In memory of the first summit of the European social partners 39 years ago, the participants met again in Val Duchesse and signed a "Tripartite Declaration for a Thriving European Social Dialogue". The declaration follows the initiative to strengthen and promote social dialogue presented by the EU Commission a year ago. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had also announced the social partner summit in her State of the Union 2023 Address (SOTEU).

The social partner summit in Val Duchesse in 1985, initiated by the then President of the European Commission Jacques Delors, signalled the start of the integration of social partnership into European employment and social policy. Today, social dialogue is enshrined in the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and in the European Pillar of Social Rights. Jacques Delors was one of the architects of the modern EU. He died at the end of 2023 at the age of 98.

Tripartite declaration for a dynamic European social dialogue
The Declaration signed in Val Duchesse at the end of January 2024 refers to a renewed commitment to strengthening social dialogue and contains four specific points for jointly tackling current challenges.

Firstly, the importance of social partnership and social dialogue is emphasised at both European and national level, particularly with regard to the ecological and digital transformation. "This commitment to social dialogue is particularly important in times of multiple crises; social dialogue creates stability", emphasised Wolfgang Katzian, President of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) at the summit.

Secondly, the EU Commission will assign the role of a social dialogue envoy, who will serve as a point of contact regarding joint concerns of the social partners. The EU Commission aims to implement its communication on strengthening social dialogue this way.

Thirdly, the EU Commission, together with the social partners, intends to draw up an action plan this spring to address the current labour and skills shortage. The signatories to the Declaration commit to using their available resources to bring more people into the labour market, create better working conditions, facilitate the recognition of qualifications and integrate workers from third countries.

Finally, a Pact for European social dialogue is to be drawn up by the beginning of 2025. Several bipartite and tripartite meetings will be held to determine how the social dialogue can be strengthened at EU level. This includes, among other, support from the European Social Fund Plus, the possibility of autonomous social partner agreements at EU level and the development of social partnership capacities in EU candidate countries.

New impetus for the European social dialogue?
The European social dialogue has recently suffered a severe setback. The European social partners were supposed to negotiate a framework agreement on telework and the right to disconnect. However, the negotiations failed after two out of three employers' organisations left the negotiating table. Following this, ETUC General Secretary Esther Lynch called on the EU Commission to submit a legislative proposal. The tripartite declaration is therefore an important signal to strengthen the social dialogue at the right time.

In this context, the proposal recently presented by the EU Commission to improve European Works Councils should also be mentioned. European Works Councils exist in cross-border undertakings that exceed a certain size and whose sites are located in several European countries. ETUC Deputy General Secretary Isabelle Schömann describes the current directive as a toothless tiger and welcomes the proposal presented by the EU Commission to revise it.

Further information:
ÖGB: Social dialogue must become a hallmark of the EU (German only)
AK EUROPA: EU Commission focuses on strengthening the social dialogue
Belgian presidency: Val Duchesse: strengthening social dialogue to tackle labour challenges
ETUC and ETUI: Jacques Delor and the social dialogue
EU Commission: Commission proposes to revise the European Works Councils