Social Agenda Issue 54

had the first social summit in twenty years, which is already remarkable. And then the Social Pillar which the Commission had developed was proclaimed by the three European political institutions (EU Council of Ministers, European Parliament and European Commission), which is even more remarkable! This means that it is not just a compass for us: It is also accepted as a compass by the Member States, Members of the European Parliament and the social partners. This is just what we need because we know that the development of social policy is not totally in the hands of the Commission. We use whatever legal and financial instruments we have but the Member States must do their part. So must the regional and local authorities, as well as the social partners. The adoption of the Pillar is just a starting point but I am very optimistic there. We have to preach by example, which is why the Commission immediately started implementing the principles enshrined in the Pillar with the tools and competences at our disposal. We launched a series of legislative proposals and integrated the Pillar into the workings of the European Semester cycle of EU economic governance, as well as into our proposal for the 2021-2027 Multiannual Financial Framework. I was delighted to see references to the Pillar in the documents of the first meeting of the Council of Employment and Social Affairs ministers after the Pillar was proclaimed: It means that national governments have taken ownership of the Pillar and that we are on the right track. At all levels of government, those who have the power to make rules and to agree on collective agreements have to adapt to change. But we must do so within a framework which upholds our values and protects people, making sure that everybody has the same opportunities to be skilled and to reskill, have access to the labour market, enjoy good working conditions and modern social protection and social services. The Pillar promotes a very broad definition of social affairs… Yes, it takes on a holistic approach. We wanted a compass for the future that does not change “who does what” but requires all levels of governance to cooperate. The European Commission has some competences where the European level is the best one to get things done but many things have to be carried out at national and regional level too, sometimes very locally. When people don’t have acceptable housing and access to good health services, they are blocked: They don’t learn; they don’t have a good job… So you need it all, if you want people that are capable of being flexible and of learning throughout life. We need people that are resilient, that have good opportunities from childhood onwards and have this learning culture. You are trying to shift mentalities, for example through the Work Life Balance proposal. We are not going to interfere with family policy or in families' lives. How men and women and other couples distribute work among themselves, that’s up to them. But what we do want is to ensure equality of opportunities for men and women, like we have always done in Europe and where we were always pioneers. What we see in the labour market is that the employment rate of women is far below that of men. SPECIAL FEATURE From pay gap to pension gulf: A gender pay gap of say 15 % leads to a pension gap in the future of probably twice as much. © Belga Image 1 6 / SOC I A L AG E NDA / MA R C H 2 0 1 9