“A fair and more social Europe is key in shaping our Union’s future. This is what citizens rightly expect. I want the EU to stand up for the rights of its citizens in a fast-changing world. This is what the European Pillar of Social Rights is all about.” European Commission President Juncker, Tripartite Social Summit. 

The Pillar of Social Rights is about delivering new and more effective rights for citizens. As part of its implementation process, the European Commission has adopted a proposal for a Council Recommendation on access to social protection for workers and the self-employed. 

Over the last two decades, globalisation, technology, changes in individual preferences and demographic changes have contributed to important changes in the labour markets. A growing number of people in the labour market have only insufficient access to social protection. The ‘Access to social protection for workers and the self-employed’ initiative aims at supporting all self-employed and non-standard workers who, due to their contract type or labour market status, are not sufficiently protected by social protection schemes. The Recommendation is aimed at creating more fairness between companies, by creating a level-playing field and extending coverage.