Research Article
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The Future of Social Policy in Europe

Year 2024, , 43 - 69, 27.03.2024
https://doi.org/10.32450/aacd.1440030

Abstract

Social policy in the European Union (EU) remains sidelined in the debates on the future of Europe. In the last decade, EU has faced numerous crises having significant repercussions for its social policies, including immigration waves, the Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic. As an area of direct concern to EU citizens, with its features on employment, education/training, non-discrimination and equality bearing crucial implications for their daily lives, social policy should be re-considered from an angle that encompasses the citizens’ perspective and effectively addresses the major challenges it faces in the new global order. The main objective of this study is to explore the implications of these challenges for EU social policy, which in turn, has a key role in shaping the future of the EU.

References

  • Abdelaaty, Lamis and Liza G. Steele. “Explaining Attitudes Toward Refugees and Immigrants in Europe,” Political Studies 70 no. 1 (2022): 110–130.
  • Albada, Katja, Nina Hansen and Sabine Otten. “Polarization in attitudes towards refugees and migrants in the Netherlands,” European Journal of Social Psychology 51 (2021): 627– 643.
  • Armstrong, Kenneth A. “EU Social Policy and the Governance Architecture of Europe 2020”, Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research 18, no. 3 (2012): 285-300.
  • Aybars, Ayşe İdil. “Sosyal Politika,” in Avrupa Birliği: Tarihçe, Teoriler, Kurumlar ve Politikalar, 4th Edition, Editors Belgin Akçay and İlke Göçmen, 549-572. Ankara: Seçkin Yayıncılık, 2023.
  • Biermann, Felix, Nina Guérin, Stefan Jagdhuber, Berthold Rittberger and Moritz Weiss. “Political (non-)reform in the euro crisis and the refugee crisis: a liberal intergovernmentalist explanation,” Journal of European Public Policy 26, no.2 (2019): 246–26.
  • Brooks, Eleanor, Anniek de Ruijter and Scott L. Greer. “Covid-19 and European Union health policy: from crisis to collective action,” in Bart Vanhercke, Slavina Spasova and Boris Fronteddu (Eds.) Social policy in the European Union: state of play 2020. Brussels: ETUI, 2021.
  • Butkus, Mindaugas, Alma Maciulyte-Sniukiene and Kristina Matuzeviciute. “Socio-Demographic Factors Influencing Attitude towards Refugees: An Analysis of Data from European Social Survey,” Globalization and its socio-economic consequences: 16th International Scientific Conference, 5th–6th October 2016. Zilina: University of Zilina, 2016.
  • Copeland, Paul and Mary Daly. “Varieties of Poverty Reduction: Inserting the Poverty and Social Exclusion Target into Europe 2020,” Journal of European Social Policy 22, no. 3 (2012): 273-287.
  • Czymara, Christian S. “Attitudes toward Refugees in Contemporary Europe: A Longitudinal Perspective on Cross-National Differences,” Social Forces 99 no. 3 (2021): 1306–1333.
  • De La Porte, Caroline. “Is the Open Method of Coordination Appropriate for Organising Activities at European Level in Sensitive Policy Areas?” European Law Journal 8 no. 1 (2002): 38–58.
  • Dennison, James and Andrew Geddes. “Brexit and the perils of ‘Europeanised’ migration,” Journal of European Public Policy 25, no. 8 (2018): 1137-1153.
  • European Commission. Reflection Paper on the Social Dimension of Europe. COM(2017)206, 2017. Available at: https://commission.europa.eu/publications/reflection-paper-social-dimension-europe_en
  • Ferrera, Maurizio, Manos Matsaganis and Stefano Sacchi. “Open Coordination against Poverty: the new EU ‘social inclusion’ process,” Journal of European Social Policy 12, no 3 (2002): 227-239.
  • Ferris, Elizabeth. “Making Sense of Public Policy on Refugee Integration,” The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 690, no.1, (2020): 200-224.
  • Fetzer, Thiemo. “Austerity Caused Brexit,” The CAGE Background Briefing Series, No. 96, 2019.
  • Fligstein, Neil. Euroclash: The EU, European Identity, and the Future of Europe. Oxford: OUP, 2008.
  • Follesdal, Andreas and Simon Hix. “Why there is a democratic deficit in the EU? A response to Majone and Moravcsik,” Journal of Common Market Studies 44, no 3 (2006): 533-562.
