ANNUAL GROWTH SURVEY : FOUR OF TEN MEASURES CONCERN EMPLOYMENT.

To bring employment in the EU up to 75%, the goal set by the Europe 2020' strategy, the Commission is encouraging member states to make work more attractive, to reform pension systems, to get the jobless back into work and to balance security and flexibility. These are the four priorities for employment identified in its annual growth survey, published on 12 January.

"It is urgent to tackle unemployment and long-term exclusion from the labour market, particularly given Europe's low labour utilisation rate and ageing population. A failure would mean lower competitiveness and more inequality in European society," said Employment Commissioner Laszlo Andor, who urged member states to be more ambitious.

The joint employment report and the progress report on Europe 2020', which form part of the annual growth survey, are hardly optimistic. Employment currently stands at 68.8%, ie there are 5.6 million fewer jobs than before the crisis (2008). The adding up of the reform projects submitted by member states at the end of 2010 will barely bring the rate up to 73%, ie still two to 2.4 points below the 2020 target.

INTEGRATION AND REINTEGRATION

The Commission proposes a set of reforms that depend on each country's specific situation, since "the pace of recovery and the available fiscal room to finance policy measures diverge across the member states". In its communication, the EU executive focuses on labour market reintegration, especially for older persons and the unemployed. For the former, the Commission urges member states to raise retirement age, to reduce early retirement schemes and to encourage the development of additional personal savings. For the latter, it proposes a review of unemployment benefits to check whether they offer incentives to get back to work and to avoid benefit dependency but at the same time support adaptability to the business cycle. It...