Principle 8
Social dialogue and involvement of workers
"The social partners shall be consulted on the design and implementation of economic, employment and social policies according to national practices; encouraged to negotiate and conclude collective agreements in matters and workers or their representatives have the right to be informed and consulted in good time on matters relevant to them."
Social dialogue and involvement in decisions
Social dialogue is the process whereby social partners such as trade unions and employer organisations negotiate, often in collaboration with the government, to influence the arrangement and development of work-related issues, labour market policies, social protection, taxation or other economic policies.
In public health and wellbeing policy, social dialogue is a crucial means to inclusive decision-making. It leads to health and social measures that better respond to current needs, enhanced trust and buy-in from those who are supposed to benefit, and ultimately better and more equal health and social outcomes. It also ensures the active involvement of (sub-)national health authorities, social partners and stakeholders.
Social dialogue further empowers individuals to fulfil professional aspirations, creating secure and safe work environments with fair pay and growth opportunities, in health and social care workforce. However, inequalities in meaningful participation of workers persist, affecting marginalised and underserved communities most.
What does the EPSR Action Plan say?
The EPSR Action Plan sets out several overarching goals for EU Member States in the field of social rights more generally:
Achieve an employment rate of 78.5%, with at least 60% of all adults participating in training each year, and 80% of population with (above) basic digital skills by 2030.
Ensure social partner consultation in shaping and implementing economic, employment and social policies, aligned with national practices.
Encourage social partners to explore innovative work arrangements and communicate widely about the benefits of social dialogue and any established collective agreements.
Enhance the capacity of workers and employers' organisations, including facilitating access to pertinent information and securing support from national governments.
Where are we now?
The Social Scoreboard measures progress on the principles of the EPSR. Linked to Principle 8, the Scoreboard outlines that in the EU:
The employment rate of 20-64 years old stands at 74.6%, with 8.5% of the working population at risk of in-work poverty, with income inequality S80/S20 at 4.7 (2022)
13.6% of the employees is less than a year on a job, 27.1% transitioning from temporary to permanent contracts, and disability employment gap is 21.4/100 (2022)
55.5% of the 16-74 years old have basic or above basic overall digital skills (2023), 11.9% of EU population aged 25-64 participate in adult training and life-long learning (2022)
Healthy life years at age 65 are 9.9 years for women and 9.5 years for men (2021)
What are public health actors doing?
The following actions taken by public health actors at (sub)national level can support the implementation of EPSR principle 8.
BeWell - The Blueprint alliance for a future health workforce strategy on digital and green skills
BeWell is an EU-funded initiative. As a multi-stakeholder movement in itself, BeWell has developed a first draft of its skills strategy, created by and with the health and care workforce. The aim of the strategy is to support the needs of the health and care workforce in tackling existing and future challenges - especially within the context of a digital and green transition, adapt to ever-evolving societal contexts, and be more competitive in a highly demanding and rapidly changing labour market.
Over the next year, a wider group of professionals will be engaged in further refining the strategy.
EU tools that help implement Principle 8
There are EU policies and instruments that can help relevant actors in the field, including public health, to work together to achieve EPSR Principle 8.
More information about the EU institutions and programmes is available on EuroHealthNet's Health Inequalities Portal.
European Commission initiatives on empowering social dialogue in the work context: the European Commission proposed and the Council of the EU approved on a Council Recommendations on strengthening social dialogue in the EU. It seeks to support Member States in promoting social dialogue and collective bargaining at national level, by addressing three main elements:
- Consultation of social partners on the design and implementation of social, employment and economic policies
- Encouraging social partners-led negotiations on collective agreements
- Fostering support for increased capacity of sectoral social partners.
Additionally, to harness its full potential for managing fair transitions, the Commission launched a Communication on the subject, seeking to complement EU Directive on Adequate Minimum Wages.
Available resources
For more supportive policy instruments on the topic, consult our other flashcards:
Have your say
Would you like to share promising policies or practices carried out by your public health institute, which support the implementation of this EPSR principle?
Feel free to reach out to our EuroHealthNet colleague Silvia Ganzerla.
What's next?
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