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| COFACE e-newsletter April 2012 version FR Having trouble reading this email? View it in your browser Editorial: Au revoir! by William Lay COFACE news • Discover our new BLOG "Reconciling Work and Family Life” • eHealth Seminar: Challenges and opportunities for families • COFACE calls the EU institutions to exclude arbitrary detention for children and other vulnerable asylum seekers EU news • New strategy for safer internet and better internet content for children and teenagers • Communication "Towards a Job-rich Recovery” • Report on progress in Gender Equality • Publication: Alcohol in the European Union. Consumption, harm and policy approaches • Launch of the Generation 1992 creative competition Meetings of the month • II Transnational Seminar on Intercultural Families • Quality of work and employment: A policy tool towards inclusive and sustainable growth • Better self-regulation and regulation in advertising: civil society cares Forthcoming events • 15 May: Presentation of the COFACE-Disability publication on ‘The Family Dimension of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’ @ the EP • 26 June: COFACE Seminar on "Reconciling Work and Care responsibilities: a challenge for family carers in Europe" @ the EP Contact details and notes |
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Editorial: Au revoir! by William Lay COFACE news Discover our new BLOG "Reconciling Work and Family Life” http://eyf2014.wordpress.com/  eHealth Seminar: Challenges and opportunities for families On the 19th of April, COFACE and the FPS organised a seminar on e-health at the European Social and Economic Committee. After an introductory speech by Maureen O'Neil, the EESC's Group III Vice-President, and Nicolas Revenu, Chair of the relevant COFACE working group, the seminar focused on four panel discussions which covered various stakeholders' perspectives and approaches to e-health. The two first panels were dedicated to actions by public authorities at both EU and national level and the two last panels encompassed the users, the providers, the medical staff and the social security's point of view and experience with e-health. Several key points emerged from the input of the speakers and the participation of the audience... READ MORE COFACE calls the EU institutions to exclude arbitrary detention for children and other vulnerable asylum seekers COFACE joins and supports the "Appeal to the EU institutions to ensure respect for the right to liberty of asylum seekers in the recast of the reception condition directive and Dublin regulation” signed by 166 organisations. "Children and vulnerable asylum seekers such as pregnant women, older persons, persons with physical or mental disabilities must not be detained. The best interest of the child must be the guiding principle when a child is involved in an asylum seeking procedure, either unaccompanied or with his/her family” said Annemie Drieskens, COFACE President, and she added that "specific attention must be paid to families and their vulnerable members”. In particular, COFACE recalls and stresses that asylum seekers must be protected from arbitrary detention as required under international refugee and human rights law and other international instruments, including the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Moreover, COFACE strongly encourages the EU Institutions to refer to the ‘negotiating checklist’ launched by ECRE where recalled that: (1) Vulnerable asylum seekers, in particular children, elderly, pregnant women, persons with physical or mental disabilities, victims of torture and ill-treatment and traumatised persons should not be detained. In the truly exceptional case that detention of vulnerable asylum seekers is considered necessary as a last resort, it must be established by an independent qualified expert that their health will not deteriorate as a result of detention. In such truly exceptional cases, conditions of detention and procedural safeguards must take into account their specific vulnerability. (2) Unaccompanied asylum-seeking children must never be detained. More info EU news New strategy for Safer Internet and better internet content for children and teenagers The European Commission has set out a plan to give children the digital skills and tools they need to benefit fully and safely from the digital world. Today 75% of children use the internet, a third of them on mobiles. The new strategy is to build up the market for interactive, creative and educational content online, in a partnership between the European Commission and Member States, mobile phone operators, handset manufacturers and providers of social networking services. Varying national approaches mean that children across the EU have different levels of empowerment and protection online. This also makes it difficult for businesses to market child-friendly services and products EU-wide. To overcome these hurdles, the Commission has outlined a range of measures, which will be implemented by different means including industry self-regulation, which should lead to flexible and fast solutions in this field. Actions are grouped around four main goals: - To stimulate the production of creative and educational online content for children and develop platforms which give access to age-appropriate content. - To scale up awareness raising and teaching of online safety in all EU schools to develop children's digital and media literacy and self-responsibility online. - Creating a safe environment for children where parents and children are given the tools necessary for ensuring their protection online – such as easy-to-use mechanisms to report harmful content and conduct online, transparent default age-appropriate privacy settings or user-friendly parental controls. - Combating child sexual abuse material online by promoting research into, and use of, innovative technical solutions by police investigations. Commission Press release Communication "Towards a Job-rich Recovery” On 18 April, the European Commission presented its employment package containing a series of non-binding measures for stimulating economic recovery. The Commission approves of setting up systems for introducing a national minimum wage, which it believes should help to play a role in tackling the problem of the working poor. In its communication "Towards a Job-rich Recovery”, the Commission admits that the risk of in-work poverty is high, particularly in countries with uneven earnings distribution and low minimum wages, among