Workers’ Day: Thyssen (EU Commission), “putting European rights and social dimension first”

(Brussels) “Every year, the International Workers’ Day, also known as Labour Day, is celebrated all over the world on May 1^st. What was born as a strike has turned into a holiday, to celebrate the workers’ social achievements”. EU employment and welfare commissioner Marianne Thyssen reflects on tomorrow’s International Workers’ Day. “The first social achievement was reducing working time down to 8 hours a day. Many more have followed. However, Labour Day is not just a day to celebrate our successes: it must remind us that a successful social market economy is not a fact, and the rules need to be updated to reflect the endless developments of technology, which affect our economies and our societies”. “This is exactly what we have wanted and what we have achieved during this Commission’s tenure: putting Europe’s social dimension first”. In November 2017, Goteborg hosted the first social summit in the last 20 years: “On that occasion – she states –, the European Parliament, the member states and the European Commission proclaimed the European pillar of social rights, a set of 20 principles and rights that give citizens a chance to have access to education, training and lifelong learning, good working conditions and effective welfare systems. The time has come to make sure such principles and rights come true”.