22.1.2016   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 24/55

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having regard to Article 3 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU),

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having regard to Articles 9, 151 and 153 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU),

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having regard to Articles 145, 148, 152 and 153(5) TFEU,

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having regard to Article 28 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union,

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having regard to the Commission Communication of 28 November 2012 on the Annual Growth Survey 2013 (AGS) (COM(2012)0750), and the Draft Joint Employment Report annexed thereto,

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having regard to the Commission Communication of 23 November 2011 on the Annual Growth Survey 2012 (AGS) (COM(2011)0815), and the Draft Joint Employment Report annexed thereto,

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having regard to its resolution of 26 October 2012 on the European Semester for Economic Policy Coordination: implementation of 2012 priorities (1),

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having regard to its resolution of 1 December 2011 on the European Semester for Economic Policy Coordination (2),

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having regard to the Commission Communication of 3 March 2010 entitled ‘Europe 2020: a strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth’ (COM(2010)2020),

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having regard to its position of 8 September 2010 on the proposal for a Council decision on guidelines for the employment policies of the Member States: Part II of the Europe 2020 Integrated Guidelines (3),

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having regard to Council Decision 2010/707/EU of 21 October 2010 on guidelines for the employment policies of the Member States (4),

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having regard to the Commission Communication of 18 April 2012 entitled ‘Towards a job-rich recovery’ (COM(2012)0173),

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having regard to Oral Question O-000120/2012 to the Commission and its related resolution of 14 June 2012 on ‘Towards a job-rich recovery’ (5),

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having regard to the Commission Communication of 23 November 2010 entitled ‘An Agenda for new skills and jobs: A European contribution towards full employment’ (COM(2010)0682) (6),

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having regard to its resolution of 26 October 2011 on the Agenda for New Skills and Jobs (7),

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having regard to the Commission communication of 16 December 2010 entitled ‘The European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion: A European framework for social and territorial cohesion’ (COM(2010)0758),

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having regard to its resolution of 15 November 2011 on the European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion (8),

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having regard to Commission recommendation 2008/867/EC of 3 October 2008 on the active inclusion of people excluded from the labour market (9),

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having regard to the Commission Communication entitled ‘Youth Opportunities Initiative’ (COM(2011)0933),

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having regard to Oral Question B7-0113/2012 to the Commission and its related resolution of 24 May 2012 on the Youth Opportunities Initiative (10),

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having regard to the Commission Communication of 15 September 2010 entitled ‘Youth on the Move: An initiative to unleash the potential of young people to achieve smart, sustainable and inclusive growth in the European Union’ (COM(2010)0477),

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having regard to its resolution of 12 May 2011 on Youth on the Move: a framework for improving Europe’s education and training systems (11),

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having regard to its resolution of 6 July 2010 on promoting youth access to the labour market, strengthening trainee, internship and apprenticeship status (12),

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having regard to its resolution of 7 September 2010 on developing the job potential of a new sustainable economy (13),

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having regard to Council Directive 2000/78/EC of 27 November 2000 establishing a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation (14),

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having regard to its resolution of 20 November 2012 on the Social Investment Pact — as a response to the crisis (15),

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having regard to the European Pact for Gender Equality (2011-2020) adopted by the Council on 7 March 2011,

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having regard to Council Directive 1999/70/EC of 28 June 1999 concerning the framework agreement on fixed-term work concluded by ETUC, UNICE and CEEP (16),

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having regard to Council Directive 97/81/EC of 15 December 1997 concerning the Framework Agreement on part-time work concluded by UNICE, CEEP and the ETUC (17),

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having regard to Rule 48 of its Rules of Procedure,

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having regard to the report of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs and the opinion of the Committee on Regional Development (A7-0024/2013),

A.

whereas the employment and social consequences of the crisis are far-reaching, and are now exacerbated by the impact of fiscal consolidation introduced in certain countries in response to the sovereign debt crisis and a constricted monetary policy in the eurozone, which contrasts with that implemented by other major economic regions and is unable to give an effective response to the sovereign debt crisis and promote growth; whereas the crisis is having negative effects on the quality and quantity of social investments in Europe; whereas the eurozone is in recession and the EU is currently the only major region in the world where unemployment is still rising;

B.

whereas in 2012 the employment situation has worsened and the prospects for 2013 are pessimistic; whereas labour market segmentation has continued to rise, long-term unemployment has reached alarming levels, in-work poverty is still a major problem, average household incomes are declining in many Member States and indicators point to a trend of higher levels and deeper forms of poverty and social exclusion, with in-work poverty and social polarisation on the rise in many Member States.

