politics, economy and employment & labour
Social Europe is an award-winning digital media publisher that publishes content examining issues in politics, economy and employment & labour. This archive brings together Social Europe articles on political issues.
The discussions about Brexit have centered around the question of whether it is in the national interest of the United Kingdom to remain in the EU or to leave it. It appears today that the British public is split about this question, so that the outcome of the referendum remains highly uncertain. The question of […]
After more than 10 years of political debate Germany for the first time introduced a general minimum wage of €8.50 per hour on 1st January 2015. This was a response by German legislators to the continued erosion of the German collective bargaining system and declining bargaining coverage. Currently only 58% of all employees are covered by […]
In an interview with EUROPP’s editor Stuart Brown, former Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis discusses the launch of his new ‘Democracy in Europe’ movement (DiEM25), the UK’s upcoming referendum on EU membership, and why a surge of democracy is needed to prevent the EU from sliding toward disintegration. You have just launched a new political movement, DiEM25, […]
Germany’s Dutch neighbors are following its refugee debate closely and with a mixture of admiration, astonishment and confusion. Before “Cologne” we had great respect for the German “welcoming culture” and Angela Merkel’s courageous “We can do it”. One felt the painful contrast between a Germany that wanted euphorically to show off its good side and […]
Terrorism is the latest and unexpected source of insecurity, fear and risk. It is unexpected because it does not depend on the liquefaction of society or on the crisis of the modern state, but is somehow linked to modernity, and can be explained by Eisenstadt’s theory of multiple modernities. According to this hypothesis, these evolve […]
The 2015 COP21 summit in Paris was presented as a last chance to reach a global agreement to control climate change caused by human activity. The fact that 187 countries made commitments with the aim of limiting the global temperature increase by the end of the century to ‘well below’ 2°C (and possibly 1.5°C) can […]
His words have not been scripted or prepared for the press; he speaks from the heart. It’s now clear to every voter that [he] is nothing but himself. No Bullshit. Unvarnished opinion and beliefs. One of these statements recently was made about Donald Trump, the man causing upset in the race to become the Republican […]
The Republican presidential aspirant nominated at this summer’s convention is likely to become that party’s nominee in part by invoking jingoist and xenophobic themes drawn from the playbooks of eastern European authoritarians. Miloš Zeman, the Czech President asserts, for example, “I do not want Islam in the Czech Republic.” And Hungarian premier Viktor Orbán has […]
The European Commission is currently conducting an inquiry into judicial and media reforms introduced by the Law and Justice government in Poland. Aleks Szczerbiak analyses the way in which this investigation is going to affect the political dynamics within the country, and argues that the offensive against the ruling party’s policies may well prove to be a […]
Has any historian of democratic left parties that form governments examined the phenomenon of how long they have to stay in opposition before they once again return to power? Labour is currently indulging in a ritual of seeking to answer the question why it lost the 2015 election with different elements of the party from […]
In war, according to the ancient Greek dramatist Aeschylus, truth is the first casualty. Plainly, he had not foreseen the Brexit referendum campaign which continues to be dogged by blatant abuse of statistics. As explained in a previous blog, all sides are at it, coming up with spuriously precise figures, using the wrong concepts and definitions, […]
German social democrats have been labeled “panic-stricken” and “self-contradictory” in the refugee crisis. As we in Germany and the EU face by far the biggest challenge for decades, a proper answer is due here. One thing first: Practically everybody I have spoken to in the last few weeks and months expresses contradictory feelings and thoughts. […]
