Access to social protection – a right for all workers

Last month the European Commission closed its public consultation on “access to social protection for people in non-standard forms of employment and self-employed”. This is an initiative carried out in conjunction with development of the European Pillar of Social Rights, the European Union’s new mechanism for ensuring equal opportunities and access to the labour market, fair working conditions, and social protection and inclusion.

Promoting strong social protection and welfare systems is a key strategic objective of Social Platform – so much so, that is actually what the green section of our jigsaw logo represents!

Social protection systems – such as minimum income schemes and unemployment benefits – are absolutely vital to prevent people from experiencing poverty and social exclusion (the latest figures from Eurostat show that 23.5% of the EU population are currently in this situation). They also enable sustainable economic growth and act as a social buffer in times of crisis, reducing the depth and duration of recession.

For self-employed people and those in non-standards forms of employment, including part-time workers and those engaged by digital platforms, access to social protection can be difficult or even impossible. Questions often surround these workers’ legal entitlements and eligibility to access these systems. To address this issue, Social Platform responded to the Commission’s public consultation with the following five recommendations:

  1. Stable and open-ended contracts must remain the preferred form of employment.
  2. Promote all dimensions of quality employment. This includes:
    1. Fair remuneration and adequate minimum wages
    2. Access to social protection
    3. Career and employment security
    4. Arrangements for balancing professional and private lives
    5. Health and wellbeing
  3. Adopt an EU framework directive on universal and non-discriminatory access to adequate social protection for all types of work.
  4. Introduce measures to ensure the enforcement of social protection rights, such as dispute settlement mechanisms and labour inspections.
  5. Adoption an EU framework directive on adequate minimum income schemes and similar measures to ensure universal non-discriminatory access to social protection and services for all.

Read our full response to the public consultation here.