C.

whereas unemployment has increased significantly since 2008 and reached the level of 25 million unemployed people in the EU, corresponding to 10,5 % of the working age population; whereas, over the last twelve months alone, the number of unemployed people has increased by 2 million; whereas the decline in employment has been more pronounced in those countries which are undertaking more substantial fiscal consolidation;

D.

whereas the labour market situation is particularly critical for young people, regardless of their level of education, who often end up with precarious employment contracts and in unpaid traineeships; whereas the difficult situation of young people is partly due to mismatches between acquired skills and labour market demand, limited geographic mobility, early school leaving without qualifications, a lack of relevant skills and work experience, precarious employment conditions, limited training opportunities, and inefficient active labour market policies;

E.

whereas across the EU more than one in five young people are unemployed (22,8 %), with youth unemployment exceeding 50 % in some Member States; whereas more than 7 million Europeans under 25 are not in employment, education or training (NEET); whereas these figures are continuing to rise and there is a risk of a lost generation; whereas the cost of inaction with regard to NEETs is estimated at EUR 153 billion across the EU;

F.

whereas after the European Council meeting of 30 January 2012, as part of its ‘Youth Opportunities Initiative’, the Commission called on Member States to develop and implement comprehensive initiatives for youth employment, education and skills, and to develop youth jobs plans within their national reform programmes; whereas, however, such initiatives have yet to be brought forward in most Member States;

G.

whereas people approaching pension age, long-term unemployed workers, non-EU workers and low-skilled workers are also among those worst hit by the crisis;

H.

whereas the necessary reforms should be carried out to guarantee the sustainability of pension systems; whereas, in this connection, it is possible to raise the actual retirement age without raising the mandatory retirement age, by reducing the number of people leaving the labour market early; whereas, in order to successfully increase actual retirement ages, reforms in pension systems need to be accompanied by policies that develop employment opportunities for older workers’ access to life-long learning, introduce tax benefit policies giving incentives to stay longer at work and support active healthy ageing;

I.

whereas long-term unemployment reached alarming levels in the second quarter of 2012, when the figures showed that 11,1 million unemployed Europeans had been unemployed for more than 12 months, accounting for 4,6 % of the active population; whereas the probability of unemployed people finding a job has decreased in most Member States, especially those subject to significant fiscal consolidation measures;

J.

whereas approximately 120 million people are threatened by social exclusion in the EU27 because they are at an aggravated risk of poverty, are severely materially deprived or living in households with very low work participation,

K.

whereas social protection expenditure has decreased in nearly all Member States and whereas the Social Protection Committee (SPC) warns of increasing numbers of people at risk of income poverty, child poverty, severe material deprivation and social exclusion because of the impact of fiscal consolidation measures;

L.

whereas achieving growth and a high level of employment is necessary to the recovery of the economy, to fiscal consolidation and to the sustainability of the welfare state and public finances in the long term;

M.

whereas targeted social investments should form a major part of Member States‘ response to the crisis as they are key to reaching the employment, social and education objectives of the Europe 2020 strategy;

N.

whereas the European Council stated on 30 January 2012 that ‘growth and employment will only resume if we pursue a consistent and broad-based approach, combining a smart fiscal consolidation preserving investment in future growth, sound macroeconomic policies and an active employment strategy preserving social cohesion’;

O.

whereas fiscal consolidation must continue in view of the high debt levels and long-term challenges to public finances, but with due account being taken of the fact that it must be a medium- to long-term objective; whereas fiscal consolidation can have negative growth and employment effects in the short term, especially in countries in recession or with marginal growth rates, compromising future growth and job-creation potential; whereas fiscal consolidation must therefore be managed in a growth-friendly manner so that it does not damage the growth and job-creation potential of the economy or its social fabric;

P.

whereas tensions in financial markets remain high and imbalances in access to financing prevail between Member States; whereas high premium risks unduly increase sovereign debt burdens, requiring heavier fiscal consolidation, deepening the crisis and thus hampering growth and job creation;

Q.

whereas, in spite of the urgency of the situation, the European Union is failing to achieve almost all of the Europe 2020 targets, and progress in Member States in delivering on the Europe 2020 objectives has been disappointing; whereas commitments set in the National Reform Programmes 2012 are insufficient to meet most of the EU-level targets;

R.

whereas investment in education and training, research and innovation — key areas for economic growth and job creation — is still lower in the EU than in its main economic partners and competitors elsewhere in the world; whereas productive investment in these areas is essential for a sustainable exit from the crisis but also for consolidating the EU economy on a path of competitiveness and productivity;

S.

