European employers and trade unions in the social services sector have voiced their concern regarding the EU Council's mandate for the negotiations on the review of the EU's economic governance rules. This concern arises from the potential implications on social spending and its impact on crucial services.

In light of the current reforms of the EU economic governance and calculations of the Bruegel Institute, which indicate that several member states will have to reduce public spending in future years, the Federation of European Social Employers (Social Employers),  Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) and European Federation of Public Service Unions (EPSU) have released a joint statement expressing concern for the potential impact of spending cuts on social services. Their joint statement also calls on the EU to ensure that economic governance rules safeguard funding and investment in social services.

Read their full statement here.

Released on 6^th February? the statement highlights past experiences, which indicate that austerity measures have led to significant underfunding of social care services, consequently affecting their availability, affordability, and quality. The combination of underfunding and inflation exacerbates the situation, posing threats to the viability of care providers and exacerbating staff shortages. This, in turn, results in prolonged waiting times for individuals, particularly young people seeking psycho-social assistance.

Moreover, the underfunding of social care exacerbates the gender pay gap, as the sector predominantly employs women who often receive low wages. The unavailability of care services also compels many women to leave the workforce to attend to family responsibilities, further entrenching gender disparities in employment.

Emphasising the importance of aligning economic governance rules with the ambitions outlined in the EU's Care Strategy, mental health strategy, and the European Pillar of Social Rights, Social Employers, CEMR and EPSU urge the European Parliament, Council and Commission to evaluate the impact of the proposed new rules on the financing of social services. The organisations urge the Commission to assess the existence of national strategies for implementing Council recommendations on early childhood education and long-term care, with a focus on sustainable financing over the coming years.

Note to editor:

The Federation of European Social Employers (Social Employers) is the voice of employers in the field of social services at European level, representing 31 members from 20 countries. This comprises all care and support services, especially for older persons, persons with disabilities, children and other excluded and disadvantaged persons.

The Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) is the broadest European association of local and regional governments. It is the only organisation that brings together one million democratically elected European politicians, in 60 member associations from 40 countries since 1951. CEMR is also the European section of the world organisation United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG), through which it represents European local and regional government on the international stage. Top of Form

The European Federation of Public Service Unions (EPSU) is the European trade union federation that represents the social services sector, covering millions of social service workers across the EU, the candidate countries, Norway, the UK and beyond, including Ukraine. EPSU represents workers in public and non-profit services, as well as in private care companies such as Clariane, Orpea and Colisee.