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Press release, 2 October 2012

2 October 2012

Clearer role for social partners in building tomorrow’s Europe

(DUBLIN, IRELAND) Closer social partner collaboration and clearer roles for policymakers representing the interests of workers, employers and governments, in creating tomorrow’s labour market, were the ambitions outlined out by Laszlo Andor, European Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, during his visit to Eurofound on Monday 1 October. 

On the International Day of Older Persons 1 October, Làszló Andor, European Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, visited Dublin to attend the ‘Third Age’ conference together with Juan Menéndez-Valdés, Eurofound’s Director. The presentation to the conference in Dublin was followed by a visit to Eurofound.

The visit to Eurofound was an opportunity for Lucinda Creighton, Irish Minister of State for European Affairs to meet for bilateral discussions with the Commissioner and Eurofound’s Director.

Addressing representatives of Irish workers and employers in additional bilateral discussions, the EU Commissioner emphasised that progress of EU integration cannot only be about the development of a banking union, but that social pillars have to be included in the process as well. David Begg, General Secretary of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU), and Brendan McGinty, Director, and Eamonn McCoy, of the Irish Business and Employers Confederation (IBEC) were told during the meeting that social partners ought to be given a clearer role in the political governance of Europe in the future.

‘Social dialogue is clearly a key to this new model of EU governance that Commissioner Andor proposes, giving the social partners a relevant role in the process.  Eurofound is happy to contribute to the making of this,’ commented Juan Menéndez-Valdés, Eurofound’s Director, after the visit.

For further information, contact Måns Mårtensson, media manager, on email: mma@eurofound.europa.eu, telephone: +353-1-2043124, or mobile: +353-876-593 507.

NOTES TO THE EDITOR:

Eurofound provides social partners, governments and EU decision makers with relevant, timely and unbiased research results so that the lives of European citizens can be improved.

For more information about Eurofound and its work, and free access to all our data and findings, find us on the following social media channels: Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Livestream, RSS.

 

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