Implementing the EU anti-discrimination directives in Greece: Between "marketization" and social exclusion. MMO Working Paper No. 8, Jan. 2006

Baldwin-Edwards, Martin. (2006) Implementing the EU anti-discrimination directives in Greece: Between "marketization" and social exclusion. MMO Working Paper No. 8, Jan. 2006. [Working Paper] (Unpublished)

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Abstract

The two European Union anti-discrimination directives passed in 2000 have started to be implemented across the EU. These directives extend the previous ‘hard’ EC anti-discrimination law from its previous narrow focus on gender to cover discrimination in employment on a variety of grounds, and even more widely prohibiting discrimination on the grounds of racial or ethnic origin in almost all areas of socio-economic relations. It is argued here, that this policy shift marks a new era in the relationship between the individual and the Union. For the first time, the Union has addressed racial discrimination and its own previous exclusionary policies, as well as establishing formal procedures to deal with discrimination in employment on the grounds of race, ethnic origin, religion, religious beliefs, disability, age and sexual orientation. Although presented simply as rights, these rights constitute the germ of a European ‘social citizenship’ – perhaps analogous to the emergence of welfare states in post-war Europe. In addition, the Charter of Fundamental Rights is clearly a political declaration of such social citizenship, although never actually labelled as such. In this paper, I try to unravel the meaning of the new laws for Greece as well as for the Balkans more generally. Implicit in this approach is the idea that a policy forged by northern European advanced capitalist economies may well not be appropriate for some less developed countries. In fact, even different levels of economic development may not be the primary issue: types of socio-economic development could well be more crucial. I begin with a brief exposition of the EU directives themselves, and then go on to look at the apparent origins of anti-discrimination measures at the European national level. The subsequent section examines the linkage between economic development, socio-economic structures, labour force participation and the evolution of anti-discrimination measures across the wider Europe. Finally, the concluding section assesses the likely meaning for Greece and other Balkan countries in dealing with the new anti-discrimination requirements.

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