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Brussels – The Socialists and Democrats (S&D) Group in the European Parliament is
stepping up political pressure for an ambitious European framework for
quality jobs. At the “Quality Jobs for All” conference in Brussels on 14
October, the impact of artificial intelligence, digital surveillance,
precarious employment conditions and growing work-related stress was at
the centre of the debate. The conference took place as the European
Commission is expected to present its proposal for a Quality Jobs Act in
December 2026. Quality Jobs for All is one of the S&D Group’s six
flagship political priorities, set out under their Strategic Turn
initiative in recent months.
Jobs and the labour markets are changing rapidly, with automation and
artificial intelligence able to fundamentally change professions and
their inherent activities. At the same time, concerns are growing about
job cuts, wage pressure, social exclusion and the loss of workers’
voices at work.
Experts at the conference have warned of concrete risks linked to
AI-based labour management. These include higher intensity of work,
increased performance pressure, reduced autonomy, opaque employment
decisions, surveillance, and risks to workers’ mental and physical
health. “The change driven by AI and algorithmic management presents
both productivity opportunities and risks to worker autonomy, wellbeing
and fundamental rights”, a 2025 study released by the European
Parliamentary Research Service warned. The conference’s speakers
demanded therefore the involvement of workers and their representatives
in the introduction of such systems and have effective rights to
information, oversight and appeal, the conference’s speakers demanded.
“For us, S&Ds, technology must serve people. It must improve the quality
of work. It must strengthen workers' rights”, S&D vice
president Gaby Bischoff said. People in the labour force must not become
mere objects of automated decision-making. Algorithms must not be
allowed to decide who loses their job.
From the S&D Group’s perspective, a European Quality Jobs Act must
therefore secure concrete and enforceable rights. These include:
“We have workers’ backs, now and into the future.”
Under this guiding principle, the conference put the perspectives of
workers at the centre.
The S&D Group calls on the European Commission not to stop at voluntary
guidelines in the announced legislative framework. What is needed are
minimum standards that apply and are be effectively enforced in all
Member States. Guidance can be useful, Commission Vice President Roxana
Minzatu pointed out, but “rules are how we make sure that these rights
remain a reality.”
Gaby Bischoff, S&D vice-president for Social Europe says about AI
technology: “It has to be regulated to benefit humans and
improve our living and working conditions. The enormous productivity
gains that artificial intelligence and robotics may generate must be
redistributed to society as a whole, not only accumulated in the hands
of a few Big Tech owners.”
The “Quality Jobs for All” conference took place at the European
Parliament in Brussels on 14 October. The S&D Group called on the
European Commission, Member States, employers and social partners to
establish binding rules now for safe, fair and quality jobs.
Press contact
James Kemmy
Political Adviser and Interim Press Officer (EMPL/ECON/FISC)
Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament
Phone: +32 2 2830 667
Email: [email protected]
Distributed by Pressat