On Tuesday, May 10th, Pierre Laurent, President of the European Left and Maite Mola, Vice-president, met John Monks, the General Secretary of the European Trade Unions Confederation (ETUC), before its Congress take place in Athens from 16 till 19 May.

This meeting was an opportunity to exchange views on economic and social situation in Europe.  The participants noticed their shared preoccupation’s about the crisis, the danger of the "Troika’s" (IMF-ECB-European Commission) answers for the workers - such as the " pact for the euro + ".

Pierre Laurent insisted on the political risks associated with this situation , including the rise of national egoisms and extreme-right forces in a growing number of countries. He has also expressed the EL determination in supporting the voices of the powerful social mobilizations which are being organized everywhere in Europe and to develop a political alternative to the current choices of the European Union, in particular, concerning social rights and reorienting the role of the European Central Bank (ECB).

According to John Monks, if the crisis comes from financial markets, the key for its exit stands in the work and in the social rights . It is necessary that the EU “stop dancing the music of financial markets", otherwise the workers’ rights are still going to collapse. At the moment, he notices a lack of social dialog within the Union.

On this subject, Maite Mola underlined the repeated attacks in Spain and in many European countries against trade unions and collective agreements. For her, the left has to defend the trade unions which are the engine of social mobilizations.

All agreed on the necessity of finding European answers on the basis of the solidarity to overcome this situation. Different proposals were exposed and discussed: taxation of the financial transactions, « euro-bonds », European Social Development and Solidarity Fund, new fiscal policy, common base of social rights, use of the citizens' initiative ...  Thus, the EL continues its process of debating the proposals with the social forces.