  • Gerhards, Jürgen, Holger Lengfeld and Julia Hauberer. “Do European citizens support the idea of a European welfare state? Evidence from a comparative survey conducted in three EU member states,” International Sociology 31, no 6 (2016): 677-700.
  • Geyer, Robert R. Exploring European Social Policy. Cambridge: Polity Press, 2007.
  • Goodwin, Matthew J. and Oliver Heath. “The 2016 referendum, Brexit and the left behind: An aggregate-level analysis of the result,” The Political Quarterly 87, no. 3 (2016): 323–332.
  • Goodwin, Matthew and Caitlin Milazzo. “Taking back control? Investigating the role of immigration in the 2016 vote for Brexit,” British Journal of Politics and International Relations 19, no. 3 (2017): 450–464.
  • Guillen, Ana M. and Santiago Alvarez. “The EU’s Impact on the Spanish Welfare State: The Role of Cognitive Europeanization,” Journal of European Social Policy 14, no. 3 (2004): 285–299.
  • Gumbrell-McCormick, Rebecca and Richard Hyman. “What about the workers? The implications of Brexit for British and European labour,” Competition & Change 21, no. 3 (2017): 169-184.
  • Haas, Ernst. The Uniting of Europe: Political, Economic and Social Forces 1950-1957. Indiana: University of Notre Dame Press, 1958: 35.
  • Hantrais, Linda. Social Policy in the European Union. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.
  • Kleinman, Mark. A European Welfare State? European Union Social Policy in Context. Hampshire: Palgrave, 2002.
  • Koos, Sebastian and Verena Seibel. “Solidarity with refugees across Europe. A comparative analysis of public support for helping forced migrants,” European Societies 21, no. 5 (2019): 704-728.
  • Majone, Giandomenico. “Europe’s ‘democratic deficit’: The question of Standards,” European Law Journal 4, no 1 (1998): 5-28.
  • Myant, Martin. “The economic and social consequences of Covid-19,” in Bart Vanhercke, Slavina Spasova and Boris Fronteddu (Eds.) Social policy in the European Union: state of play 2020. Brussels: ETUI, 2021.
  • Mosher, James S. and David M. Trubek. “Alternative approaches to governance in the EU: EU social policy and European Employment Strategy,” Journal of Common Market Studies 41, no 1 (2003): 63-88.
  • Niemann, Arne and Natascha Zaun. “EU Refugee Policies and Politics in Times of Crisis: Theoreticaland Empirical Perspectives,” JCMS 56, no. 1 (2018): 3-22.
  • O'Connor, Julia S. “Employment-anchored social policy, gender equality and the open method of policy coordination in the European union,” European Societies 7, no 1 (2005): 27-52.
  • Palier, Bruno and Philippe Pochet. “Toward a European Social Policy – At Last?” in Editors Nicolas Jabko and Craig Parsons, The State of the European Union: With US or Against US? European Trends in American Perspective. Oxford: OUP, 2005: 253–273.
  • Pierson, Paul. “Fragmented Welfare States: Federal Institutions and the Development of Social Policy,” Governance 8, no 4 (1995): 449-478.
  • Quaglia, Lucia and Amy Verdun. “The COVID-19 pandemic and the European Union: politics, policies and institutions,” Journal of European Public Policy 30, no. 4 (2023): 599-611.
  • Rubery, Jill and Isabel Tavora. “The Covid-19 crisis and gender equality: risks and opportunities,” in Bart Vanhercke, Slavina Spasova and Boris Fronteddu (Eds.) Social policy in the European Union: state of play 2020. Brussels: ETUI, 2021.
  • Schömann, Isabelle. “The Lisbon Treaty: A More Social Europe At Last?” ETUI Policy Brief, European Social Policy, No: 1/2010, 2010.
  • Streeck, Wolfgang. “Neo-Voluntarism: A New European Social Policy Regime?” European Law Journal 1, no 1 (1995): 31-59.
  • Vanhercke, Bart, Slavina Spasova and Boris Fronteddu. “Conclusions: Facing the economic and social consequences of the pandemic: domestic and EU responses,” in Bart Vanhercke, Slavina Spasova and Boris Fronteddu (Eds.) Social policy in the European Union: state of play 2020. Brussels: ETUI, 2021.
  • Zeitlin, Jonathan, Francesco Nicoli and Brigid Laffan. “Introduction: the European Union beyond the polycrisis? Integration and politicization in an age of shifting cleavages,” Journal of European Public Policy 26, no7 (2019): 963–976.
  • Ziller, Conrad and Sara Wallace Goodman. “Local Government Efficiency and Anti-Immigrant Violence,” Journal of Politics 82 no.3 (2020): 895-907.
Year 2024, , 43 - 69, 27.03.2024
https://doi.org/10.32450/aacd.1440030

