29 Amendments of Agnes JONGERIUS related to 2015/2330(INI)
Amendment 33 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital - A a (new)
Recital - A a (new)
- A a. Whereas the economic recovery in the EU is under way but remains uneven between and within Member States and is partly driven by temporary factors, such as low oil prices and unconventional monetary policies showing therefore that the EU can do more to boost the economic and social recovery so as to make it more sustainable in the medium term;
Amendment 42 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas unemployment rate has been diminishing sinceslowly and unevenly diminishing since the second half of 2013, thanks to supportive macroeconomic policies and the impact of structural reforms there has been a distribution of the working time through the increase in precarious work and, in many countries, this reduction has also caused the decrease of the labour force; whereas it nevertheless remains too high, currently affecting 9.9 % of active citizens, i.e. 23 million Europeans, about half of them being long-term unemployed and over 10% in the Euro area, being still well above the figures of 2008;
Amendment 49 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas the youth unemployment rate at EU level stands at 22.6 %, and in 2014 12.3 % of young people were not in education, employment or training (NEETs), thus being at risk of exclusion from the labour market and of becoming dependent on benefitslosing skills and human capital;
Amendment 68 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C a (new)
Recital C a (new)
C a. whereas the discrimination of long- term unemployed job seekers is unfortunately very common: whereas such practices are based on the psychological stigma associated with unemployment and result in employers to perceiving jobless and older applicants as less competent and less hireable than employed individuals; whereas there is a need for employers to train human resource managers to overcome their biases against unemployed workers and older workers and to focus on qualifications and experience rather than the current employment status.
Amendment 72 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas undeclared work hasdoes not only have serious budgetary implications and leads to loss of tax revenue and social security contributions, as itit also produces negative effects on employment, productivity and quality of work, skills development and lifelong learning, as well as on the acquisition of pension rights and access to healthcare; whereas there is a need for more efforts to turn undeclared work into declared work
Amendment 74 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas although atypicaltypical, precarious or non- standard forms of employment do not in themselves constitute precarious work, it is more likely to be found where contracts of this nature apply, albeit such contracts account for a minority of existing employment relationships;are significantly on the rise; whereas it is important to stimulate quality jobs which provide adequate income and security for families.
Amendment 83 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E a (new)
Recital E a (new)
E a. whereas the most precarious work involves the inability of individuals to enforce their rights, where social insurance protection is absent, where health and safety is put at risk and where work does not provide sufficient income to enable people to live decently; whereas Insecurity is another key element of precariousness and it encompasses work uncertainty, income insufficiency, lack of protection against dismissal, an unknown length of employment and where there is uncertainty about future employment
Amendment 97 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G
Recital G
G. whereas the demographic old age dependency ratio in the EU12 is projected to increase from 27.8 % to 50.1 % until 2060, and the total economic dependency ratio13 is expected to stabilise at over 120 % up to the middle of the next decade and then to rise above 140 % by 2060; whereas these factors may appear as sufficient justification for the fact that the great majority of European citizens agree that it is important to restructure their pensions systemsjustify the need of public authorities to guarantee the sufficiency and adecuacy of the first pension pillar in the short and medium term; __________________ 12 People aged 65 or above relative to those between aged 15 and 64. 13 Total inactive population relative to employed people aged between 20 and 64.
