Brussels, 17/10/2011 (Agence Europe) - Economic growth and job creation were central to the tripartite social summit on Monday 17 October. As a taster for the forthcoming European Council on Sunday 23 October, the participants discussed the financial crisis and the sovereign debt of the European states.
Although there was no consensus between the representatives of the European institutions, the Polish deputy prime minister Waldemar Pawlak and the social partners, the president of the European Commission, José Manuel Barosso, nonetheless told the press conference which followed the summit that “at least we agreed on one issue”, namely that “everything possible must be done to guarantee the stability of the Eurozone”. “Everything” refers mainly to the measures that will be presented to next Sunday's European Council to win back the confidence of the financial markets and stabilise the states' ratings in order to achieve economic recovery and job creation within the EU. “Employment and growth are part of a global strategy and are our main objective at the same time. Everything is linked, everything is in everything and vice versa”, Van Rompuy concluded.
However, only one reference to the term “social” came up in the speech of the president of the European Council, to stress the importance of social dialogue, which remains “essential at a time of crisis with tensions mounting”. Considerations on the recapitalisation of the banks, stabilising the fluctuations of the financial markets and bringing down the public deficits largely dominated the whole discussion. The speech by Bernadette Ségol, Secretary General of the European Trade Union Confederation, was no exception to this rule. Despite laying emphasis on the responsibility of the banks, which have become rich in the last three years, but are now on the brink of bankruptcy, the representative of ETUC borrowed words from Van Rompuy: the main thing is to bring back an environment which is conducive to growth. The president of the Commission went on to add that “now more than ever, we need social dialogue”, in order to reach a consensus over the solutions to be put forward. These solutions will require “courage”, he added. The discussion on the approach to adopt to the economic crisis and the direct consequences of the short and medium-term austerity measures were apparently absent from the talks.
The indignant movement, which is currently spreading across Europe and taking its first steps in the United States, was an uninvited guest at the tripartite social summit. Barosso said that he could understand people's “indignation and frustration”, resulting from the irresponsibility of certain players and their “criminal behaviour”, which has made the effects of the crisis worse. His understanding of the accusations levelled by the youth movement, which also took its place in the European capital on Saturday 15 October, contrasted with the words of the Commission president about making the employment market more flexible. The Commission is soon to submit recommendations to the member states of the EU on the best ways of stimulating youth employment. One of these solutions is to use the structural funds and start doing so now, he said.
In the view of ETUC, “flexibility can be a solution, if it is negotiated”. Security also means “guaranteeing workers a certain level of income”. Ségol voiced satisfaction at the clauses included in the six pack legislative package which include salary guarantees. But even so, the general character of this proposal is mainly marked by austerity, she commented. The secretary general also summed up in one sentence the general feeling within the EU, which flavoured this social summit: “we are afraid that the situation could become uncontrollable”.
This concern could be read as an admission that given the complexity of the situation, only swift and drastic measures can bring back a certain balance. “Guaranteeing the financial stability of the eurozone is the most important contribution that can be made to ensure economic growth and employment”, said Van Rompuy. The social issues must be sacrificed, at least for the time being. At the end of the day, this was a summit which was social in name only. (JK/transl.fl)