whereas the gender dimension is crucial to achieving the EU 2020 headline targets, as women form the greatest reserve of as yet unused labour force; whereas women form the majority of those living in poverty in the EU; whereas cuts to public services such as child care and other dependants’ care will have a negative impact on women and consequently their ability to participate in the labour market; whereas specific attention needs to be paid therefore to gender mainstreaming and specific policies targeted at women throughout the European Semester process; whereas the legal retirement age of women needs to be aligned to that of men;

T.

whereas there is a need to ensure greater interaction between employment, social and economic policies in the context of the European Semester, as set out in Articles 121 and 148 TFEU;

U.

whereas it is essential to foster democratic accountability, ownership and legitimacy of all actors involved in the European Semester; whereas an essential part of this is the appropriate involvement of the European Parliament;

V.

whereas the national parliaments are the representatives and guarantors of the rights acquired and delegated by citizens; whereas the introduction of the European Semester should fully respect the prerogatives of national parliaments;

1.

Urges the European Council to ensure that the following messages form part of its policy guidance for the European Semester 2013, and mandates its President to defend this position during the Spring European Council of 14—15 March 2013; refers, in particular, to the specific recommendations to be adopted by the European Council in its policy guidance, annexed to this resolution;

2.

Deplores the fact that priorities identified during last year’s European Semester cycle, in particular those relating to job creation, job quality and the fight against poverty and social exclusion have not given the expected results;

3.

Points out that the economic situation and the social consequences of the crisis have further deteriorated during the last year and therefore stresses the importance of stepping up the Member States’ commitment to following the 2013 policy guidance, in particular in the employment and social policy area;

4.

Calls on the European Council to ensure that the yearly policy guidance set out on the basis of the AGS is fully focused on fulfilling all the objectives of the Europe 2020 Strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth; regrets that no Europe 2020 progress report was included in the AGS 2013, calls on the Commission to deliver this report in time for the Spring European Council meeting;

5.

Deplores the fact that the 2012 policy guidance and its implementation have not been sufficiently effective as regards the attainment of the political targets enshrined in the Europe 2020 strategy; deplores the fact that some Member States are moving further away from the 2020 targets;

6.

Deplores the fact that the commitments set in the National Reform Programmes 2012 are insufficient to meet most of the EU-level targets; stresses its concern about the fact that the current national targets are not sufficient to achieve the Europe 2020 headline targets for employment, education and poverty reduction;

7.

Calls on the Member States to adopt the necessary commitments in the 2013 National Reform Programmes towards the fulfilment of the Europe 2020 objectives;

8.

Calls on the European Council to ensure, in its policy guidelines, that a sufficient level of EU funds is devoted to the achievement of the Europe 2020 objectives; urges Member States to earmark funds more effectively for the achievement of the Europe 2020 Strategy’s objectives;

9.

Considers it regrettable that last year most Member States did not respect their commitment to submit a National Job Plan (NJP) as part of their 2012 NRPs; calls on the Member States to respect this commitment in 2013; stresses that NJPs should include comprehensive measures for job creation and green employment, a link between employment policies and financial instruments, labour market reforms, a clear timetable for rolling out the multiannual reform agenda over the next 12 months and an indication of both the fields and regions experiencing specialisation shortages and surpluses;

10.

Regrets that the Commission has not made NJPs a mandatory requirement and calls on the Commission to oversee their preparation during each year’s European Semester cycle;

11.

Calls on the Member States to adopt measures favourable to job creation such as labour tax reforms that encourage employment, promote and support genuine and voluntary self-employment and business start-ups, improve the framework for doing business and facilitate the access to financing for SMEs, transform informal and undeclared work into regular employment, reform labour markets, if necessary, to make them more adaptive, dynamic, competitive and inclusive while ensuring adequate security for employees, provide employers and employees with skills and instruments that enable them to adapt to changing labour markets needs, modernise wage-setting systems — within the framework of social dialogue with the active participation of the social partners, while respecting the diversity of national models of industrial relations — to align wages with productivity trends within the boundaries of decent living wages, and exploit the high employment potential of sectors such as the green economy, health and social care, and the ICT sector to create sustainable and quality jobs;

12.

Calls on the European Council to make youth unemployment a priority in the 2013 policy guidance;

13.

Calls on the Member States to take decisive measures to fight youth unemployment, including targeted active labour-market policy measures, measures tackling skills mismatches in the labour market, in particular by preventing early drop-out from school or apprenticeship schemes and ensuring that education and training systems provide young people with the relevant skills in an efficient way, and promote entrepreneurship and effective business development support for young people and frameworks securing the transition from education to work;

14.

