Minister of Labour and Social Insurance Kyriakos Koussis participated in the work of the EU Employment and Social Policy Council, which took place on Thursday in Brussels.
During the Council's proceedings, two important orientation debates were held in relation to the European Semester 2023 and the European Care Strategy.
Communication states that the European Semester is an instrument for coordinating economic, fiscal and social policy and employment policy, both at EU and member state level.
In his intervention during the debate, the Minister of Labour stated that ensuring adequate minimum wages, policies for the acquisition of skills and the adequacy of minimum income are factors that can make a substantial contribution to achieving the EU's overarching objectives for 2030 in terms of employment and the reduction of He then supported the strengthening of policies for the acquisition of skills by professionals who are, and will be, in demand, and welcomed the European Commission's initiative to designate 2023 as the "European Year of Skills".
With regard to poverty reduction, the Minister of Labour, after referring to the contribution of adopting measures to improve the coverage and adequacy of the minimum income, welcomed the adoption of a Recommendation by the Council.
During the discussion on the European Strategy for Care, Mr Kousios stressed that the State has long supported the efforts of Non-Governmental Organisations and Local Authorities to provide programmes through the State Aid Scheme, as well as programmes that contribute to the improvement of care for the elderly, people with disabilities and children.
He informed his counterparts that the Government will proceed with the announcement, within 2023, of a new Plan for the creation of new or expansion of existing childcare facilities, as well as specialized care and accommodation facilities for children and adults with long-term care needs.
The state's priority is to review and modernise the existing legislative framework concerning adult as well as child care structures, he stressed.
The Council adopted a General Approach for a revision of the Directive on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to asbestos at work.
The '27' also adopted Recommendations in relation to adequate minimum income, early childhood education and care, and long-term care. Finally, they adopted Conclusions on gender equality in the economic crisis and on the participation of people with disabilities in the labour market.
Source: CNA
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