The Changing Legal Context of Employment Policy Coordination

Abstract

Looking at the 2013 country-specific Recommendations, this article explores which legal instruments are used to coordinate employment and social policy items after the crisis. This includes instruments belonging to employment and social policy coordination, as well as to budgetary and economic governance cycles. The article answers the question whether the joint use of these instruments affect the Union's employment and social policy goals. The analysis reveals that employment and social policy items frequently feature in budgetary and economic governance cycles, such as the Stability and Growth Pact (SGP) and the Macro-economic Imbalances Procedure. Examples of such topics are health care, pension schemes and wage development. Yet, the impact on the Union's social goals shows a mixed picture, with certain Recommendations supporting social policies, while other Recommendations tending to address social issues from an economic perspective.