European Pillar of Social Rights
23 February 2021

The EU institutions jointly proclaimed the European Pillar of Social Rights in November 2017. The initiative sets out 20 principles aimed at ‘delivering new and effective rights for citizensRead more
The EU institutions jointly proclaimed the European Pillar of Social Rights in November 2017. The initiative sets out 20 principles aimed at ‘delivering new and effective rights for citizens’. The Social Pillar’s key principles are structured around three categories: equal opportunities and access to the labour market; fair working conditions; and social protection and inclusion. The Pillar serves as the EU’s compass for achieving better living and working conditions.
Последни актуализации
Watch the webinar 'Have your say: the future of the European Pillar of Social Rights'
Upward convergence in the EU: Definition, measurement and trends
Priorities for a new Europe
EU context
TopNow, the EU sets about to put an action plan in place to fully implement the Social Pillar. On 14 January 2020, the new European Commission published its Communication setting out its social policy ambitions and describing the challenges to be overcome in the EU.Read more
Now, the EU sets about to put an action plan in place to fully implement the Social Pillar. On 14 January 2020, the new European Commission published its Communication setting out its social policy ambitions and describing the challenges to be overcome in the EU. Implementing the Pillar will be crucial to achieving a strong social Europe and bringing fairness to the daily lives of citizens. It is the social strategy to ensure that the transitions in the Commission’s objectives around climate neutrality, digitalisation and demographic change are socially just and fair. The Communication paves the way for a forthcoming action plan to implement the Pillar in early 2021.
Following the adoption of the Communication, the Commission has launched an EU-wide engagement and discussion process on the implementation of the Pillar. All EU, national, regional, local authorities, social partners, civil society, think tanks and other stakeholders are invited to participate. The objective is to gather views on further action needed and tangible commitments to implement the Pillar.
A Social Scoreboard, accompanying the Pillar, aims to monitor the performance of Member States in the employment and social field along the various dimensions outlined in the Pillar to check progress in its implementation.
- European Commission: Public consultation on the European Pillar of Social Rights
- European Commission: The European Pillar of Social Rights in 20 principles
- European Commission: A strong social Europe for just transitions
- European Commission: Have your say on reinforcing Social Europe
- Eurostat: European Pillar of Social Rights – Social Scoreboard of Indicators
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Research
TopEurofound will be an essential knowledge source for the EU institutions, Member States and social partners in implementing the initiatives of the Pillar in 2020 and beyondRead more
Eurofound will be an essential knowledge source for the EU institutions, Member States and social partners in implementing the initiatives of the Pillar in 2020 and beyond. The Agency has generated a wealth of evidence on topics central to the Pillar including minimum wages, gender equality, youth employment, platform work and an ageing society.
A compendium of articles organised around the European Commission’s six priorities for Europe presents a snapshot of some of the research areas linked with the Pillar; important questions for the EU institutions over the next decade; and trends that we have observed in quality of life and working conditions throughout the EU.
Eurofound’s 2020 work programme sets out a schedule of projects that will provide valuable insights for realising the goals of the Pillar.
- About Eurofound: What we do: EU priorities
- Publication: Priorities for a new Europe
- Publication: Programming document 2017–2020: Work programme 2020
Minimum wages
Ongoing research on developments in minimum wages across the EU Member States reports on how they are set and how they have developed in nominal and real terms. This is a topic where Eurofound has a well-established track record.
- Topic: Minimum wage
Gender equality
Eurofound research topics include pay transparency in Europe, women in management, funding of female entrepreneurship, discrimination against men at work, and gender equality at work.
- Topic: Gender equality
Youth employment
Eurofound has almost a decade of findings to support this topic, analysing the population of young people not in employment, education or training (NEETs), the adverse consequences of this and estimated loss to the EU economy, as well as policy approaches to address long-term youth unemployment.
Platform work
Research has analysed the most prevalent types of platform work as regards employment and working conditions.
- Topic: Platform work
Ageing society
Eurofound has extensively mapped measures to retain and reintegrate older workers into the labour market, such as flexible working options offering more sustainable employment. Research on work after retirement in the EU highlights the need to tackle gender income gaps.
- Topic: Ageing workforce
- Topic: Retirement
Eurofound’s European Quality of Life Survey analyses the persistent challenges to certain age groups and raises issues around the effectiveness of social protection.
- Topic: Quality of life and public services
- Topic: Social protection
Key outputs over the years
Publications & data
TopThe sections below provide access to a range of publications, data and ongoing work on this topic.
- Publications (8)
- Data
- Ongoing work (4)
Publications
Eurofound publications come in a variety of formats, including reports, policy briefs, blogs, articles and presentations.
Watch the webinar 'Have your say: the future of the European Pillar of Social Rights'
Event 15 October 2020A more equal Europe? Convergence and the European Pillar of Social Rights
Publication 10 December 2019Data
A selection of related data on this topic are linked below.
Ongoing work
Research continues in this topic on a variety of themes, which are outlined below with links to forthcoming titles.
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