Strongly supports the Commission’s proposal on Youth Guarantee Schemes; calls for its speedy implementation and for sufficient funding to be provided for it; considers that the ESF should play a key role in funding Youth Guarantee Schemes and that an appropriate balance should be sought between EU and Member State funding;

15.

Urges Member States to develop comprehensive strategies for young people who are not in employment, education or training (NEET); urges them also, in developing these strategies, to show financial solidarity with Member States with limited fiscal space;

16.

Regrets that the 2013 AGS does not address the quality of jobs and that too little attention is paid to putting in place the necessary preconditions for increasing labour market participation, notably that of women, workers aged 45 +, people with disabilities and the most deprived;

17.

Recalls that the internal imbalances between Member States, especially in employment and social indicators, is widening; points out that Member States with relatively unsegmented labour markets, strong welfare systems and an ability to temporarily adjust working hours, working time and other flexible working arrangements (internal flexibility) and efficient collective bargaining models have proved more resilient in the face of the employment and social consequences of the crisis;

18.

Calls for labour markets to be more adaptive and dynamic, able to adjust to disruptions in the economic situation without causing redundancies, and more inclusive, favouring an increased labour participation, specially for those vulnerable and disadvantaged people;

19.

Warns that austerity measures should not compromise the quality of employment, nor social protection and health and safety standards; encourages Member states to promote the identification of companies and SMEs making an effort to be more socially virtuous than meeting their minimum legal obligations;

20.

Underlines the key role of education and training in achieving the Europe 2020 Strategy objectives;

21.

Underlines the importance of reducing the early school leaving rate in order to decrease numbers in the NEET group;

22.

Calls on the Member States, while pursuing sustainable, growth-friendly and differentiated fiscal consolidation, to secure efficient and sufficient investment in education, training and lifelong learning in order to meet all the commitments agreed in the Europe 2020 Strategy;

23.

Calls on the Member States to incorporate the European exchange programmes for education, training, youth and sports into measures taken in the framework of the European Semester;

24.

Is deeply concerned about the increase in poverty and unemployment among all age groups since the last 2012 European Semester cycle;

25.

Welcomes the fact that the 2013 AGS addresses poverty and social exclusion, as well as tackling the social consequences of the crisis; calls on the Commission to stress these measures in the country-specific recommendations and, in particular, to address in-work poverty, poverty among people with limited or no links to the labour market and poverty among elderly people; calls on the European Council to endorse this guidance as a priority;

26.

Calls for the implementation of integrated active inclusion strategies to be a central element of EU and national social policy agendas;

27.

Acknowledges the need to implement proportionate and differentiated growth-friendly fiscal consolidation to avoid negative short-, medium- and long-term growth and employment effects while guaranteeing the sustainability of public finances; stresses that the impact of fiscal consolidation programmes should be evaluated on the basis of their short-term effects on growth, employment and social inclusion, especially in countries in recession or with marginal growth rates; calls on the Commission and the European Council to make use of the flexibility in times of economic downturn that Regulations (EU) No 1175/2011 and (EU) No 1177/2011 provide for;

28.

Emphasises that the Commission should take greater account of specific local, regional and national trends, as well as potential errors in its forecast, which represents the basis for the AGS;

29.

Considers that fiscal consolidation should be implemented in a proportionate and growth-friendly way and that the rhythm of consolidation should be differentiated across countries according to their fiscal space and that of the broader European economy, in order to avoid negative growth and negative employment effects while ensuring debt sustainability;

30.

Calls on the Commission to recalibrate its models on the impact of the multiplier effect on growth and job creation of fiscal cuts on the budgets of Member States in line with recent IMF revisions;

31.

Calls on the European Council to ensure coherence between the different priorities in its policy guidance, so as not to compromise sustainable growth and job-creation potential, increase poverty and social exclusion, or prevent universal access to the provision of quality public services; believes that the main priority must be to put into place integrated reform measures and investments that promote growth and job creation whilst guaranteeing the sustainability of public finances;

32.

Calls on the European Council, should it endorse the first priority of the AGS, ‘differentiated growth-friendly fiscal consolidation’, to specifically explain how this can be implemented in full compliance with the aim of increasing social cohesion and combating poverty, as outlined in its fourth priority, ‘tackling unemployment and the social consequences of the crisis’;

33.

Stresses the need to attain full coherence between budgetary consolidation and economic measures on the one hand and social policy, growth and employment measures on the other.

34.

Points out that, at a time of heavy fiscal constraint and reduced lending capacity in the private sector, the Structural Funds and the Cohesion Fund, with their financial size and the objectives pursued, represent an essential lever, at the Member States’ disposal, to stimulate the economy and help deliver the growth and employment objectives enshrined in the Europe 2020 Strategy; in this connection, stresses that, in view of the key role played by cohesion policy in the development of national programmes within the framework of the European Semester, this policy should be a prime focus of the AGS and should contribute to the annual debate on growth and jobs in the EU;

35.

