During the meeting, ETUC General Secretary Esther Lynch and members of the ETUC Executive Committee discussed the Digital Euro, the need for the ECB to establish a profits monitor, and the importance of measures to address rising costs for necessities such as housing, food and energy.

IndustriAll Europe General Secretary Judith Kirton-Darling raised the growing concerns of industrial workers about the economic outlook and the continuing deindustrialisation crisis affecting Europe.

She stressed that higher interest rates would be the wrong response to the current challenges facing Europe’s economy. The energy shocks experienced in recent years have been driven by structural weaknesses, including Europe’s dependence on imported energy and flaws in energy markets, while evidence has shown that post-pandemic inflation was driven primarily by profits rather than wages.

Against a backdrop of continuing restructuring announcements and job losses across European industry, industriAll Europe warned that tighter monetary policy risks further weakening demand and undermining the investments needed to secure Europe’s industrial future. IndustriAll Europe also highlighted the European Commission’s warning that up to 1.3 million industrial jobs could be at risk and stressed that workers should not bear the cost of economic developments beyond their control.

Speaking after the meeting, Judith Kirton-Darling said:

“Europe’s industrial workers have already paid a heavy price for the economic crises of recent years. We must not repeat the mistakes of the past. Higher interest rates will not solve Europe’s structural problems, but they risk deepening deindustrialisation, undermining investment and putting even more jobs at risk.”

“The ECB has an important responsibility towards Europe’s workers and industrial communities. What Europe needs now are policies that support investment, quality jobs and industrial activity, not measures that further squeeze workers and weaken demand.”