Amendment 103 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H
Recital H
H. whereas public debt remains too high in many Member States (the highest figures being for Greece at 167.8 % and Italy at 136 %), impeding growth and making the entire Union more vulnerable to crisesand private indebtness remains too high in in the EU, hampering the European economy strength; whereas, for theses reasons, it is necessary to hold an urgent and thorough debate on the handling of the debt in the EU;
Amendment 123 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Welcomes the fact that the Commission’s Annual Growth Survey (AGS) underlines the need to pay more attention to social fairness in the context of the new macroeconomic adjustmentnational, stability and reform programmes, adding three socialemployment indicators (activity rate, youth unemployment and long-term unemployment) in the 2016 Alert Mechanism ReportMacroeconomic Imbalance Procedure (MIP); notes, however, that the inclusion of these variables into the scoreboard do not have any legal implications or change the focus of the MIP; stresses that the need to invest in social development is not just a means of guaranteeing that economic growth and convergence can be achieved, but must also be a specific target in itself; therefore highlights the importance of quality of employment, poverty and inequality indicators and stresses that employment and social considerations should be put on equal footing with the economic ones;
Amendment 201 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Notes that the EU continues to suffer from structural problems that need to be addressed urgently, pointing up the need to continue prioritising investment,public and private investment, responsible structural reforms and responsiblebalanced fiscal consolidation, thus reinforcing a favourable environment for business and public services with a view to creating more quality jobs while balancing the social and economic dimensions; stresses that those priorities will only be achieved if investment in human capital is prioritised as a common strategy;
Amendment 206 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Notes that the EU continues to suffer from structural problems that need to be addressed urgently, pointing up the need to continue prioritising investment, structural reforms that reduce inequalities and promote quality jobs, sustainable growth and social investment and responsible fiscal consolidation, thus reinforcing a favourable environment for businesspath towards more cohesion and upward social convergence with a view to creating more quality jobs while balancing the social and economic dimensions; stresses that those priorities will only be achieved if investment in human capital is prioritised as a common strategythrough adequate investment in people and through more adequate sustainable social systems and integrated solutions to support people and make them even more resilient and prepared to face the challenges;
Amendment 208 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8 a. Highlights that socially responsible reforms must be based on solidarity, integration, social justice and a fair wealth distribution - a model that ensures equality and social protection, protects vulnerable groups and improves the living standards for all citizens.
Amendment 213 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)
Paragraph 9 a (new)
9 a. Is concerned that labour market reforms in many Member States have mainly promoted precarious jobs; observes that 50% of the jobs created in 2014 were temporary jobs; notes that, according to the Commission, in-work poverty persists; in this context, calls for a wage increase not only to guarantee decent income, but also which serves to consolidate the economic recovery through the strenghtening of the internal demand;
Amendment 221 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 a (new)
Paragraph 10 a (new)
10 a. Is concerned about the increase in income inequalities linked partially to inefficient labour market reforms; calls on the Commission and Member States to implement measures improving job quality in order to reduce labour market segmentation combined with measures raising minimum wages to a decent level and strengthening collective bargaining and workers position in wage-setting systems in order to reduce wage dispersion; warns about the fact that in recent decades, corporate management have been taking a greater share of the economic share while workers' wages have stagnated or have been reduced; considers that this excessive dispersion in wages increases inequalities and damages productivity and competitiveness of companies.
Amendment 222 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 b (new)
Paragraph 10 b (new)
10 b. calls the European Commission and Member States to respect and promote collective bargaining and its coverage to reach as many workers as possible while at the same time also aiming for better wage floors in the form of, where applicable, minimum wages set at decent levels and with the involvement of social partners - all this with a view to end the competitive wage race to the bottom, to support aggregate demand and economic recovery, to reduce wage inequalities, to fight in-work poverty and to assist the European Central Bank in getting out of the risk of deflation and to achieve its price stability target
Amendment 235 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 b (new)
Paragraph 11 b (new)
11 b. Welcomes the Commission´s initiative on investments in human capital to restore jobs and sustainable growth. However, is extremely worried about the fact that public expenditure in education has recorded a 3.2%[1]decrease since 2010, with decreases in eleven Member States in the most recent year 2013. Stresses that, in order to be effective, these reforms should focus on the pupils curricula and the public sector; [1] Joint employment report 2016 page 19
Amendment 252 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
