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.
Sometimes love comes to an end. The glow fades, the couple has grown “apart” or suffered what used to be called “irreconcilable differences”. This occurs not only between individuals but also in politics. The Brexit referendum in the UK, Donald Trump’s election victory in the United States and the success of all sorts of nationalist-populist […]
Antagonism is mounting between today’s right-wing populists and a somewhat unexpected but formidable opponent: women. In the United States, much like in Poland, women’s rights have been among the first targets of attack by populist leaders. Women are not taking it lying down. Traditional conservatism in the West has largely come to terms with the […]
While unemployment rates are continuing to fall in Europe and the US, many workers have discovered that finding a job may not solve all their problems. Bertelsmann Stiftung reports in its 2016 Social Justice Index that recent increases in employment helping to drive the EU’s economic recovery are not proving beneficial for social justice and […]
Brexit is about taking away citizenship rights from millions of people: British people, Irish people, Polish people, indeed from anyone currently a citizen of an EU member state. Brexit is not just about economics and trade, it is fundamentally about politics, indeed about the most fundamental political issue of all. Political boundaries and rules define […]
US President Donald Trump has an obvious problem with data that he doesn’t like, as he showed on his first full day in office, by attacking the media for reporting accurately the size of the crowd that attended his inauguration. It should be no less obvious that this same reliance on “alternative facts” poses a […]
Europe today is in crisis. Economically, much of the continent suffers from low growth, high unemployment and rising inequality, while politically, disillusionment with the European community as well as domestic institutions and elites is widespread. Partially as a result, right-wing populism is growing, increasing political instability and uncertainty even further. Although many have noted a […]
The European Union and Eurozone are faced with significant, historic challenges in 2017. Destructive forces in Europe, expressed through far-right parties and their divisive rhetoric, and the rigid insistence on a financial/austerity policy model that cannot promote growth and opportunity for all are the major reasons why some of the fundamental institutional pillars of the […]
Job security and a safe physical environment are crucial aspects of working life, and these are cornerstones on which Europe’s powerhouse economy is built. Several aspects of the relationship between the immediate boss and employees, however, rank German workers well below and beyond what workers in other European countries experience. This is what the European […]
The United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development commits UN member states to “leave no one behind.” One crucial component of that commitment – encompassed in the International Labor Organization’s own agenda – is decent work for all. At a time when worker frustration and disillusionment is being expressed in elections across the world, this goal could […]
A new concept has emerged in political science in recent decades: the catch-all party or the party that attracts from all sides – beyond social classes and, above all, beyond the classic split between right and left. More precisely, this type of party can be defined by its ability to attract individuals holding completely different […]
Donald Trump is now the 45th President of the United States, and in his inaugural address he made it clear to the assembled US establishment that his administration does not intend to pursue business as usual. His motto, “America first,” signals the renunciation, and possible destruction, of the US-led world order that Democratic and Republican presidents, starting […]
The refugee crisis has posed significant challenges for Europe – we have not seen such a large-scale migration of people since the Second World War. The exodus from war-torn regions initially posed a humanitarian challenge for frontline countries such as Greece and Italy. However, the longer term challenge around the successful integration of new arrivals […]
