[2/05/2012] This year’s 1 May the call for Decent
Work and Youth Employment should be the key message! In 10 days France
will elect a new President. The results of the first round of elections
and the polls indicate that these elections will be politically
significant for all of Europe, as well as globally. With the Socialist
candidate having taken the lead in this first round, progressives are of
course full of hope, but they do have to look into the results: with
20% voting for the extreme right with a very high number of young people
voting for the first time.
Is it responsible to continue to preach for more flexibility and to tell
young people that they cannot expect to have decent work throughout
their career? To be honest, if the only answer from the EU and some
governments continues to be fiscal and financial consolidation
translated by more austerity measures, there is a high risk to see
another lost generation and an even stronger populist and extreme right.
Youth employment is the key, and this needs to be done through a youth
guarantee based on investment in education and training. Policy is about
choices, choice of investment instead of “kaputt sparen”. And our task
as SOLIDAR is to continue contributing to social transformation by
calling for investment in the future generation!
Tel +32 2 500 1020 Fax +32 2 500 1030