Abstract

References

  • Abdelaaty, Lamis and Liza G. Steele. “Explaining Attitudes Toward Refugees and Immigrants in Europe,” Political Studies 70 no. 1 (2022): 110–130.
  • Albada, Katja, Nina Hansen and Sabine Otten. “Polarization in attitudes towards refugees and migrants in the Netherlands,” European Journal of Social Psychology 51 (2021): 627– 643.
  • Armstrong, Kenneth A. “EU Social Policy and the Governance Architecture of Europe 2020”, Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research 18, no. 3 (2012): 285-300.
  • Aybars, Ayşe İdil. “Sosyal Politika,” in Avrupa Birliği: Tarihçe, Teoriler, Kurumlar ve Politikalar, 4th Edition, Editors Belgin Akçay and İlke Göçmen, 549-572. Ankara: Seçkin Yayıncılık, 2023.
  • Biermann, Felix, Nina Guérin, Stefan Jagdhuber, Berthold Rittberger and Moritz Weiss. “Political (non-)reform in the euro crisis and the refugee crisis: a liberal intergovernmentalist explanation,” Journal of European Public Policy 26, no.2 (2019): 246–26.
  • Brooks, Eleanor, Anniek de Ruijter and Scott L. Greer. “Covid-19 and European Union health policy: from crisis to collective action,” in Bart Vanhercke, Slavina Spasova and Boris Fronteddu (Eds.) Social policy in the European Union: state of play 2020. Brussels: ETUI, 2021.
  • Butkus, Mindaugas, Alma Maciulyte-Sniukiene and Kristina Matuzeviciute. “Socio-Demographic Factors Influencing Attitude towards Refugees: An Analysis of Data from European Social Survey,” Globalization and its socio-economic consequences: 16th International Scientific Conference, 5th–6th October 2016. Zilina: University of Zilina, 2016.
  • Copeland, Paul and Mary Daly. “Varieties of Poverty Reduction: Inserting the Poverty and Social Exclusion Target into Europe 2020,” Journal of European Social Policy 22, no. 3 (2012): 273-287.
  • Czymara, Christian S. “Attitudes toward Refugees in Contemporary Europe: A Longitudinal Perspective on Cross-National Differences,” Social Forces 99 no. 3 (2021): 1306–1333.
  • De La Porte, Caroline. “Is the Open Method of Coordination Appropriate for Organising Activities at European Level in Sensitive Policy Areas?” European Law Journal 8 no. 1 (2002): 38–58.
  • Dennison, James and Andrew Geddes. “Brexit and the perils of ‘Europeanised’ migration,” Journal of European Public Policy 25, no. 8 (2018): 1137-1153.
  • European Commission. Reflection Paper on the Social Dimension of Europe. COM(2017)206, 2017. Available at: https://commission.europa.eu/publications/reflection-paper-social-dimension-europe_en
  • Ferrera, Maurizio, Manos Matsaganis and Stefano Sacchi. “Open Coordination against Poverty: the new EU ‘social inclusion’ process,” Journal of European Social Policy 12, no 3 (2002): 227-239.
  • Ferris, Elizabeth. “Making Sense of Public Policy on Refugee Integration,” The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 690, no.1, (2020): 200-224.
  • Fetzer, Thiemo. “Austerity Caused Brexit,” The CAGE Background Briefing Series, No. 96, 2019.
  • Fligstein, Neil. Euroclash: The EU, European Identity, and the Future of Europe. Oxford: OUP, 2008.
  • Follesdal, Andreas and Simon Hix. “Why there is a democratic deficit in the EU? A response to Majone and Moravcsik,” Journal of Common Market Studies 44, no 3 (2006): 533-562.
  • Gerhards, Jürgen, Holger Lengfeld and Julia Hauberer. “Do European citizens support the idea of a European welfare state? Evidence from a comparative survey conducted in three EU member states,” International Sociology 31, no 6 (2016): 677-700.
  • Geyer, Robert R. Exploring European Social Policy. Cambridge: Polity Press, 2007.
  • Goodwin, Matthew J. and Oliver Heath. “The 2016 referendum, Brexit and the left behind: An aggregate-level analysis of the result,” The Political Quarterly 87, no. 3 (2016): 323–332.
  • Goodwin, Matthew and Caitlin Milazzo. “Taking back control? Investigating the role of immigration in the 2016 vote for Brexit,” British Journal of Politics and International Relations 19, no. 3 (2017): 450–464.