people with temporary contracts and in low work intensity and single parent households. One week after the presentation of the Communication, COFACE participated in the European Parliament Employment Committee meeting, where Commissioner Andor introduced the document. COFACE applauded the Communication, which puts emphasizes on the growing health and social care sectors due to the ageing population. In addition, COFACE warmly welcomed the observation of an accompanying Staff Working Document of the Communication, which documented that "as consequences of demographic and family changes and the need for better life-work balance, new services covering broad ranges of activities are created and are a source of job creation”. This statement closely associates with COFACE’s initiative on a European Year for Reconciling Work and Family Life in 2014. On 6-7 September, Commissioner Andor will host a high level employment conference to mobilise all partners to implement the measures announced by the Commission. | Plus d'informations Report on progress in Gender Equality On 16 April, the European Commission published its report on progress in gender equality 2011. In addition to the percentages, a clear picture is emerging: more women are needed on the labour market, as well as equal pay for men and women and equal opportunities for reaching high positions in the professional field. Several measures have been taken over recent months, with regard to observations made in this report: Employment – Although the EU 2020 strategy target is to have 75% of the adult population working by the end of this decade, men have already reached this objective, whereas only 62% of women are currently participating in the labour market. The Commission hopes that its recommendations of last June on the EU2020 strategy will help to rectify the situation. This will involve reconciling work and private life and developing better childcare solutions, more flexible work organisation and ensuring that a second household income is not reviewed downwards. Wages and responsibilities –Money is the most important area with regard to the question of gender equality. Women still earn less than men in the European Union – 16.4% on average less than men. This has an impact on their pensions and is further compounded by career breaks and part-time work. Violence – Another area, where the lack of equality is less visible but equally harmful in terms of the cost to society, can be located in the issue involving violence against women. More information Publication: Alcohol in the European Union. Consumption, harm and policy approaches European Commission and the WHO Regional Office for Europe - This new report uses information gathered in 2011 to update key indicators on alcohol consumption, health outcomes and action to reduce harm across the EU. The report updates the evidence base for some important areas of alcohol policy, and provides in reducing the harm done to health and society by excessive drinking with useful information to guide future action. The report recognizes harm done by alcohol dependent people to the families, the role family plays in shaping drinking habits and the effectiveness of family-based programmes. Alcohol is one of the world’s top three priority areas in public health. Even though only half the global population drinks alcohol, it is the world’s third leading cause of ill health and premature death, after low birth weight and unsafe sex. In Europe, alcohol is the third leading risk factor for disease and death after tobacco and high blood pressure. The WHO report, which includes some allusions to the impact of alcohol in families, is available here. Launch of the Generation 1992 creative competition The European Commission is inviting all 20-year-old Europeans to get creative and voice their views on the single market by launching a creativity competition. The launch of the Generation 1992 creative competition marks 20 years since the creation of the single market, enabling freedom for the movement of goods, capital, people and services in 27 EU countries. 20-year-olds are invited to share their views, experiences, insights and expectations of the single market by picking up a pen, paintbrush, camera, computer, tablet or mobile phone and letting their creativity flow! Submissions may be from individuals or groups, and should fall into one of the following categories: education and citizenship; jobs and entrepreneurship; culture and leisure; and consumers and environment. The competition kicks off on 11 April 2012. Its progress can be followed through the social media and the Generation 1992 website. Meetings of the month II Transnational Seminar on Intercultural Families The Unión de asociaciones familiales of Spain (UNAF) organised the II Transnational Seminar on Intercultural Families with the support of the University of Malaga. The seminar covered the phenomenon of intercultural families and their impact on family life types, community relations, and support for minors in the countries of southern Europe through the prism of social sciences and an international outlook. It also analysed the legal, psycho-social, and educational needs and requirements arising as a result of the growing intercultural composition of society. Different approaches to respond to new family realities were also covered. COFACE insisted on the need for migrant and intercultural families to receive and have access to all of the rights found in "generic" family policies in their countries of residence (family allowances, services, time management, etc.). Specific measures and policies to support the special needs of certain families can be introduced, but must be complementary to "generic” family policies and not substitute for them. A few critical points were raised: The definition of "family members" is not the same in the different instruments; the discretionary power of Member States is still very high; procedures are often long, difficult and expensive (which can lead to discrimination); and the all-important interests of children must always take priority in procedures. UNAF’s Press Release (in Spanish) | Pictures Quality of work and employment: A policy tool towards inclusive and sustainable growth COFACE took part in the "Quality of work and employment: A policy tool towards inclusive and sustainable growth” conference organised by Eurofound in the European Parliament. This event brought into focus the current importance of job recovery including job and working conditions. This event had also special