Is concerned at the fact that the European Parliament, national parliaments, social partners and civil society continue to play a limited role in the European Semester; highlights the fact that policy guidance in the AGS initiated by the Commission, and to be endorsed by the European Council, lacks parliamentary and civil involvement and therefore democratic legitimacy;

36.

Maintains that Parliament has a crucial role to play in establishing the necessary democratic legitimacy; considers that, in the absence of a legal basis for the ordinary legislative procedure applicable to the AGS, the European Council should take into account parliamentary comments when endorsing the policy guidance in order to guarantee democratic legitimacy;

37.

Asks the Commission to require Member States to guarantee maximum transparency in the elaboration of NRP as well as a wide involvement of national parliaments and social partners in this process;

38.

Recalls that strengthening job-rich growth calls for employment policies that generate favourable conditions for job creation, facilitate positive transitions from job to job and from unemployment to employment, increase the labour supply and improve its geographic and skills matching with labour market needs.

39.

Stresses the need for reforms in the labour market to increase labour productivity and efficiency in order to improve EU economic competitiveness and enable sustainable growth and job creation while strictly respecting both the letter and the spirit of the European Social Aquis and its principles; believes that reforms in labour markets should be implemented in such a way as to promote job quality;

40.

Suggests that Member States reduce taxation on labour when fiscal conditions allow, especially with regard to low-paid and low-skilled workers and vulnerable groups; considers that well targeted temporary reductions in social security contributions or job subsidy schemes for new recruits, especially for the low-skilled and long-term unemployed, are very effective incentives to promote job creation;

41.

Notes that demographic change has a clear impact on the provision of social infrastructure, posing a serious challenge to all generations throughout the EU; stresses, in this connection, that the role of cohesion policies in tackling demographic challenges should be given more consideration in the Commission’s survey;

42.

Stresses the need to carry out the necessary reforms to guarantee the sustainability of pension systems; believes that retirement age could be evaluated on the basis of the evolution of healthy life expectancy, but recalls that it is possible to raise the actual retirement age without raising the mandatory retirement age by reducing the number of people leaving the labour market early; believes that to successfully raise effective retirement ages, reforms in pension systems need to be accompanied by policies that limit the access to early retirement schemes and other early exit pathways, develop employment opportunities for older workers, guarantee access to life-long learning, introduce tax benefit policies giving incentives to stay longer at work, and support active healthy ageing;

43.

Calls on the Commission to work with the Member States to ensure that austerity programmes do not hinder employment creation measures and growth-promoting policies, and do not compromise social protection; urges Member States to prioritise growth-friendly expenditure such as education, lifelong learning, research, innovation and energy efficiency, and at the same time to ensure the efficiency of this spending;

44.

Agrees with the Commission that innovative EU financial instruments can serve as catalysts for targeted investment, achieve a multiplier effect on the EU budget and increase the EU’s growth potential; urges the Commission, therefore, to provide detailed information, further assistance and guidance to the Member States and regions regarding enhanced application of financial instruments under the cohesion policy in 2013 and the future programming period (2014-2020); calls on the Member States to follow the Commission and also to indicate clearly in their respective national reform programmes how they intend to use Structural Fund allocations to promote growth- and employment-enhancing priorities with the use of financial instruments;

45.

Welcomes the attention given to exploitation of the job-creation potential of key sectors such as innovative industries, services, the green economy, health and social care (the ‘white sector’), and the ICT sector in the AGS priorities for 2013; calls on the Commission and the Member States to support initiatives that facilitate the development of these sectors with high employment potential;

46.

Recalls that the full exploitation of the job creation potential of these new sectors will call for adaptation, especially of lower skilled and older workers, and new skills; calls on the Commission and the Member States to anticipate skill needs in these sectors and guarantee the necessary investments in education and training to provide those skills;

47.

Regrets that absolutely no mention is made of steps to implement gender mainstreaming in the priorities of the Annual Growth Survey 2013; considers that significantly increasing women’s participation in the labour market is key to achieving the Europe 2020 headline target for the employment rate; calls on the Commission and the Member States to adopt the necessary measures to promote higher employment rates among women, such as affordable care and child care, adequate maternity, paternity and parental leave schemes and flexibility in working hours and places of work;

48.

