38 Amendments of Alicia HOMS GINEL related to 2019/2212(INI)
Amendment 15 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas the employment rate of people aged 20-64 reached 73.9 % in the EU in the second quarter of 2019, and 72.7 % in the euro area; whereas the employment rate may come close to the Europe 2020 target but is unlikely to reach it; whereas the total hours worked have reached the 2008 level;
Amendment 25 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B a (new)
Recital B a (new)
B a. whereas persistent gender gaps in the EU, such as the 11.5 % gender employment gap, the 16 % gender pay gap and the 35.7 % gender pension gap, underrepresentation of women in well- paid sectors, as well as time employed in care and unpaid domestic work, are not only unfair, but also put women in vulnerable or precarious situations, such as poverty or social exclusion; whereas the gender pay and pension gaps are higher for migrant and ethnic minority women, who also face additional barriers to employment and higher levels of employment and workplace discrimination; whereas urgent efforts are needed to eliminate these gaps as they remain one of the main barriers to achieving gender equality and are an unacceptable form of gender discrimination;
Amendment 26 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B a (new)
Recital B a (new)
B a. whereas the increase of the employment rate has been accompanied by an increase of atypical, precarious and non-formal forms of employment, including zero-hour contracts; whereas precarious workers are usually unable to enforce their rights, have little or no job security and social insurance protection, face higher health and safety risks and receive incomes which are insufficient for a decent living;
Amendment 30 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B b (new)
Recital B b (new)
B b. whereas unemployment fell to 6.3% in the third quarter of 2019 in the Union and to 7.5%in the euro area; whereas it remains high in some Member States and regions; whereas long-term unemployment remains high in half of the Member States;
Amendment 31 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B c (new)
Recital B c (new)
B c. whereas the employment rate of women increased slightly faster than that of men; whereas parenthood and caring responsibilities, limited access to childcare, elderly care and other care services still result in lower employment rates for women; whereas the gender employment gap, the wage gap and the pension gap remain substantial;
Amendment 32 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B d (new)
Recital B d (new)
B d. whereas the youth employment rate has increased, but is still below the pre-crisis level; whereas there are substantial differences with regard to youth unemployment between and within Member States;
Amendment 33 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas early school leaving and poor educational outcomes are obstacles to employment and economic growth and they are closely related to poverty, social exclusion and segregation; whereas education systems do not provide sufficient support for social mobility;
Amendment 46 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas social dialogue is a central component of the European social model that requires strong and representative social partners; whereas social dialogue has been weakened and collective bargaining coverage has shrunk across Europe, with huge disparities between Member States; whereas the share of employees in Member States covered by any form of collective wage agreement ranged from 98% to 7.1% in 2016;
Amendment 68 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G
Recital G
G. whereas more than one European in five is at risk of poverty and social exclusion; whereas the Europe 2020 headline target to reduce the number of persons at risk of poverty or social exclusion (AROPE) by 20 million remains out of reach; whereas children continue to face a high risk of poverty or social exclusion and their average AROPE rate in 2018 was at 24.3% with several Member States registering an alarming rate above 30%; whereas in-work poverty and the risk of having a household income below the poverty threshold while working remains high;
Amendment 71 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G a (new)
Recital G a (new)
G a. whereas one European out of ten is overburdened by housing costs, especially the lowest income households and people living in cities; whereas fighting climate change may have further implications on housing costs; whereas homelessness has increased over the last decade in most Member States;
Amendment 90 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital I a (new)
Recital I a (new)
I a. whereas 80 million Europeans have disabilities; whereas the implementation of accessibility measures continues to be insufficient; whereas the employment rate of people with disabilities was 50.6% in 2017 versus a total employment rate of 74.8%; whereas persons with disabilities are more likely to face in-work poverty;
Amendment 110 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1 a. Welcomes the commitment of the new Commission to propose the EU Gender Equality Strategy, including binding pay transparency measures within the first 100 days of its mandate; calls on the Commission to complete this initiative with tools providing objective criteria that allow for gender-neutral assessment and comparability of the value of work in different sectors in order to achieve equal pay for equal work and work of equal value between women and men in all sectors and professions;
Amendment 120 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Welcomes the inclusion of the EPSR in the ASGS 2020; calls for fairness and social rights to have equal importance in the new economic model as environmental sustainability and macro- economic stability; emphasises the central role of the Social Scoreboard in the European Semester; calls on the Commission to reinforce the Scoreboard by integrating further indicators reflecting all 20 principles of the EPSR; calls on the Commission to come forward with a social action plan to turn the EPSR into binding rules that strengthen welfare systems, respect labour market models and improve living standards;
Amendment 127 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3 a. Regrets the lack of further gender perspective and indicators in the framework of the European Semester and calls on the Commission to include the Gender Equality Index as one of the European Semester’s tools for monitoring progress towards employment and social targets and to acknowledge gender effects of macroeconomics policies;
Amendment 137 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Is concerned that rates of unemployment and long-term unemployment are still high in some Member States with strong regional disparities; stresses therefore the need for individually tailored measures to integrate the unemployed into the labour market and fight poverty and social exclusion; calls for a new financial instrument to tackle long-term unemployment by providing financial support for measures and projects in regions with above-average long-term unemployment;