relevancy considering that the European Commission has recently presented its "Towards a job-rich recovery” Communication. The event was opened by Martin Schulz, President of the European Parliament and consisted of several presentations from various stakeholders such as Bernadette Ségol, ETUC or Leila Kurki, President of the EESC Section of Employment, Social Affairs and Citizenship. In his contribution, Koos Richelle, European Commission Director-General DG Employment, Social affairs and Inclusion highlighted the activities of the EC in terms of job recovery such as the New Skills and Jobs flagship initiative, EU Skills Panorama or the newly launched Employment Package. This event also provided room to introduce Eurofound’s 5th European Working Conditions Survey 2010, and particularly its findings concerning the quality of work and employment. Many of the survey’s conclusions and assessments are relevant relating to family issues and policies, like its chapter on Quality of Work and Employment which calls for multidimensional policies highlighting work-life balance for men and women. Better self-regulation and regulation in advertising: civil society cares On the 28th of March, COFACE attended the event organised by the European Advertising Standards Alliance (EASA) entitled "Advertising: We Care!". EASA is a coordinating body for national advertising self-regulatory bodies and is responsible for promoting advertising that complies to a set of ethical rules, namely that it should be legal, decent, honest, truthful, prepared with a sense of social responsibility to the consumer as well as society as a whole and created with due respect to the rules of fair competition. The event focused on the achievements of self-regulation in advertising across Europe and identifying the remaining challenges to identify the way forward. COFACE represented the civil society perspective on self-regulation on advertising by participating in the panel discussion "Advertising self-regulation - part of the future policy mix to ensure responsible advertising?" and insisted on the importance of reviewing the standards as opposed to deliberating whether regulation in advertising should be in the hands of private (self-regulatory) or public bodies. COFACE also underlined that self-regulatory bodies can only be as good as the standards they set. That is why public authorities and NGOs need to be widely involved in the drafting process and the periodic review of these standards. New challenges such as online advertising also need to be better addressed. Forthcoming events Presentation of the COFACE-Disability publication on ‘The Family Dimension of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’ @ the EP 15 May 2012 – 4.00 pm-5.30 pm, European Parliament, Brussels On the occasion of the International Day of Families COFACE will present together with Ádám Kósa (MEP, Chair of the Disability Intergroup) the publication, The Family Dimension of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities at the European Parliament in Brussels on 15 May 2012. With this publication, COFACE aims to highlight the family dimension of the Convention, contribute to its dissemination, support the implementation of the European Commission's European Disability Strategy 2010-2020 as well as the European Parliament's report on mobility and inclusion of people with disabilities drafted by Ádám KÓSA MEP. It also aims at empowering European citizens living with disabilities and their families. May 15, the International Day of Families is devoted to mark the relevance that the international community places on family issues as a fundamental unit of our society, as well as to highlight concerns about their situation in many parts of the world. This day provides also an opportunity to reflect on the work started in 1994 and to celebrate the importance of families, people and societies around the world. To obtain more information and register for this event, click here COFACE Seminar on "Reconciling Work and Care responsibilities: a challenge for family carers in Europe" @ the EP 26 June 2012 - 2.00 pm-5.00 pm, European Parliament, Brussels Work-family balance policies are fundamental for families and for society as a whole. Reconciliation policies are, indeed, fundamental tools to enhance gender equality and women employment, but also lowering the risk of poverty for the most vulnerable families such lone parents and large families. Reconciling work and family becomes even more challenging, but crucial, for those family members who also have care responsibilities. In Europe, family members are the largest provider of care for older, frail, disabled and chronically ill people of all ages. However, caring for a loved one often comes with a considerable personal cost to family carers, with many experiencing, financial, professional, health and social consequences. Policies enabling to reconcile work and care responsibilities are necessary to help to maintain and / or improve the quality of life of family carers and care recipients, to enhance family carers’ social inclusion and to foster quality care for persons with dependency needs. The event will have multi-dimensional approach and speakers from NGOs, social partners, European Institutions and family carers themselves will explore and discuss policy challenges and proposals to support family carers reconciling their work life and their care responsibilities. The discussion will be enriched also through the presentation of the results of a 2-year-project involving over 10 organisations which, looking at very practical aspects of the life of family carers, and exchanging good practices, have been able to identify common challenges across Member States and to formulate sets of specific policy recommendations. For further inquiry, please contact us List of forthcoming events |
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| Contact details and notes Director: Agnes Uhereczky | Editor: Ana Pérez Contributors: Paola Panzeri, Martin Schmalzried, Zoltan Vadkerti Confederation of Family Organisations in the European Union (COFACE) Rue de Londres 17, B-1050 Brussels Tel: E-mail: secretariat@coface-eu.org/ Website: www.coface-eu.org COFACE is supported by the European Union Programme for Employment and Social Solidarity - PROGRESS (2007-2013). For more information see: http://ec.europa.eu/progress. This publication is produced with the support of the European Commission but does not necessarily express its views. |
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