Calls on the Member States to improve the environment for businesses, especially for SMEs, and calls on the Commission and the European Council to step up efforts to improve the Single Market, to enhance the digital economy and to focus on smart regulation in order to reduce unnecessary red tape; welcomes the Single Market Act II and calls for swift and full implementation thereof;

49.

Calls the Commission to make single market governance a key priority, since it contributes substantially to reaching the targets of the European Semester, namely sustainable economic growth and employment; takes the view that the Commission’s country-specific recommendations should, at the same time, offer the Member States more practical solutions for improving the functioning of the single market, so that stronger public support and political commitment are created to encourage the completion of the single market;

50.

Welcomes the recognition of the importance of access to finance for SMEs, as they are the cornerstone of employment and job creation within the EU and have significant potential for addressing youth unemployment and the gender imbalance; urges the Member States to make access to finance for SMEs an absolute priority in their national growth plans; urges the Member States to provide easy access to the European Funds dedicated to that end;

51.

Recognises the importance of the increased lending capacity of the EIB and recommends that this be aligned with the EU’s priorities focused on eliminating regional disparities; calls on the Commission to ask the Member States to use part of their Structural Fund allocations to share the EIB loan risk and provide loan guarantees for SMEs and microenterprises, thus achieving a boost of economic activity across all sectors and regions, guaranteeing further employment opportunities and overcoming the lack of access to credit currently hampering SMEs;

52.

Calls on the Member States to promote and support entrepreneurship, including social entrepreneurship, and business start-ups, particularly through business development programmes and access to financing;

53.

Calls on the Commission to ensure that social entrepreneurship is strongly supported under the Multi-Annual Framework 2014-2020, as this area has obvious high potential for new jobs and innovative growth;

54.

Urges the Commission to fully mobilise EU instruments and financial support to achieve the Europe 2020 Strategy objectives; calls on the Member States to make full use of the Structural Funds in order to enhance employability and combat structural, long-term and youth unemployment effectively.

55.

Notes that cohesion policy, as a key EU investment tool that plays an important role within the Europe 2020 Strategy and that accurately targets local, regional and national investment needs, contributes not only to reducing disparities between regions, but also to the economic recovery of the Member States and to the effective delivery of sustainable growth and job creation in the Member States and in the Union as a whole; observes that this makes the cohesion policy one of the best available instruments for making the recovery job-rich, as the Commission foresees in the AGS 2013; takes the view, in this regard, that any cut in the cohesion policy budget would have strong negative consequences for the Europe 2020 goals, and insists, therefore, that in the new programming period an adequate level of resources be allocated to cohesion policy, at least on the level as that agreed for the current programming period 2007-2013, and that it continues to cover all EU regions;

56.

Welcomes the Commission’s acknowledgment in the AGS 2013 that administrative capacities need to be stepped up to ensure speedier distribution of as yet unspent Structural Fund resources; points out that such efforts should be focused on authorities at the national, regional and local levels; emphasises that speedier disbursement of as yet unspent Structural Funds resources can help strengthen the liquidity of the market;

57.

Calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure that regional policy continues to play an important part in the development of national programmes within the European Semester and represents a key tool for reaching the established objectives, with regard to social policies and employment, in the medium to long term;

58.

Considers it essential for cohesion policy to contribute to reducing internal competitive disparities and structural imbalances through its option of adaptability to the specific conditions and needs identified on the local, regional and national levels; welcomes, in this regard, the Commission’s initiative of reprogramming, where possible, as yet unspent Structural Fund resources in favour of energy efficiency, youth employment and SMEs, as they will play an important role in reaching the EU 2020 objectives; asks to be kept duly informed on the implementation of this initiative at national levels;

59.

Calls on the Member States to take measures to facilitate the transition of young people from education and training to the labour market; points, in this connection, to the success of ‘dual vocational training’ in certain Member states, which has provided the highest employment rate among young people in the European Union;

60.

Considers it crucial to help young people to acquire skills more effectively, which requires greater cooperation and communication between companies, governments and education providers;

61.

Welcomes the Commission’s announcement that it is to present a youth employment package; calls on the Member States to promote and develop, in close cooperation with the social partners, a Youth Guarantee, with the aim of offering every young person in the EU a job, an apprenticeship, additional training or combined work and training after a maximum period of four months’ unemployment; considers that Union funding, especially the ESF, should play a key role in co-financing Youth Guarantee Schemes; calls on the Commission to provide Member States and regions with technical assistance to implement such schemes and make good use of the ESF in order to develop Youth Guarantee Schemes; emphasizes that the national sectoral partners in close cooperation with local and regional authorities should play a key role in the implementation of Youth Guarantee Schemes;

62.

