A social dimension for the EMU: why and how?

In recent debates on the reform of the Economic and monetary union, the idea of adding a 'social dimen­sion' to the four often mentioned 'unions' (economic, fiscal, banking and political) has gained force.

The European Commission will issue a communication on this issue in early October 2013 and decisions on how this 'social dimension' will look like will be taken at the European Councils of October and December 2013.

This Policy Paper sets out to shed some light on how a social dimension for the common currency area could and should look like today.

After having analysed why a social dimension is necessary for the EMU, Sofia Fernandes and Kristina Maslauskaite therefore wonder about the nature of this social dimension. They identify a set of initiatives aiming at (i) reinforcing the smooth functioning of the EMU; (ii) avoiding the negative consequences of the common currency on national welfare states and (iii) improving EMU’s social governance.