In a letter to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, published on 30 August, Esther Lynch, General Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), set out her organisation’s expectations for the State of the Union speech to be given by the President on 13 September.
In particular, the unions are calling on her to address “a social justice emergency in Europe” as workers have seen their purchasing power collapse while corporate profits and dividends have soared, and dividend payments increased by 14% in the second quarter of this year while average wages rose by 4% last year, against a background of 10% inflation.
In particular, the ETUC is calling on the President to put forward new initiatives to develop the use of collective bargaining, “the best way to ensure a balance between workers and administrative boards”; to increase investment, to “ensure that money is used in the public interest by imposing social conditions on the use of EU funds” and to reject a return to austerity by amending the new economic governance rules planned for January so that they allow for investment in public services, the creation of quality jobs and a just transition to a green economy.
Link to the letter: https://aeur.eu/f/8dr (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)