The forthcoming European elections take place at a crucial and challenging time for Europe – and the European trade union movement.

Indeed, these could be the most important elections for a generation, setting the course that Europe will take for decades to come. The outcome will dictate whether the European Union will make progress towards greater social equality and cohesion, improving the wellbeing of its citizens, or start to break up under the weight of national self-interests and xenophobia.

What are the challenges? They include the impact of unregulated globalisation, economic crisis and austerity; changes in the economy and labour market due to climate change, digitalisation and automation; attacks on workers’ and trade union rights; increased demand for vital services as more people live longer; the growth of inequalities within and between countries; migration, often leading to discrimination and exploitation; and all these culminating in the rise of far-right, nationalist and neo-fascist movements promising brutally easy, false solutions.

These forces are threatening not only the human and social rights and values that form the foundations of the EU, but also the future of democracy itself.

For almost seven decades the EU has maintained and developed peace, a social model based on human, workers’, social and environmental rights, and fair living and working conditions. But none of these can be taken for granted.

The massive inequalities between people, regions and countries in Europe that have been allowed to fester since the financial crisis have left deep scars, fostering fear and anger in many sectors of society.

We are urging all our members, indeed all citizens, to go to the polls at the end of this month to cast their votes in favour of candidates who will protect and advance a fair and democratic Europe.

Trade union policies

Just before the elections, on 21-24 May, the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) will hold its four-yearly Congress in Vienna. Trade union delegates representing 45 million workers in 38 European countries will agree on a programme of action setting out sound policies for the future of the European economy, society and labour market, also detailing the action needed to reinforce the role of trade unions.

We will call for a new, progressive and sustainable economic policy, including fair taxation; pay rises and upward wage convergence between countries and sectors; employment in quality jobs; strong social protection and public services; measures to reinforce social dialogue, collective bargaining and workers’ participation; a just transition that supports workers adapting to a greener economy; fair and sustainable globalisation and trade; and a humane migration and asylum policy.

The European Commission is keen to welcome the seeds of economic recovery and a fall in unemployment. But much of this fall is due to a growth in bogus self-employment, insecure platform work and zero-hour contracts, involuntary temporary or part-time work, and other precarious and low paid jobs.

The ETUC, on the other hand, demands quality jobs offering security and social protection, equal pay for equal work, and the right to trade union representation and collective bargaining for all countries, sectors and workers.

One of the most encouraging achievements during this last Commission mandate was the European Pillar of Social Rights (EPSR), which we were closely involved in securing. Although the final version did not go as far as we would have liked, it nonetheless comprises 20 principles covering equal opportunities and access to the labour market; fair working conditions; and social protection and inclusion.

It constitutes a new commitment on the part of the Commission to a more Social Europe and a firm base for many EU legislative initiatives in the social field, including the revision of the Posting of Workers Directive, new Directives on Transparent and Predictable Working Conditions and Work-Life Balance, and a Recommendation on universal access to social security, which together introduce important labour protections, including for non-standard and platform workers.

However, many areas of social policy remain the responsibility of Member States, and the success of the Pillar depends heavily on the willingness of national governments to implement it. For that reason, we are working with national affiliates to lobby and monitor their governments’ actions, also through promoting a Social Scoreboard as part of the European economic policy-making ‘Semester’ process.

A humanitarian response

The refugee emergency is far from resolved and remains a stain on Europe’s humanitarian record. The war in Syria was the catalyst for a migration crisis that has challenged European solidarity, while economic hardship in many countries has been exploited by nationalist and fascist movements that lay the blame for Europe’s problems on minorities and migrants.

Trade unions are pushing to make institutions and governments comply with international law and take their share of responsibility for refugees across Europe. As unions, we can work with employers and local communities to integrate refugees and applicants for international protection into the workplace.

The ETUC also urges the EU and Member States to adopt a more concrete and fairer European policy on economic migration, to establish legal channels for entry and to foster an integration policy based on respect for rights and equal treatment of both local and migrant workers. With its ageing and shrinking population, the EU must find ways to welcome and integrate young workers and enable them to fulfil their potential. The adoption of the two UN Global Pacts on Migration and Refugees is a positive step forward, but as non-binding instruments they fail to go far enough.

The tide of populism also influenced the regrettable British referendum result in June 2016 – the vote to leave the EU. Together with our British and Irish affiliates, the ETUC opposed Brexit. Regardless of the final outcome, we will work to protect workers’ rights in all the 28 countries concerned and to stop social dumping.

Climate change continues to be one of the greatest challenges facing Europe and the world. The ETUC has been especially active in demanding a just transition for workers, especially in regions where jobs depend on carbon-intensive industries. We need MEPs who will be even more ambitious in cutting EU emissions and protecting workers. Through our participation in the EU Multi-Stakeholder Platform, we are pressing the EU to implement fully the United Nations Agenda 2030 on Sustainable Development Goals.

Organising against inequality

Research shows that a decline in trade union strength fuels inequality. Collective bargaining brings higher wages, yet the proportion of workers covered by collective agreements has fallen in 19 EU countries since 2008-9. Small wonder, therefore, that productivity gains are not reflected in pay rises.

In 2015, the Juncker Commission promised a ‘new start for social dialogue’, but there is an enormous amount of work to do to build – or rebuild – capacity for social dialogue in many Member States. Incoming EU leaders must make this a top priority. The ETUC will be launching a major initiative, and discussing the possibilities for a new framework Directive, to promote collective bargaining, and this should be a flagship for the next EU mandate.

Greater democracy and participation at work are not only questions of human rights or higher wages, they also make people more active in society as a whole and bring economic advantages such as higher productivity and innovation. So, another ETUC priority over the next four years will be reform of EU legislation on information and consultation, board-level representation and European Works Councils, to improve workers’ participation at the workplace and in the changing and restructuring of the economy.

While our main focus is on European policies, the ETUC nonetheless cooperates with the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) to promote fair, sustainable global development, democracy and peace, solidarity and respect for human rights around the world, especially through EU trade and external policies.

We will continue to call for EU trade agreements to include binding and enforceable labour rights clauses, and for EU institutions to uphold labour rights when working with third countries. We will support freedom of association and collective bargaining for trade unions in EU accession and neighbourhood countries, and in the rest of the world.

The ETUC wants to inspire Europeans with a new vision of a just and sustainable society, based on unity, cooperation, integration and solidarity, outlined in our Action Programme 2019-2023 to be adopted in Vienna. The old Social Contract is broken. We will work and negotiate with European and national authorities and employers to achieve a renewed Social Contract for Europe, including a Social Progress Protocol, giving workers, trade union and social rights primary status, to be included in the Treaties and implemented through EU legislation and policy.