Speech by Taoiseach Micheál Martin at Foundation Forum 2025: Europe’s social model – the key to competitive growth, Royal Hospital Kilmainham, 20 November 2025

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20 November 2025

A Dhaoine Uaisle, tá áthas orm bheith anseo libh inniú ag “Fóram Fondúireachta Eurofound 2025”. Go raith maith agaibh as fáilte a chur romham.

Tá sainról ag Eurofund, arb í an ghníomhaireacht Eorpach ag a bhfuil mandáid ar leith d’fhonn coinníollacha maireachtála agus oibre a fheabhsú do shaoránaigh na hEorpa, i dtaobh idirphlé bunaithe ar eolas i dtreo polasaithe sóisialta, fostaíochta agus polasaithe a bhaineann le hobair a chur chun cinn agus a éascú.

Creidim go daingean nach raibh an sainról sin chomh tábhachtach riamh agus atá anois, agus éiríonn leis an ról sin bunús na barrshamhla daonlathaí atá i gcroílár ár gcomhthionscadal Eorpach a chur in iúl.

I am delighted to join you this morning at this flagship event of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions – the Foundation Forum 2025.

I would like to commend the commitment and professionalism that Eurofound brings to its work, and to convey my sincere appreciation to Executive Director Ivailo Kalfin and to all the staff in Loughlinstown House.

Let me extend a special welcome or céad mile fáilte this morning to Executive Vice-President of the European Commission, Roxana Mînzatu, who has responsibility for Social Rights and Skills, Quality Jobs and Preparedness, and to Li Andersson, Chair of the European Parliament’s Employment and Social Affairs Committee.

It is a particular honour to have this opportunity to celebrate the agency’s fiftieth anniversary, a milestone that is deeply intertwined with the history of Ireland’s membership of the European Union.

The establishment of Eurofound was a significant institutional development in Ireland’s first Presidency of the Council.

It is important to acknowledge the significant contribution of Dr Patrick Hillary, who served as our Minister for Foreign Affairs when Ireland signed the Treaty to join the then European Communities in 1972.

Dr Hillary served as Social Affairs Commissioner upon our accession in 1973, progressing the Social Action Plan that led directly to the establishment of Eurofound in 1975.

Elected President of Ireland the following year, he performed the official opening of the Eurofound offices in Loughlinstown House in October 1978.

When President Hillary opened the Eurofound offices in 1978, he made the following point: “Nobody would deny that economic progress is important for the people of Europe, but the cost of that progress to their health and to the environment where they live should not be permitted to be excessive”.

This captures well how the goal of improving living and working conditions was largely seen at that time.

To many people the trajectory of economic progress seemed clear, dominated as it was by the industrial technologies of the time.

But policymakers recognised the need to be attentive to managing negative externalities, which were seen mostly in terms of mitigating risks to human health and to the natural environment.

Economic development on its own was not enough, there needed to be a focus on improving conditions for workers across the economy.

In this regard, a long-term perspective and a holistic approach was, and remains essential.

Realising our goals of long-term productivity growth, enhanced human wellbeing, and protecting the biosphere will all rest on the same foundation: the skills and capabilities of our people.

It is only by unlocking the full potential of the human resources at our disposal – the talents and creative potential of each and every European citizen – that we will successfully navigate the period ahead.

That is why I welcome the theme that you have chosen for Foundation Forum 2025 – Europe’s social model as the key to competitive growth.

Eurofound plays a distinctive role in promoting and facilitating knowledge-based dialogue towards stronger social, employment and work-related policies.

Its unique tripartite governance structure – bringing together government, employer, and trade union perspectives – is particularly well suited to shaping consensus on necessary labour market and human capital-building reforms.

This includes providing the empirical foundation for establishing common ground across differing national perspectives and institutional traditions.

The evidence that Eurofound has gathered through its research is reflected in no small way in the European Pillar of Social Rights.

The European Working Conditions Surveys (EWCS), launched in 1990, and the European Quality of Life Surveys (EQLS), launched in 2003, have both proved indispensable in terms of the comparative and longitudinal data they provide on working and living conditions.

Important political initiatives that have been strongly influenced by this research include the gender equality strategy, the work-life balance directive, and the youth guarantee.

Eurofound research also plays a crucial role in strengthening European competitiveness.

You provide the rigorous evidence and empirical insight needed to understand how work, skills and enterprise performance are evolving in the face of “mega-trends” like digitalisation, the green transition, demographic change and shifting patterns of globalisation.

For example, the recent study on SME digitalisation provides valuable evidence on how digital adoption shapes both productivity and job quality.

By tracking developments in working life, measuring skills shortages, and analysing workforce ageing and new forms of work, Eurofound research helps us understand the underlying dynamics of productivity and competitiveness that are reshaping our economies.

In linking these insights to practical policy lessons, Eurofound supports the design of forward-looking measures to ensure that Europe remains an attractive place to live, work and invest.

These will be important issues for Ireland as we assume the rotating Presidency of the Council for the eighth time in the second half of 2026.

As a country we are rightly proud of our contribution to significant EU milestones during our previous presidencies.

