The contradictory aspects of European social policies

Abstract

The author analyses aspects of the current debate about the construction of Europe: tensions between «European» and «national», between harmony with social rules and respect for specific social practices, between the short-term bid for competitivity and longterm development quality. The author first studies the redistribution of functions, the problem of the coordination of social systems and economic incorporation in Europe and then compares some important future tendencies of community action: strategies that should be used by European companies and states, the role played by Brussels, coordination with development plans required by countries like Greece, Portugal and Spain, the establishment of minimums with regard to companies supplying labour, the social and economic strategies of the less privileged countries.