Notes that Youth Guarantee Schemes should be accompanied by a quality framework in order to ensure the quality of these schemes and that training, apprenticeships and jobs offered include appropriate working conditions and comply with health and safety standards; considers that, in this framework, all young people should receive a personalised assessment of their needs, and be provided with tailored and personalised services;

63.

Welcomes the Commission’s suggestion that a multilateral surveillance of the implementation of the Youth Guarantee schemes be established through the ‘Employment Committee’ and asks for Parliament to be associated;

64.

Welcomes the Commission’s initiative of proposing a Council Recommendation on Youth Guarantee Schemes; calls on the Member States and regions to promote entrepreneurship and self-employment among young people and to implement specific targeted business development support programmes for young people;

65.

Stresses that, in January 2012, the European Council put forward a pilot action to help the eight Member States with the highest levels of youth unemployment to re-allocate some of their EU structural fund allocations to tackle youth unemployment; regrets that in May 2012 the Commission significantly lowered the estimations on available funds for reallocation from EUR 82 billion to EUR 29 800 million and thereby reduced the scope of the pilot actions; deplores the fact that only a small portion of these funds have so far been redirected to help young people find a job;

66.

Welcomes the proposal for greater use to be made of the European Social Fund for youth employment measures in the programming period 2014-2020; calls for the use of ESF funds for youth-related measures to be focused especially on apprenticeships/traineeships and entrepreneurship; welcomes the redeployment of unspent Structural Fund monies from the EU’s 2007-13 financial period for the purpose of tackling the high youth unemployment rate and promoting small and medium-sized enterprises;

67.

Stresses the importance of improving monitoring skills in specific sectors and/or regions and remedying these skills mismatches as swiftly as possible; calls the Commission and Member States to cooperate in the elaboration of the EU Skills Panorama in order to provide a comprehensive view of EU skills needs;

68.

Calls on the EU and Member States to foster cooperation and synergies between the education-training sector and enterprises to anticipate skills‘ needs and adapt education and training systems to the needs of the labour market with the objective of providing the workforce with the necessary skills, based on changing working environments and the individual needs of an ageing workforce, and facilitating the transition from education and training to work;

69.

Calls on the Member States to provide, as a priority, for investments in education, training, the promotion of entrepreneurial skills and lifelong learning for all age groups, not only through formal learning but also through the development of non-formal and informal learning; warns of the long-term social and economic costs of cuts in education and training budgets as they hamper the exit from the crisis and reduce the competitiveness of the Member States’ economies;

70.

Highlights the fact that making use of new learning opportunities and making the most of knowledge, skills and competences acquired outside formal education can play an important role in enhancing employability; underlines the importance of non-formal and informal validation; welcomes the Commission proposal for a Council recommendation inviting the Member States to establish validation systems by 2015, linked to the European Qualification Framework, including the possibility of obtaining a full or partial qualification on the basis of non-formal or informal learning;

71.

Encourages the effective implementation of the National Qualifications Framework as a tool promoting the development of lifelong learning; reiterates its call on the Commission to make the European Skills Passport a reality in order to ensure transparency and promote workers’ crossborder mobility;

72.

Stresses the need to improve the quality, competence and status of teachers as a sine qua non condition for a high-performing European education and training system; calls on the Commission and the Member States to devote the necessary efforts and resources to this aim;

73.

Believes that labour market reforms should be aimed at increasing productivity and competitiveness and, at the same time, safeguarding job quality; calls on the European Council to pay attention to job quality in its 2013 policy guidance, in particular in relation to workers’ access to a core set of labour rights, as enshrined in the Treaties, and without prejudice to the Member States’ legislation;

74.

Believes that structural labour market reforms should introduce internal flexibility to maintain employment in times of economic disruption, and ensure job quality, security in employment transitions, unemployment benefit schemes based on activation requirements and linked with reintegration policies that maintain work incentives while ensuring sufficient income, contractual arrangements to combat labour market segmentation, anticipate economic restructuring, and ensure access to lifelong learning;

75.

Calls on the Member States to combat the existence and proliferation of precarious job conditions and false self-employment and to ensure that people with temporary or part-time contracts or who are self-employed have adequate social protection and access to training;

76.

Calls on Member States to improve employment legislation where necessary and with a view to promoting stable employment relationships, supporting and developing conditions for offering more flexible working arrangements together with adequate social security levels, especially for older and younger workers, and promoting workers‘ voluntary mobility through mobility support schemes;

77.

Calls on the Commission and the Member States to address the low level of labour market participation of disadvantaged groups, including people belonging to minorities (e.g. Roma) and people with disabilities, and to respect decent living wages at all times;

78.

