FRANCE: new Commission analysis of labour market

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Brussels, 12 November 2002
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Europe has committed itself to the objective of restoring full employment: to give
everybody the chance to get a job, and a good quality one. Over the past five years,
marked progress has been made in Europe’s overall employment performance, with
more than 10 million new jobs created and 4 million fewer unemployed, while at the
same time the active population has continued to grow by 5 million people. The
European Employment Strategy (EES) has contributed to this achievement since
1997, when the EU leaders agreed to pool their efforts for more and better jobs at
their special Jobs Summit in Luxembourg. Under it, Member States agreed on
common employment objectives and policies to raise workers’ employability,
promote entrepreneurship, increase firms’ adaptability and ensure equal
opportunities between genders. These are laid down in annual employment
guidelines and translated into National Action Plans for employment, which are
examined yearly at EU level. While the common EU priorities for employment were
initially focused on the reduction of unemployment, they have increasingly reflected
the wider and ambitious objective of full employment and job quality in an inclusive
society agreed at the Lisbon Summit of 2000.
The Commission has just released its analysis of progress achieved in the fifth year
of implementation of the EES based on the National Action Plans for employment
submitted by the Member States in the Spring. There is no doubt that this annual
assessment ensures a steady increase in quality and ambition of national and
European employment policies.
The economic climate has become less favorable since 2001. However, it is
encouraging to see that employment is showing a certain resilience to the slowdown
as demonstrated by continuing, though slower, improvements in performances in
2001: an employment rate up by 0.6 % (reaching 64 %) and unemployment down by
0.6 % (to 7.4 %). However, serious structural weaknesses still characterize the EU
labour markets: the level of unemployment and in particular long-term unemployment
is too high to qualify the European labour markets as inclusive. Many Member States
have still unacceptable regional differences. A further 15 million people have to find a
job between now and 2010 if the full employment objective agreed at Lisbon (in the
form of an employment rate of 70% of the working age population by then) are to be
reached. There is also still a significant productivity gap between the US and the EU.
Consequently continued and strengthened labour market reforms will be needed. In
particular the employment rate of older workers remains, at only 38.5 %, far below
the target of 50 %, and to reach it, special efforts will be required in many Member
States. The current economic slackness should thus not serve as a pretext to slow
down the pace of reforms.
Indeed, the report shows continued overall strengthening of employment policies.
Over the last few years, most Member States have reformed their labour market
institutions (in particular their employment services) in order to better prevent long
term unemployment and to actively promote the reintegration of the unemployed into
a job. Their employment policies also reflect a better balanced approach, with
increased attention for job creation through a better climate for entrepreneurship, as
well as for equal opportunities. Steady progress has been noted in the development
of lifelong learning concepts and their implementation, and Member States are
increasingly committed to seek, together with the social partners, a better balance
between flexibility and security.
Nevertheless there are still weak spots in national policies: the issue of quality in
work is still dealt with in a partial way; active ageing strategies are largely lacking ;
the results of activation policies for the unemployed need to be better demonstrated,
in particular for people at a disadvantage in the labour market; and gender gaps, in
particular the pay gap, need to be more effectively addressed. Governments are also
too reluctant to clearly and ambitiously commit themselves e.g. by setting clear,
ambitious and measurable national targets.
The Commission, like the European Parliament, is also concerned that not enough
has been done to involve other stakeholders in the development and implementation
of national policies; the Employment Strategy is still too often treated as an internal
affair of ministerial departments. We would like, for example, to see a closer
involvement of national parliaments in the annual preparation and follow up of the
national Action Plans for Employment.
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After five years, the EES is now at a crossroads and there is a consensus that it
should be reviewed next year in the light of experience and of the new challenges
ahead. These include the ageing and declining working age population, the context
of globalization with its rapid pace of economic and social restructuring, the issue of
quality in work, and the emergence of bottlenecks in certain sectors and regions.
Candidate countries, due to join the EU shortly, are still undergoing major economic
restructuring and face acute challenges in terms of employment and the functioning
of their labour markets. Reflecting the ambitious agenda set in Lisbon in 2000 aimed
at full employment, the strategy should adopt a medium-term approach with a
consolidated set of guidelines focused on implementation. The Commission sees
three major and mutually reinforcing objectives for the next generation of the
Guidelines: increasing employment and participation rates, raising quality and
productivity at work and promoting an inclusive labour market. With these objectives,
new opportunities for active involvement of other stakeholders should be provided,
particularly for social partners, regional and local authorities, civil society and
parliamentary bodies. They are all called upon to become part of the ongoing
discussion leading to a reformed EES. The Commission will present an outline of its
proposals for the reform of the EES in January 2003.
The current economic climate makes it all the more essential for all Member States
to maintain their commitment to labour market reform under the EES. By focussing
on clear common priorities and by learning from each other, Member States can
make a decisive contribution towards more and better jobs in an inclusive labour
market.
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