According to the ETUC, the economic policy mix is erring on two major points:
- Policy is massively supporting the bankers but bank lending to the real economy is not starting again.
- In the face of a weak and fragile recovery, fiscal policy should not go for premature ‘exit strategies’ but maintain and improve demand policy measures by investing in social and green infrastructure.
John Monks declared: “We should be trying to get spending up. Cutting wages for ordinary workers and cutting public services while allowing bankers to pay out billions of bonuses to themselves is not the way to do this. Labour market policies have been successful in keeping people in work. We need more help for the young and the unemployed people generally to get work. These are dangerous times and we want a continuation of public investment to support the greening of the economy, efforts to keep up spending power, and a rejection of overly simplistic notions of more flexibility in labour markets, with more precarious contracts, lower levels of pay and benefit and all the rest”.
Link to John Monks’ speech: www.etuc.org/a/6672
For more information on Macro Economic Dialogue: http://ec.europa.eu/economy_finance/eu_economic_situation/eu_economic_situation13953_en.htm
The ETUC exists to speak with a single voice, on behalf of the common interests of workers, at European level. Founded in 1973, it now represents 82 trade union organisations in 36 European countries, plus 12 industry-based federations.
