REDISCOVERING THE WHITE MALE WORKER

In the aftermath of the US election and its surprising result, a certain category of society was rediscovered: the white male worker. They were already momentarily in the spotlight after the BREXIT vote. These are the so-called “ordinary people” who took the welfare promise of our societies seriously and believed in the slogan of hard work for a better and fairer future. Former French President Sarkozy already campaigned for them when he promised in 2012 “work more to earn more”. Well, the result of the jury was that not only did people not work for more, they often worked more to earn far less. The modernisation of the labour market was and still is combined with the hard reality of precarious work. Interestingly enough the word “work” is increasingly absent from the institutional and political language used in praise of jobs. But what is a job? For many they are short term, not secured and not always qualified or well paid. In Europe we have around 25 million working poor who are not able to live off their income and we have 15 million NEETS.

For the sake of competitiveness, the full value of human capital is often not recognised, as many studies – not only from the trade union movement – show. On Wednesday the social-democratic family organised an action day on the European Youth Plan knowing that for too many young people there is still no prospect of decent jobs allowing them to get into the labour market and gain access to a living wage. This is more than an issue for social dialogue and industrial relations, it also has to do with qualifications and training in a rapidly changing world of work. SOLIDAR used the occasion to present the results of a research project NEGOTIATE setting out evidence of the varied yet similar situations of young people in different Member States. The young generation is not necessarily lost, but needs a clear perspective, which senior white workers no longer expect to have. Driven by the fear factor, this drives the political shift among many of the middle and lower working class who have lost the belief in positive change and instead are following the clarion call of the populists and sometimes the extreme right. An abandoned industrial fabric, a deserted labour market and a desperate lack decent housing and public services create the all the conditions in which people turn their back on democracy and turn to authoritarian solutions. There is an urgent need for much more: social investment! Although the increase of the Erasmus+ budget is of course welcome but the small increase of €500 Million for the Youth Employment Initiative stays well behind the European Parliament’s demands for € 1,5billion – urgently needed as high youth unemployment rates are continuing to persists.

How many more times will we have to wake up and hear that people have answered the call of the populists (see also ‘Trump: The Final Wake-Up Call’ by P. Rasmussen & U. Bullmann, 17 Nov 2016)? Will it be the case for the Dutch, German and French elections? Hopefully not. The “white male worker” is not interested in the European project per se, but only whether Europe delivers on their well-being! For some of us it can be hard to accept that fighting discrimination on behalf of the so-called minorities is an issue for democracy and for those groups. It has to go hand in hand with tackling social discrimination, discrimination through precarious work, through job insecurity reducing the possibilities of access to housing, social, health and care services. The rediscovery of the famous white worker is nothing new for us. Regardless of “colour”, social origin or status, social NGOs and civil society are not only service deliverers on an internal market, we hear the sound of silence. Our organisations serve the real people on the ground and are aware of the societal changes and their consequences. This is what shapes our mission in civil dialogue when we highlight from our side what is in the Treaties: territorial and social cohesion, as well as the welfare promise! Looking at the new EU budget, yes there are some positive signs, but the glass is still half empty!

Interesting read: ‘For A Democratic Polarisation: How To Pull The Ground From Under Right-wing Populism’ by Jürgen Habermas as appeared on Social Europe on 17 November 2016.

SOLIDAR NEWS

European pillar of social rights – Towards real social progress?
On 6th December 2016 SOLIDAR is organising two public events evolving around the European Pillar fo Social Rights, the first one being held in the framework of our Social Progress Watch 2016 results titled “European Pillar of Social Rights – Achieving upward social convergence with a rights-based approach?”. The second one will be a high level debate on How to build the “European pillar of social rights?“.
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NEGOTIATE lunch-time debate on the impact of the economic crisis on youth
On European Youth Plan Action Day SOLIDAR Foundation hosted a lunch time debate on the Impact of the economic crisis on youth. The aim of this event was to present the first findings from the research project NEGOTIATE, look at measures such as the Youth Guarantee and discuss approaches to tackle youth unemployment and improve youth’s position on the labour market.
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Turkey rapidly closing its civic space
SOLIDAR is concerned about civic space in Turkey, as last Friday the government issued an executive order suspending the operations of some 370 non-profit organisations. The associations affected by Friday’s ban were allegedly linked to the Gülen movement, Kurdish militant group PKK, far-leftist militant group DHKP-C and Islamic State, the Turkish Interior Ministry said.
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SOLIDAR and partners discuss socio-economic rights of women and girls in Algeria
Last week, on 8 November, SOLIDAR together with its partner DJAZAIROUNA organised a national workshop to discuss the socio-economic rights of women and girls in Algeria. This meeting kicked-off a series of workshops and trainings that will be organised in collaboration with women from the different wilayas (provinces) of Algeria to strengthen inclusive socio-economic development.
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Country-By-Country Reporting: a step towards sustainability
This week, the conference on “Public Country-By-Country Reporting: Achieving Corporate Tax Transparency” hosted by the S&D group took place at the European Parliament. County-By-Country Reporting (CBCR) as a tool to fight against tax avoidance was debated. One of the main subjects discussed was the need for multinational corporations to be transparent and responsible.
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UPCOMING EVENTS

European pillar of social rights – Achieving upward social convergence with a rights-based approach?
Organised by SOLIDAR
06 December 2016 | Brussels, Belgium
Registration

How to build the “European pillar of social rights”
Organised by SOLIDAR, the German Trade Union Federation (DGB), the Austrian Trade Union Federation (ÖGB), Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES), the Austrian Federal Chamber of Labour (AK Europa), Diakonie Deutschland
06 December 2016 | Representation of NRW Brussels, Belgium
Registration (before 30th November)

Perspectives for decent future of today’s youth – Final conference of world of work for youth project
Organised by SOLIDAR and FIC
07 December 2016 | Brussels, Belgium
Registration

2030 agenda for sustainable development: A paradigm shift within a reach?
Organised by SOLIDAR, Foundation for European Progressive Studies (FEPS) and the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament (S&D Group)
08 December 2016 | European Parliament, Brussels, Belgium
Registration