Amendment 156 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Is concerned about the limited intergenerational social mobility and increased income inequality compared to pre-crisis levels; calls on the Commission and the Member States to tackle income inequalities including by promoting adequate minimum wages, a high collective bargaining coverage, equal opportunities in education and training, gender equality and universal access to quality services; stresses that tax and benefit systems must be designed in a way to reduce inequalities and promote fairness;
Amendment 169 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Welcomes the Commission consultation on a European framework for minimum wages; considers that wages in some Member States are being maintained at artificially low levels with a detrimental effect on the Union economy and the single market; calls for adequate minimum wage levels through collective agreements or through law, in line with national traditions and without undermining the autonomy of national social partners and well-functioning collective bargaining models; calls for a coordinated approach at EU level in order to achieve real wage growth, avoid the downward spiral of unhealthy labour cost competition and increase upward social convergence for all; calls on the Commission and the Member States to strengthen social dialogue, collective bargaining rights and coverage at sectorial level and the involvement of social partners in policy-making, including for the European Semester;
Amendment 182 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6 a. Stresses that full-time wages should provide for a decent living; stresses that every worker in the Union should receive a living wage that provides not only for the mere necessities of basic food, shelter and clothing, but is also sufficient to cover healthcare, education, transportation, recreation and some savings for unforeseen events, such as illnesses and accidents;
Amendment 190 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Reiterates its concern about the high number of persons at risk of poverty and social exclusion; is especially worried about high rates of child poverty and in- work poverty; calls on the Commission to present a comprehensive European anti- poverty strategy and establish a European Child Guarantee with adequate funding and well-designed support services; to ensure that every child has the right to free quality healthcare, free quality education, free quality childcare as well as decent housing and adequate nutrition; points out that high levels of inequality diminish the output of the economy and the potential for sustainable growth;
Amendment 198 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7 a. Is concerned that vertical and horizontal labour market segregation throughout the European Union and the persistent pay and pension gaps between women and men remain high throughout the European Union, and about the lack of women involved in decision-making processes, particularly on economic decision-making, including social dialogue; emphasises that these and other inequalities are suffered in a more severe way by disadvantaged groups of women, and therefore calls to integrate an intersectional approach into employment policies and social protection to support vulnerable groups of women, including women with disabilities. In order to achieve such an intersectional approach, it is needed to include gender segregated data and information, such as when dealing with platform and undeclared work, active labour policies, mobility, individual action plans or unemployment benefits, among others;
Amendment 219 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Calls on the Commission and the Member States for an integrated response to tackle the lack of affordable housing, poor housing conditions, housing exclusion andenergy poverty and housing exclusion; calls on the Commission to propose an EU framework for national homelessness strategies, and calls on the Member States to prepare their homelessness strategies adopting the Housing First principle, prioritising the provision of permanent housing to homeless people, and stopping the criminalisation of homelessness;
Amendment 230 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)
Paragraph 9 a (new)
9 a. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to come up with specific proposals to ensure a just transition in relation to the energy efficiency-related upgrading of housing stock in the context of the Green Deal, without placing an excessive burden on vulnerable groups, especially those at the risk of poverty and social exclusion;
Amendment 235 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Is concerned about the stagnating share of early school leavers and the increasing share of underperforming pupils; calls on the Member States to improve their education systems; stresses that educational outcomes are also negatively affected by social exclusion, poverty and segregation, which equally must be addressed; calls on the Commission to carry out a comprehensive analysis of the driving factors behind early school leaving including social aspects, and present a proposal to tackle the problem;
Amendment 240 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 a (new)
Paragraph 10 a (new)
10 a. Calls on the Commission and Member States to maximise their efforts in investing in affordable, accessible and high-quality education and training, including digital and transferable skills and to promote lifelong learning and skills development to prepare workers for future needs of the labour market affected by the green and digital transformations; calls on Member States to strengthen vocational education and training systems and increase their alignment with labour market needs; highlights the importance of apprenticeships and other forms of work-based learning; takes the view that mutual recognition of qualifications will be beneficial for overcoming skills shortages and skills mismatches;
Amendment 242 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 a (new)
Paragraph 10 a (new)
10 a. Calls on the Member States to ensure upward convergence on equal, non-transferable and fully paid maternity and paternity leaves as a measure to improve gender equality on care work, facilitating an egalitarian participation of women and men into the labour market and a fairer share of unpaid care and domestic work thus closing the temporary or part-time employment gaps;
Amendment 251 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 b (new)
Paragraph 10 b (new)
