Today, the Commission presented its ‘Employment and Social Developments in Europe’ (ESDE) review for 2015. Each year, the ESDE report gives a review of the latest employment and social trends, reflecting on upcoming challenges and possible policy responses.
This year’s review reveals further positive employment and social developments in the EU. However, despite recent improvements, huge disparities still exist between Member States, in terms of economic growth, employment and other key social and labour market indicators. Many of these disparities are linked to an underutilisation of human capital on several fronts. The 2015 ESDE report looks at ways of tackling these disparities, focusing in particular on job creation, labour market efficiency, social protection modernisation and investment in people.
Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs, Skills and Labour Mobility, Marianne Thyssen, commented: “We need to ensure that there are more and better opportunities for people in the EU, especially those furthest away from the labour market. We must also invest in enhancing people’s skills, so that all women and men in the EU can realise their full potential. We need to invest in people to achieve growth and jobs. We need to ensure that our labour law and social protection systems are fit-for-purpose in the 21st century, and we need to foster entrepreneurship and innovation. The European Pillar of Social Rights will play an important role in this context.”
