Shortly after the EU parliament adopted new rules on adequate minimum wages for all workers in the EU, the commission has shared a set of recommendations for member states to adopt the minimum income.
The basis for its proposal: shrinking the number of at-risk-of-poverty citizens. The EU’s 2030 social targets aims for a reduction by 15 million people. Currently, one in five EU residents--or 94.5 million people--are defined as living in poverty or socially excluded.
The commission recommends member states to work on adopting several changes to make minimum option more accessible and fair.
Eligibility and accessibility to income support
It asks member states to improve the adequacy of income support, by creating a transparent and robust methodology. The support granted should be adequate compared to the cost-of-living in the state and should be reviewed on a yearly basis.
They also should ensuring that applying for the support is accessible, user-friendly and simplified, with an approval or dismissal of the request within 30 days of the submission. Given the fluctuations of the EU’s socio-economic context, eligibility criteria should also regularly be redefined.
Against a backdrop of soaring living costs and uncertainty, we must ensure our safety nets are up to the task
Allowing single persons rather than households to receive income support while also providing them with an inclusion plan to help them get into the job market is also on the list.
Member states should also improve access to essential and enabling services, the proposition says. These services include care, training and education, as well as counselling and coaching where needed.
Short-term aids needed too
But the commission also emphasises on the importance of helping people right now, as the current inflationary trends and cost-of-living are making it harder for many to make ends meet.
“Against a backdrop of soaring living costs and uncertainty, we must ensure our safety nets are up to the task. We should pay particular attention to getting young people back into work also through income support, so they do not get trapped in a vicious cycle of exclusion,” said Luxembourg commissioner for jobs and social rights Nicolas Schmit in a press release.
“It will be important this autumn for Member States to modernise their social safety nets with an active inclusion approach to help those most in need. This is how we can fight poverty and social exclusion, and help more people into work during this challenging period,” executive vice-president for an economy that works for people Valdis Dombrovskis added.
The EU council will need to evaluate the proposal before member states vote on adopting it.