she will not be able to help but notice the impasse regarding her last legislative proposal, on the coordination of social security systems.
Three years have passed since this text, which seeks to update the European criteria so a system applicable to citizens circulating around the EU can be set out, has been discussed in Brussels. Broadly, the proposal establishes a closer link between the place where contributions are paid and the place where benefits are claimed. However it comes up against the question of cross-border workers for whom the European Parliament is calling for specific rules. “The Parliament wants better protection of cross-border workers and to limit the possibility of creating mailbox companies in order to prevent social and wage dumping”, explains the German socialist Gabriele Bischoff, who led negotiations for the European Parliament.
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