Europe

The Council of European Municipalities and Regions took an active role in the conference A social Europe: Let's deliver (Rotterdam, 8/ 9 November 2004).

 

In the workshop on "Reinforcing the social dialogue: Implementing the European partnership for change", CEMR Employers' Platform Vice-chair, Markus Gustafsson, emphasised the role of CEMR Employers' Platform in the sectoral social dialogue, recognised by the European Commission in January 2004. Markus Gustafsson also highlighted the contribution that such dialogue in the local and regional government sector can make in shaping future developments regarding employment in the local and regional government sector and articulating European, national, regional and local levels of social dialogue.

 

Key aspects of this sectoral social dialogue committee's activities include addressing the local and regional dimension of the European Employment Strategy and the Employment National Action Plans; the organisation of activities to strengthen social dialogue between employer and trade unions organisations in local and regional government in the new member states and candidate countries; and the benchmarking and evaluation of good practice in human resource management in the local and regional government sector.

 

Other participants in this workshop included actors from the European cross-sectoral social dialogue from UNICE and the ETUC, along with other stakeholders such as the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions.

 

The conference was organised by the Dutch presidency of the EU Council and the European Commission.