Minister of State Szabolcs Takács received Luca Visentini, General Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) in his office on 5 October 2017. The meeting was also attended by Minister of State for Labour Market and Training Péter Cseresnyés, Deputy State Secretary for Labour Market Dr Attila Simon, and representatives of Hungarian trade unions.
At the meeting the parties reviewed the most important employment-related and social policy issues currently on the agenda of the various EU forums, such as the issues of the European Pillar of Social Rights and the review of the Posted Workers Directive which are also particularly important for Hungary, and agreed on further consultations.
Luca Visentini said: his goal is to build a bridge between the different positions and concepts, and to this end, he is seeking to continue to maintain close relations with the Hungarian Government as well. He is determined to help with the efforts of Hungarian trade unions.
Regarding the review of the Posted Workers Directive, Mr Takács pointed out that Hungary and the V4 are working to reach a reasonable compromise on this issue which has been elevated to the highest political level. It is our goal to avoid the further deepening of the East-West division. The Minister of State indicated: it is necessary to reach an agreement which is balanced, reasonable, sustainable in the long term, and takes account of the interests of all the Member States, the principles of gradualism and proportionality, as well as the fundamental European rights related to the freedom of movement for workers and the provision of services.
Mr Takács stressed in the context of the social pillar: we agree with the goals laid down in the proclamation. However, during the course of their implementation, in addition to social criteria, economic criteria should equally be taken into consideration, above all, in connection with the competitiveness of the economy and its role in creating jobs. During the course of this process, the national powers laid down in the EU Treaties must be fully respected.
Regarding the European Pillar of Social Rights, General Secretary Luca Visentini stressed that European convergence and cohesion – which also constitute the foundations of the European Pillar of Social Rights – are especially important for the ETUC. The Pillar drew attention to the role of social partners in the process of implementation. The General Secretary indicated that, following the adoption of the interinstitutional proclamation, he will repeatedly contact the governments of Hungary and other Member States in the interest of forging a kind of European alliance.