10 b. Notes the importance of skills and competences acquired in non-formal learning environments; stresses, therefore, the importance of creating a validation system for non-formal forms of knowledge, especially those acquired via voluntary activities;
Amendment 259 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to improve work-life balance and gender equality and to ensure equal pay for equal work at the same place; calls for more efforts to close the gender pay and pensions gaps, and to tackle disincentives for women to work; calls for accessible and affordable quality childcare and early education services, as well as care services for those reliant on care, including the elderly to facilitate women’s participation in the labour market; calls on the Commission to propose a directive on pay transparency;
Amendment 263 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 a (new)
Paragraph 11 a (new)
11 a. Emphasises the importance of ensuring universal, good quality, accessible and affordable child care facilities in order to increase employment of women; is concerned about the unequal fulfilment of the Barcelona targets of ensuring that 33% of children under 3 are in childcare (target 1) and 90% of children from the age of 3 until mandatory school age are in education (target 2), as these targets have been reached in 12 Member States since 2002; calls on the Member States to promptly and effectively transpose into their national law the Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 on work-life balance for parents and carers; calls for the development of a EU framework on care economy that would regulate minimum levels of care for older and dependent people similar to the Barcelona Targets and to establishing quality guidelines for the professionalization of domestic and care work;
Amendment 271 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Calls on the Commission to strengthen the regulation of new forms of work and improve the working conditions of platform workers; stresses that people with atypical working arrangements, including involuntary part-time or temporary contracts, are especially vulnerable; is of the opinion that such practices can have negative consequences on innovation and productivity;
Amendment 278 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 a (new)
Paragraph 12 a (new)
12 a. Considers the demographic decline a serious obstacle to economic growth; calls on the Commission and the Member States to introduce measures designed to address this challenge; calls on the Commission and the Member States to pursue policies of active ageing, social inclusion of elderly people and solidarity between generations; calls on the Commission to take action and follow-up on its evaluation report regarding the 2012 European Year for Active Ageing and Solidarity between generations;
Amendment 279 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 a (new)
Paragraph 12 a (new)
12 a. Is concerned about the under representation of women in science, technology, engineer and math (STEM) education and careers, and calls on Member States to fight against genderstereotypes and to improve the participation, achievement and continuation of girls and women in STEM education and careers to reduce the gender gap in STEM professions; highlights the importance of life-long learning also for women, as it gives the opportunity to re-skill in the ever- changing labour market;
Amendment 284 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 b (new)
Paragraph 12 b (new)
12 b. Highlights that universal access to public, solidarity-based and adequate retirement and old age pension systems must be granted to all; underlines that public pension systems alone or in combination with occupational pension systems must provide an adequate retirement income well above the poverty threshold;
Amendment 285 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 c (new)
Paragraph 12 c (new)
12 c. Believes that the best way to ensure sustainable, safe and adequate pensions is to increase the overall employment, pay and participation rate and to improve working and employment conditions;
Amendment 296 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. RIs of the opinion that cohesion policy, as the main investment policy of the Union, has demonstrated its effectiveness in reducing inequalities; rejects any reduction in the level of cohesion policy funding; opposes, in this context, the proposal to reduce funding for the European Social Fund Plus despite its enlarged scope; calls on Member States to make full use of funding available; stresses the need for greater alignment of the European Semester with social and cohesion funding and the policy objectives of the Union;
Amendment 303 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14 a (new)
Paragraph 14 a (new)
14 a. Urges the Commission and Member States to ensure that EU cohesion policy programmes for the period 2021-2027 adequately address regional differences in employment, providing a meaningful response to the concentration of employment-related, social and demographic problems and ensuring that all European regions can participate in and benefit from the Union’s economic and social reform agenda in the context of the Green Deal;
Amendment 307 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14 b (new)
Paragraph 14 b (new)
14 b. Highlights the importance of the automatic stabilisation dimension of welfare systems to absorb economic shocks; calls on the Member States to strengthen their investment in social protection systems in order to enhance their performance in tackling and preventing poverty and inequalities;
Amendment 320 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 a (new)
Paragraph 15 a (new)
15 a. Notes that the Union continues to suffer from structural problems which austerity imposed; underlines the need to put an end to short-sighted austerity policies, to boost domestic demand by future-oriented public and private investment, and to promote socially and economically balanced structural reforms in order to reduce inequalities and generate quality jobs, sustainable growth and social investment; highlights that socially responsible reforms must be based on solidarity, integration, social justice and a fair wealth distribution to improve the living standards for all; asks for a social imbalance procedure through a revisited Social Scoreboard;
Amendment 328 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Stresses that decisive support is needed for society, workers and businesses to face the challenges of climate change and the transition to carbon neutrality; calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure adequate social and environmental investment for a true ‘just transition’, the implementation of the EPSR and the achievement of the SDGs, by exempting social spending from the euro area fiscal rules and thereby allowing more investment in human capital, skills and health; calls for adaptation strategies and adequate support for those worst affected by the transition, especially vulnerable people;