Amendment 264 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Calls on the Member States to moderniincrease their currentinvestments in social protection systems, in order to guarantee their sustainability in the face of expected ageing; considers that pension schemes should be linked not only to life expectancy but also to other social and labour factors, while not jeopardising the sustainability of public finimprove the resilience of Member States economies in times of crisis and to guarantee their sustainability in the face of expected ageing; highlights the importance of the automatic stabilisation dimension of welfare systems to absorb social shock waves caused by recessions; stresses that , high quality welfare systems and social investments are extremely important if Europe wants to maintain its main competitive advantage - highly skilled workers and productive compancies;
Amendment 344 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25 a (new)
Paragraph 25 a (new)
25 a. Calls on the Commission, in the framework of the midterm review of the MFF, to study the possibility of increasing the funding of the ESF to ensure the adequacy of its objectives and the new challenges that have been incorporated, such as long-term unemployment or the integration of refugees. Calls also for the establishmen of an specific programme to those European subregions whose unemployment rates exceed 30%;
Amendment 362 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 27
Paragraph 27
27. Calls on the Member States to implement and monitor more efficient forms of social protection systems and income support, in order to ensure that these systems offer a minimum standard of living for the unemployed and those at risk of social exclusion, while guaranteeing that such mechanisms do not perpetuate social dependency and constitute an incentive to education or entering the job market;
Amendment 375 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28 a (new)
Paragraph 28 a (new)
28 a. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to take adequate measures to help refugees settle and integrate, as well as ensuring that public services are sufficiently resourced and early anticipation of the requirements to facilitate their smooth transition to the labour market. Local authorities and social partners should play a key role in facilitating the integration of migrants and preventing them from suffering from labour abuse;
Amendment 381 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29
Paragraph 29
29. Points out to the Member States, in view of the ageing of Europe’s citizens, the social risk implied in not being able to guarantee the sustainability safety and adequacy of social security systems over the coming decades; considers that linking retirement age to life expectancy is not the only way of tackling the challenge of ageing, and that pension system reforms should also reflect, inter alia, labour market trends, birth rates, the demographic situation, the health and wealth situation, working conditions and the economic dependency ratio; recalls that the best way to tackle the challenge of ageing is to increase the overall employment rate, building, inter alia, on social investments in active ageing;
Amendment 387 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 30
Paragraph 30
30. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to work together on removing the obstacles to fair labour mobility, ensuring that EUsince the free movement is a fundamental right in the EU, ensuring that no worker is left uncovered by social and labour rights protection, including mobile workers, are not treated abusivelynd guaranteeing the principle of equal treatment while safeguarding wages and social standard; calls on the commission in this respect to present the Labour Mobility Package, as announced in the CWP 2016, in order to guarantee equal pay for equal work at the same workplace, to end discrimination and abuse of workers and to terminate practices that are undermining a level playing field;
Amendment 390 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 30
Paragraph 30
30. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to work together on removing the obstacles to fair labour mobility, ensuring that EU since the free movement of workers is a fundamental right in the EU, ensuring that no worker is left uncovered by social and labour rights protection, including mobile workers, are not treated abusivelynd guaranteeing the principle of equal treatment while safeguarding wages and social standards;
Amendment 395 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 30 a (new)
Paragraph 30 a (new)
30 a. States that social dialogue is a key instrument for improving working conditions and that in order to ensure the best conditions possible for the dialogue between social partners, a precondition in this context is the existence of strong trade unions, the participation of employees in company matters and a strengthening of collective agreements; calls on the Commission and Member States to boost the quality of social dialogue also at the European level ensuring timely and meaningful social partner consultations, allowing for the necessary analysis and integration of proposals in decision making processes.
Amendment 396 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 30 b (new)
Paragraph 30 b (new)
30 b. calls for the promotion of a socially just corporate governance framework at the European level as a way to reducing inequalities, focusing on promoting greater economic democracy putting in place and strengthening legislation requiring employee representatives on company boards and remuneration committees, systems of tax advantages to employee owned companies, cooperatives and mutuals, as well as funds providing loans to assist employee-buy outs.
Amendment 397 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 30 c (new)
Paragraph 30 c (new)
30 c. calls on the Commission and the Member States to reinforce their efforts to tackle social and wage dumping in the EU, which causes significant harm to the workers affected and to Member State welfare systems; calls, furthermore, for the social partners to be included at all levels in these efforts;
Amendment 414 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 31 b (new)
Paragraph 31 b (new)
31 b. Calls on the Commission to present as soon as possible the proposal for a Pillar of Social rights, as a way to guarantee social and labour rights and to foster upward economic and social convergence in order to tackle the economic and social disparities between Member States and within societies;