These including hosting the first ever European Council meeting in Dublin in 1975, supporting a common approach to German reunification in 1990, and of course, the historic ‘Day of Welcomes’ in May 2004, when the EU gained ten new Member States in its biggest ever enlargement.

We look forward to the immense privilege of working on behalf of the 450 million people that call the EU their home – advancing the common European interest and improving the lives of citizens right across the Union.

The Government has begun consultations with social partners, stakeholders and with other EU Member States to help prepare Ireland’s presidency policy priorities. A public consultation is also open for submissions.

We very much welcome your inputs as we advance work to develop our policy programme and priorities.

Eurofound's role in supporting the rotating Presidency of the Council extends far beyond simple research provision.

The agency’s half-century of institutional memory and its established relationships with social partners and policymakers across all Member States make it an indispensable facilitator of dialogue.

Particularly strong examples under the current Danish Presidency include the research informing September’s “High-level conference on affordable and sustainable housing”; and the high-level conference earlier this month on “Disability: Independent living in tomorrow’s Europe”.

We look forward to the Quality Jobs Roadmap that will be presented by Executive Vice-President Mînzatu and her colleagues in the European Commission before the end of the year – informed by the extensive public consultation and social partner engagement that has already taken place.

The Quality Jobs Roadmap will set an ambitious employment agenda for the EU to remain competitive, innovative and fair, and create a level playing field that prioritises high standards for quality jobs.

These are issues that Ireland will look to advance during our Presidency next year.

Here in Ireland the Government understands the value of social dialogue as a way of maximising common understanding and engagement between all sectors of society.

We have long recognised the importance of such engagement as we tackle the many economic, social and environmental challenges facing the country.

The Labour Employer Economic Forum (LEEF), which I chair, represents one such mechanism for tripartite social dialogue, through which there has been meaningful, systematic, and timely involvement of social partners in the design and implementation of employment and social policies.

The value of this engagement was recently demonstrated with the launch of Ireland’s Action Plan to Promote Collective Bargaining.

This plan aligns with our obligations under the EU Directive on Adequate Minimum Wages, and reflects our belief that collective bargaining, when pursued voluntarily and in good faith, is a strategic tool for building both resilient enterprises and a more equitable society.

Taking inspiration for Eurofound’s lead, our own Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment is co-funding an extensive cross-border labour market survey – the Working in Ireland Survey.

This work is well underway, and we expect results and research outputs soon, which will deepen our understanding of unfolding work patterns and attitudes to work in Ireland at this time.

Let me also take the opportunity to acknowledge the important role of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) as the voice of organised civil society in Europe.

I was delighted to see an Offaly man, Seamus Boland, take on the Presidency of this important institution earlier this year.

We look forward to hosting the annual meeting of the Presidents and Secretaries-General of the European Economic and Social Committee, and of the National Economic and Social Councils during our Presidency.

The world we live in as Europeans is changing – and we must continue to change with it.

This is a challenging time in global affairs, with continuing conflicts across the world, trade disruptions, and pressures on the multilateral rules-based system.

The European Union remains the leading global exemplar of sophisticated multilateralism and collective decision-making at its finest.

As an unsurpassed example of successful cooperation and integration, the European Union has nothing to fear from deep and active engagement with global partners.

Not just those with whom we are generally of like mind, but also those with whom discussions can be more challenging.

Our Treaties make clear that we are engaged in the world not only to promote our values and interests, but also to make a contribution to peace, security and sustainable development; to promote free and fair trade; to work for the eradication of poverty and the protection of human rights; and to ensure the observance and development of international law, including respect for the UN Charter.

Taking such a positive, broad and ambitious approach is, in my view, the only way to ensure that Europe can unlock the full potential of our positive influence on issues of global concern such as climate change.

As I made clear recently, when I delivered Ireland’s National Statement at COP30 in Belém, Brazil, climate change is no longer a distant threat – it is a daily reality and we are all feeling its consequences.

I also expressed my serious concern that the spirit of common purpose is weakening.

There are other threats and crises that can seem more pressing including geopolitical turbulence, economic pressures, conflict and dislocations, but global temperatures are rising, and the clock is ticking. We must act now.

Before I conclude, it is worth recalling the context in which Eurofound was established fifty years ago.

Ireland’s average incomes at the time were roughly two-thirds of the then European average.

The so-called marriage bar requiring women to give up their employment was newly abolished.

Joining the European communities was a catalyst for transformative economic and social changes in the decades since.

Your conference today looks to the future, against the backdrop of fast-evolving digital developments.

Your deliberations will examine important questions around future-proofing work, the impact of AI on the labour market, the future of social investment, and the role of social partners in reclaiming and renewing the European social model.

The path to future prosperity and success will be one that we establish together, underpinned by the quality of our dialogue and engagement.

This is the essence of the democratic ideal at the heart of the European Union. And this democratic ideal – building together our bridge to a better future – is one that Eurofound is uniquely positioned to support.

Please accept my very best wishes for the rest of your proceedings here today.

I have every confidence in the quality of the contribution that you will continue to make.

Go raibh míle maith agaibh.

Ends