The OSE was awarded a new contract with the Belgian Federal Public Service Social Security with a view to writing the ‘European and International Digest’ for the quarterly Revue Belge de Sécurité Sociale (RBSS/BTSZ). The Digest will continue to provide a regular overview of international developments (EU, OECD, ILO etc.) that have a direct or indirect impact on social protection and social inclusion policies and debates. As of 2019, this Digest includes information on environmental decisions taken by these institutions with a direct impact on public health and welfare.
Social protection
Since 2014, the European Social Policy Network (ESPN) has been supporting the European Commission with independent information, analysis and expertise on social policies to foster the development of evidence-based social policy initiatives at European level. In particular, the ESPN supports the Commission in monitoring progress towards the EU’s social protection and social inclusion objectives as set out in the Europe 2020 Strategy, the European Pillar of Social Rights and the European Semester.
The OSE is the lead partner of this Commission-funded project. The partnership is made up of ten institutions. These include universities (the University of Macerata, Uppsala University and University of Turku); trade union-related research institutes (the European Social Observatory, the Hans Boeckler Foundation’s Institute of Economic and Social Research (WSI), and the Institute for Social and Trade Union Research (ISTUR); independent research centres (the Centre for Studies for Social Intervention (CESIS), the Bulgarian Academy of Science and the Hungarian Academy of Sciences.
The study on “How to implement key elements of the European Pillar of Social Rights: what is needed to guarantee a positive social impact” will provide the Workers’ Group of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) with recommendations on effective implementation of the European Pillar of Social Rights. Particular attention is given to the ways in which social partners and civil society could play an important role in consultation and participation, in particular through the EESC. The study focuses on three priority areas: fair working conditions, collective bargaining and wages.
The OSE was awarded a new contract with the Belgian Federal Public Service Social Security with a view to writing the ‘International Digest’ for the quarterly Belgian Review for Social Security (RBSS/BTSZ). The digest will continue to provide a regular overview of international developments (EU, OECD, ILO etc.) that have a direct or indirect impact on social protection and social inclusion policies and debates. The RBSS/BTSZ is available online, in French and Dutch.
OSE researcher involved: Cécile Barbier
As part of the preparation of an Opinion on guaranteed minimum income at European level, the Workers' Group of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) contracted the OSE to conduct a study entitled “Towards a European Minimum Income”. The main objective of this research is to explore the feasibility of introducing a European instrument relating to non-contributory minimum income schemes for able-bodied persons of working age.
The European Social Observatory (OSE) took part in the project “Working for Equity in Health” whose objective is to identify and understand to what extent unemployment and social protection are determinants of health inequality, in Member States. The project, funded by the European Commission, included 25 organisations from 12 Member States; it was coordinated by HAPI (Health Action Partnership International) for a period of 24 months.
The Public Policy and Management Institute (PPMI) and the European Social Observatory (OSE) wrapped up the European Commission-funded assessment of the PROGRESS Peer Reviews in Social Protection and Social Inclusion.
The Public Policy and Management Institute (PPMI) and the European Social Observatory (OSE) wrapped up the European Commission-funded assessment of the PROGRESS Peer Reviews in Social Protection and Social Inclusion.
The final conference of the INVOTUNES research project will bring together researchers, EU and national policymakers, social partners and other stakeholders to discuss the present and future role of social partners in the Semester. There will be ample time to consider the project’s key findings and examine the eight case studies (BE, BG, DE, FI, HU, IT, PT and SE).
Final Conference