A stronger economy, social justice and jobs

11. Proposal: Sustainable Growth and innovation

Objective: Propose that the EU supports the shift to a sustainable and resilient growth model, considering the green and digital transitions with a strong social dimension in the European Semester, and empowering citizens, trade unions and businesses. The conventional macroeconomic indicators and the GDP could be complemented with new indicators in order to address the new European priorities such as the European Green Deal or the European Pillar of Social Rights and to better reflect the ecological and digital transitions and the wellbeing of people. This objective could be achieved by:

Establishment and functioning of European Works Councils

11.1) Promoting greener production processes by companies and supporting companies to identify the best solutions and providing positive and negative incentives, and by increasing local production and consumption;
11.2) Working towards a more sustainable and circular economy by addressing the issue of planned obsolescence and ensuring the right of repair;
11.3) Reviewing the EU's economic governance and the European Semester in order to ensure that the green and digital transitions, social justice and social progress go hand in-hand with economic competitiveness, without ignoring the economic and fiscal nature of the European Semester. In addition, there is a need to better involve social partners and the local and regional authorities in the implementation of the European Semester in order to improve its application and accountability;
- Economic governance review
11.4) Tackling the use of single use plastic packaging/containers;
- Single-use plastic beverage bottles – EU rules for calculating, verifying and reporting on recycled plastic content
- Reducing packaging waste – review of rules
11.5) Expanding the use of European technology and make it a viable alternative to foreign technology;
11.6) Promoting research into new materials and technologies, as well as the innovative use of existing materials, while ensuring that research efforts are not duplicated;
11.7) Addressing the sustainability, affordability and accessibility of energy, considering energy poverty and the dependence on non-EU states, by increasing the share of sustainably sourced energy;
11.8) Raising awareness among both companies and citizens how to behave in a more sustainable manner, and guarantee just transition, based on social dialogue and quality jobs;
11.9) Including ambitious social, labour and health standards, including occupational health and safety, in new EU trade agreements;