On May 22-25, an election will take place in every EU Member State to elect the members of the future European Parliament. Because of the debt and eurozone crisis, European issues have never been as important as they have been for the past 5 years, where they have been at the center of the debate in most countries. This election will give rise to a debate between those who defend severe austerity measures (center-right) and those in favor of spreading budget restrictions over a longer period in order to boost consumption, trust growth and to reduce unemployment (center-left). Some outgoing MEPs say that Europe doesn’t boil down to economy and growth and that political representatives need to provide a new story built on joint values. These values would unite European citizens in a globalized world in order to block euroskepticism and the rise of extreme parties, which the European institutions are the first to predict without actually taking any action. While the parties are appointing candidates and preparing their program, unions and NGOs are crying out to them so they take hold of the social issue. Stronger social standards, social dumping, work on Sunday, minimum wage and youth employment are some of the emphasized topics.
Strengthening social standards in the service of competitiveness. This will be the leitmotiv of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) for this election. When its executive committee met on October 22-23, 2013, the union adopted the “Manifesto on the European Parliament Elections,” a sort of roadmap of social priorities. It also called for an ambitious European investment plan aiming for the creation of quality jobs that could generate up to 11 million new workplaces. To that end, it strengthening the social dimension of the Economic and Monetary Union is essential, by combating inequalities, reducing the number of “working poor,” banking on more social dialogue and improving social standards.
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