The European Commission recently released a proposed initiative with the aim to create favourable conditions for social economy organisations to thrive and grow and raise awareness of their potential, particularly in creating quality jobs, supporting innovation, and social inclusion. By supporting the social economy, the proposal aims to stimulate sustainable economic and industrial development, contribute to territorial cohesion in the Member States, and support social innovation. As such, the Commission proposes measures to:
- Design labour market policies that support employees in social enterprises (e.g., through training), promote social entrepreneurship and ensure fair working conditions through social dialogue and collective bargaining.
- Acknowledge the role of the social economy for social inclusion, e.g., providing accessible and high-quality social and care services and housing, particularly for disadvantaged groups.
- Improve access to public and private funding, including to EU funds.
- Enable access to market opportunities and public procurement.
- Make use of the opportunities provided by State aid rules to support the social economy, including provisions for start-up aid, reintegration of disadvantaged workers, and support for local infrastructure.
- Ensure that taxation systems support the social economy through the simplification of administrative procedures and the consideration of appropriately designed tax incentives.
- Raise awareness of the social economy and its contributions, notably through research and data.
The Social Economy gateway-a one-stop-shop website that provides social economy entities with information on EU funding, training opportunities, events, country-specific information, and where to go for additional resources, as a tool for capacity-building was also launched in parallel to the proposal.
You can find out more the Commission’s website