Brussels, 18/03/2009 (Agence Europe) - The Tripartite Social Summit for Growth and Employment is being held in Brussels on Thursday 19 March under the joint presidency of European Commission President José Manuel Barroso and Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek. Czech Minister for Labour and Social Affairs Petr Necas, Social Affairs, Employment and Equal Opportunities Commissioner Vladimir Spidla, and the Swedish and Spanish prime ministers (Council Presidencies 2009 and 2010) will also attend as well as representatives of European social partners. Some say the meeting may turn out a “non event”. As the agenda presented by the Czech EU presidency was very brief, participants will send their message to the European Council to address the crisis, each according to their own specific abilities.
The general secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), John Monks, will appeal to European leaders to “show real European leadership to prevent the crisis from unfolding further”. John Monks will stress the urgent need for a European policy initiative to: (1) provide a European-wide response to the collapse of employment and economic activity; (2) give member states the financial means to combat the crisis and its social consequences; (3) face up to financial markets' liberal biais; (4) prevent rigid rules from inflicting serous damage on our economies; and (5) avoid protectionism and social dumping. In order to bring the recession to an end, ETUC strongly recommends that the European Council and Commission follow the following lines of action for a New Social Deal: (1) invest in Social Europe; (2) avoid wage cuts; (3) invest in an expanded recovery programme; (4) public money for public investment; and (5) European solidarity to protect all of us against the irrationality of financial markets.
The president of the European Association of Craft, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (UEAPME), Georg Toifl, will insist on three points: (1) recovery plans: the UEAPME regrets that these are not sufficiently implemented either at European or national level and therefore do not help business sufficiently. Toifl will give as an example of this, within the framework of the Small Business Act, the directive on payment times that was to be published for November 2008 but which was withdrawn from the agenda of the Commission on Wednesday. This is, however, an essential point for SMEs which are adamant that this should be included in the directive in addition to businesses and consumers; (2) guarantee of financing. The Commission has taken measures beneficial to companies but until now very few member states have followed them up. It is necessary for “sound” and “viable” SMEs to be able to have access to credit for investment, to avoid the risk of bankruptcy; (3) the labour market: SMEs, subcontractors and service providers for companies a little bigger do not benefit, in the event of restructuring, from social plans like the bigger multinationals. SMEs therefore ask to be treated on an equal footing with the large companies mainly for access to European funds (European Social Fund, European Globalisation Adjustment Fund).
The president of the European Centre of Employers and Enterprises providing Public Services (CEEP), Carl Cederschiöld, will stress that Europe has the means to overcome the crisis. Cederschiöld will underline the assets of the EU to meet the disastrous economic situation - its ability to react quickly and in time and the existence and functioning of the European Social Model which gives a true competitive edge, and which should help it to play a lead role at the G20 summit on 2 April. The response to the crisis, for the employers of public services, will be built on the concept of employability, and the anticipation of new skill needs and skills upgrading. Mr Cederschiöld will call for the next increases in advance payments from the European Social Fund to be mainly devoted to this type of operation. Finally, he will insist on major, long term investment in infrastructure as the key to recovery. Europe must play a role and it is for this reason that the CEEP will call for revival of a European infrastructures fund. (G.B./transl.jl)