Economic governance, social pillar and youth participation as guarantors of Europe's future
"The European federal project today is more important than ever, and progress is needed". This is the main message of the European Movement, especially when considering the latest "polycrisis" processes which, according to its representatives, have been overcome thanks to the efforts and cooperation between member countries, and it is in these that young people also have clear demands: more social policies and more representation in the Conference on the Future of Europe (CoFoE).
These demands of the European Movement have been joined by those of Comisiones Obreras in a day held under the name of 'Economic governance, social pillar and youth participation in the future of Europe'. Two fundamental objectives were proposed and developed: greater participation of youth in the CoFoE to consolidate political change and the federal project in Europe, and the development of policies that ensure decent working conditions for young people and facilitate emancipation and achieve a considerable drop in the youth unemployment rate.
The day opened with the intervention of Paloma López, general secretary of the USMR CCOO, who recalled a clear premise: "Young people are not the future, they are also the present". With this, she predicted the importance of youth participation in decision-making in Europe, as well as the holding of conferences of this type to create, according to the general secretary, "the European awareness necessary to overcome the crises together".
However, one of the key speakers on this day was Francisco Aldecoa, president of the Spanish Federal Council of the European Movement. Aldecoa recalled the objective of the Movement as the construction of a federal Europe and the incorporation of the Porto Protocols into the structure of the European Movement. He also mentioned the achievements already made, such as the agreement for the first time in history between the institutions, civil society and citizens, the seed, he said, of the federal project.
Aldecoa also said that the CoFoE, with the participation of young people, is now "more important than ever", with a nod to current affairs. "Russia's aggression against Ukraine has completely changed the Conference of Europe, creating a different climate. The attack has been on democracy, on the rule of law, on our values, and that is why we have to attack with all our strength: by strengthening the federal model," added Aldecoa, giving as an example the trade union work of Luca Vicentini.
However, Francisco Aldecoa was critical of certain aspects of the conference. He said that it was "extremely behind schedule" and that "the organisation of the plenary sessions has been idolised over the weight of the citizens' panels, which do not represent the feelings of European citizens". He also added that the Conference has not given the credit that civil society, such as businesses, universities or trade unions, deserves for being the driving force behind the federal project. "We must change and intensify the European model," concluded the president of the Spanish Federal Council of the European Movement.
Another of the most noteworthy speeches was that of Fernando Bendito, Director General of the Spanish Confederation of Young Entrepreneurs' Associations (CEAJE). Bendito made a clear commitment to the social component of small and medium-sized enterprises because "the staying power of SMEs is not unlimited and we believe that this generation must be supported by this European model". He also considered that the entire European democratic base and the stability of workers is thanks to companies and, for this reason, "public-private collaboration is fundamental".
A similar approach was taken by Victoria Rodríguez, Professor of International Relations at the Complutense University of Madrid, who argued that the European Union and the demands and interests of its citizens needed to be taken more deeply into account. For his part, Álvaro Mella, a member of the European Youth Movement, used the term "polycrisis" to refer to the problems that the EU has had to face and how important it is for young people to be present in decision-making in order to also, he said, "implement a labour plan that puts an end to inequalities and guarantees a future for young people".
Other speakers, such as Javier Doz, CCOO representative on the European and Social Economic Committee, called for the need to create a common European treasury and a common fiscal policy. Amaia Echevarría, responsible for Europe at ESN Spain, called on the CoFoE to create policies for greater youth employment, emancipation and greater confidence in the institutions, an approach also supported by the speaker Aída Castellanos.
Eduardo Magaldi, representative of RUGE-UGT, who participated in the last conference held at the headquarters of this union, also mentioned the European social pillar, setting out four objectives to be achieved: to demand transparency in the gender pay gap, the promotion of minimum wages, proposals for atypical jobs and the right of workers to disconnect from work.
Finally, the day concluded with the participation of Cristina Faciabién, confederal secretary of International, Cooperation and Migrations CCOO, who called for a European social contract to achieve a fairer and more sustainable Europe through the redistribution of wealth, quality employment, social protection and social justice. She concluded that these challenges belong to young people and that, to this end, "they must play an important role in the CoFoE".
These proposals for the Conference on the Future of Europe made by the European Movement and Workers' Commissions ended with a round of questions in which there was an exchange of views on how to continue and improve the European federal project with a greater presence of young people and more weight in civil society.