  • Guillen, Ana M. and Santiago Alvarez. “The EU’s Impact on the Spanish Welfare State: The Role of Cognitive Europeanization,” Journal of European Social Policy 14, no. 3 (2004): 285–299.
  • Gumbrell-McCormick, Rebecca and Richard Hyman. “What about the workers? The implications of Brexit for British and European labour,” Competition & Change 21, no. 3 (2017): 169-184.
  • Haas, Ernst. The Uniting of Europe: Political, Economic and Social Forces 1950-1957. Indiana: University of Notre Dame Press, 1958: 35.
  • Hantrais, Linda. Social Policy in the European Union. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.
  • Kleinman, Mark. A European Welfare State? European Union Social Policy in Context. Hampshire: Palgrave, 2002.
  • Koos, Sebastian and Verena Seibel. “Solidarity with refugees across Europe. A comparative analysis of public support for helping forced migrants,” European Societies 21, no. 5 (2019): 704-728.
  • Majone, Giandomenico. “Europe’s ‘democratic deficit’: The question of Standards,” European Law Journal 4, no 1 (1998): 5-28.
  • Myant, Martin. “The economic and social consequences of Covid-19,” in Bart Vanhercke, Slavina Spasova and Boris Fronteddu (Eds.) Social policy in the European Union: state of play 2020. Brussels: ETUI, 2021.
  • Mosher, James S. and David M. Trubek. “Alternative approaches to governance in the EU: EU social policy and European Employment Strategy,” Journal of Common Market Studies 41, no 1 (2003): 63-88.
  • Niemann, Arne and Natascha Zaun. “EU Refugee Policies and Politics in Times of Crisis: Theoreticaland Empirical Perspectives,” JCMS 56, no. 1 (2018): 3-22.
  • O'Connor, Julia S. “Employment-anchored social policy, gender equality and the open method of policy coordination in the European union,” European Societies 7, no 1 (2005): 27-52.
  • Palier, Bruno and Philippe Pochet. “Toward a European Social Policy – At Last?” in Editors Nicolas Jabko and Craig Parsons, The State of the European Union: With US or Against US? European Trends in American Perspective. Oxford: OUP, 2005: 253–273.
  • Pierson, Paul. “Fragmented Welfare States: Federal Institutions and the Development of Social Policy,” Governance 8, no 4 (1995): 449-478.
  • Quaglia, Lucia and Amy Verdun. “The COVID-19 pandemic and the European Union: politics, policies and institutions,” Journal of European Public Policy 30, no. 4 (2023): 599-611.
  • Rubery, Jill and Isabel Tavora. “The Covid-19 crisis and gender equality: risks and opportunities,” in Bart Vanhercke, Slavina Spasova and Boris Fronteddu (Eds.) Social policy in the European Union: state of play 2020. Brussels: ETUI, 2021.
  • Schömann, Isabelle. “The Lisbon Treaty: A More Social Europe At Last?” ETUI Policy Brief, European Social Policy, No: 1/2010, 2010.
  • Streeck, Wolfgang. “Neo-Voluntarism: A New European Social Policy Regime?” European Law Journal 1, no 1 (1995): 31-59.
  • Vanhercke, Bart, Slavina Spasova and Boris Fronteddu. “Conclusions: Facing the economic and social consequences of the pandemic: domestic and EU responses,” in Bart Vanhercke, Slavina Spasova and Boris Fronteddu (Eds.) Social policy in the European Union: state of play 2020. Brussels: ETUI, 2021.
  • Zeitlin, Jonathan, Francesco Nicoli and Brigid Laffan. “Introduction: the European Union beyond the polycrisis? Integration and politicization in an age of shifting cleavages,” Journal of European Public Policy 26, no7 (2019): 963–976.
  • Ziller, Conrad and Sara Wallace Goodman. “Local Government Efficiency and Anti-Immigrant Violence,” Journal of Politics 82 no.3 (2020): 895-907.
There are 41 citations in total.

Details

Primary Language Turkish
Subjects European Union
Journal Section Research Article
Authors

Ayşe İdil Aybars 0000-0003-4511-4493

Early Pub Date February 26, 2024
Publication Date March 27, 2024
Submission Date May 2, 2023
Published in Issue Year 2024

Cite

Chicago Aybars, Ayşe İdil. “The Future of Social Policy in Europe”. Ankara Avrupa Çalışmaları Dergisi 23, no. Özel Sayı-Future of Europe: Reflections from Türkiye (March 2024): 43-69. https://doi.org/10.32450/aacd.1440030.