Calls on the Member States to increase the coverage and effectiveness of active labour market policies, in close cooperation with social partners, mutually supported by activation incentives, such as welfare-to-work programmes, and adequate benefit systems in order to maintain employability, support people back into work and safeguard decent living conditions;

79.

Calls on the Member States to anticipate restructuring processes with the aim of saving jobs, fostering internal and external mobility and minimising the possible negative effects of restructuring processes; calls on the Member States effectively to implement national law and existing EU directives, such as the Collective Redundancies Directive, the Transfer of Undertakings Directive and the Information and Consultation Framework Directive, with due respect for the principle of subsidiarity; considers that EU funds should play an important role in avoiding, minimising or palliating possible negative effects of restructuring processes;

80.

Calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure the effective enforcement of the Directive 2000/78/EC on establishing a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation;

81.

Calls on the Commission and the Member States, in order to deepen European labour market integration, to take steps to improve mobility within and across labour markets by removing legal and administrative barriers to free movement of workers within the EU such as the transitional labour market restrictions for workers from Romania and Bulgaria and by improving the social security rights and working conditions of workers making use of their right to free movement; calls on the Member States to increase their use of EURES in order to enhance the matching of jobs and job-seekers across borders;

82.

Draws attention to the increase in poverty and unemployment among all age groups; calls on the Commission and the Member States, therefore, to adopt new commitments to address this situation, especially with regard to in-work poverty, poverty among people with limited or no links to the labour market, including long-term unemployed older workers and poverty among older people;

83.

Calls on the Member States to ensure that negative effects of fiscal consolidation on gender equality, female employment and poverty are reversed by adopting a gender mainstreaming approach in national budgets, addressing stronger gender-specific recommendations to Member States, and disaggregating the Europe 2020 headline targets and the corresponding national targets by gender;

84.

Calls on the Member States to improve the adequacy and effectiveness of social protection systems and to ensure that these continue to act as buffers against poverty and social exclusion; notes, at the same time, that the European Social Model requires modernisation in the direction of ‘activating welfare states’, that invest in people and provide instruments and incentives with a view to creating sustainable jobs and growth as well as preventing social distortions;

85.

Calls on the Member States to implement active inclusion strategies and adequate and affordable high-quality services and pathway approaches to quality employment, with a view to preventing the marginalisation of low-income and vulnerable groups;

86.

Calls on the Member States to specify in their National Reform Programmes how EU funds will be used to support the attainment of national poverty targets and other social, employment and education targets ensuring the achievement of the Europe 2020 targets;

87.

Calls on the EU and the Member States to ensure that any health system reform focuses on improving quality, ensuring adequacy, affordability and universal access and guaranteeing sustainability;

88.

Believes that targeted hiring subsidies to new recruitments among disadvantaged groups are an effective way of raise their labour participation levels;

89.

Calls on the Member States and the Commission to ensure that fiscal consolidation is compatible with the employment and social dimension of Europe 2020;

90.

Is concerned about the social impact of the crisis on poverty among women; calls on the Commission to assess the effects of fiscal consolidation on gender equality and female employment;

91.

Calls on the Member States to develop measures to reduce in-work poverty, such as fostering sufficient labour market participation levels in households and facilitating upward transitions for those in low-paid or precarious jobs; calls on the Member States to combat in-work poverty by pursuing labour-market policies which aim at ensuring living wages for those in work;

92.

Calls on the Commission to come before the competent committees of Parliament to present the AGS each year at the beginning of November, starting 4—5 November 2013, so as to allow sufficient time for Parliament to present its views in subsequent European Semesters;

93.

Calls on the European Council and the Member States to ensure that national and regional parliaments, social partners, public authorities and civil society are closely involved in the implementation and monitoring of policy guidance under the Europe 2020 Strategy and economic governance process, in order to ensure ownership;

94.

Calls on the European Council and the Commission to integrate the monitoring and evaluation of employment, social and education goals of the Europe 2020 Strategy more effectively in the European Semester 2013;

95.

Reiterates its call for increased democratic legitimacy for the European Semester; calls on the European Council to take up the concerns and proposals expressed by the European Parliament when adopting its 2013 policy guidance;

96.

Calls for Parliament to be appropriately involved in the European Semester in order to represent citizens’ interests and increase the legitimacy of the social policies to be conducted by the Member States;

97.

Wishes to see the role of the national parliaments strengthened with regard to their involvement in the process of economic and social policy-making in the framework of the European Semester, in order to increase the legitimacy of the decisions taken;

98.

Calls for the involvement of social partners and civil society in order to increase the adequacy and effectiveness of social policies;

99.

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the governments and parliaments of the Member States.