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On April 4 2014 some 50,000 trade unionists and citizens from all over Europe, marched through the center of Brussels to the EU quarter.

Our message, which EU decision-makers did not want to hear, was clear: Austerity doesn’t work!

The measures put forward have actually exacerbated the crisis and increased unemployment and the incidence of poverty in Europe.   

While they would like to continue with austerity, European trade unions called for an urgent change of course and a new comprehensive investment programme.  

Over 26 million Europeans are unemployed. Even worse, 7.5 million young Europeans are neither in work, nor education, nor training.

In addition to the urgently needed radical shift in European economic policy, the European Trade Union Confederation calls for a New Path for Europe, for investment, quality jobs and equality: http://www.etuc.org/press/new-path-europe-fighting-investment-quality-jobs-equality-austerity-not-working#.U0O0WFdqPeI  

UNI Europa, present at the demonstration, raised additional demands to European leaders, under the auspices of the ETUC’s New Path for Europe Campaign:

• Representatives of six European trade union federations (ETUFs), together with the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) youth delegation, led the demonstrators through Brussels to demand a new path for Europe that includes a secure future for young people in the labour market. The demonstration’s leading youth bloc was the latest in a series of actions that the ETUFs undertook requesting that EU institutions and employers put youth at the top of their agenda. Throughout the demonstration, the ETUFs distributed a brochure summarising the demands first announced at their campaign launched in Athens in March and encouraged young trade unionists to take part in their campaign by visiting back2ourfuture.org.

• UNI Europa Secretariat carried posters, attached below, promoting UNI Europa’s Services Manifesto. UNI Europa set out its vision for a European services industry that creates quality jobs for the quality services that a competitive and inclusive EU needs. Quality services are a matter of quality jobs in services. UNI Europa demanded that the EU acts in this logic when setting out services policy

• UNI Europa exhibited another set of posters in support of European Social Dialogue. UNI Europa, supported by its member organisations, has engaged a large Campaign against the REFIT agenda of the EU Commission. Through its ReThink REFIT Campaign, UNI Europa demands that concluded social partner agreements must be implemented by a Council decision at the request of the signatory social partners. The EU Commission refuses top forward the concluded social partner agreement on occupational health & safety in the hairdressing sector. By its refusal and playing with time, the EU Commission effectively undermines sectoral social dialogue and attacks the role and autonomy of European social partners. The attached posters demand the implementation of the hairdressing social partner agreement without further delay – www.rethinkrefit.eu