Brussels, 29/01/2008 (Agence Europe) - A meeting of EU employment and social affairs ministers will take place in Brdo, Slovenia, preceded on 31 January by a meeting of EU gender equality ministers, both meetings chaired by Marjeta Cotman, Slovenian Labour, Family and Social Affairs Minister. Continuing the momentum of the German and Portuguese Presidencies of the EU, Cotman suggests that the minister discuss topical issues: 1) getting women involved in society and increasing their roles; and 2) flexicurity, paying particular attention to the situation facing young people and older workers on the labour market. The European Commission will be represented by EU Social Affairs, Employment and Equal Opportunities Commissioner Vladimir Spidla.
A conference will be held in Brdo on 30 January on gender equality and eliminating gender stereotypes, explains a Slovenian Presidency press release. The conference will highlight progress in their area so far and the main problems encountered in removing sexual stereotypes in areas like education and training, employment, private and family life, participation in decision-making and the media. The conference will focus on early childhood, the pre-school period, adolescence and adulthood.
On Thursday 31 January, the gender equality ministers will meet in the morning to discuss the involvement and responsibilities of women in society. These issues will feed into talks on a balanced representation of men and women in political decision-making, giving young women greater responsibilities in order to ensure gender equality, and the importance of development cooperation, explains the Commission in a press release.
In the afternoon of 31 January, there will be a 'social troika' meeting with representatives of the Social Platform and European social partners (the ETUC, Businesseurope, UEAPME and CEEP). The meeting will be chaired by Marjeta Cotman and will be attended by Vladimir Spidla, Director General pf Social Affairs at the Commission, Nikolaus van der Pas, the French labour, industrial relations and solidarity minister Xavier Bertrand, the Czech labour and social affairs minister Petr Necas, the chair of the European Parliament's Social Affairs and Employment Committee Jan Andersson, and representatives of the Social Protection Committee, the Employment Committee, the European Economic and Social Council and observers from Germany and Portugal. The participants will discuss a background paper prepared by the Slovenian Presidency on the situation facing young people and older workers on the labour market, explain representatives of the social partners and the Social Platform.
In the background paper, the following questions will be raised for discussion:
1) How should the common principles of flexicurity be applied so as to take account of the specific situation of young people and older workers and in particular the gender dimension?
2) What combination of policy measures have proven to be/could be useful to ensure a gender mainstreaming approach?
3) How can/should social protection systems be changed in order to better respond to the emerging challenges/interaction between labour law and social protection rules in order to support effective transition?
4) What specific measures could/should be sue din order to establish trust among and guarantee support of young people, older workers and women for the changed introduced? What should be the role of the social partners? How can other stakeholders contribute to that end?
All of Friday 1 February will be taken up with the meeting of EU employment and social affairs ministers, looking at flexicurity and how it impacts on young people, older workers and women. Commissioner Spidla's spokesperson Katharina von Schnurbein said that the Commissioner would present the details of a new group of social partners and leading political figureheads that would have the task of promoting flexicurity strategies during visits to the member states. The group would select countries facing typical problems connected with the introduction of joined-up flexicurity policies. (G.B.)