The European Commission presented an initiative on mental health — in response to the conclusions of the Conference on the Future of Europe — with adoption planned for the second quarter of 2023 and rumors in Brussels have it that a directive is on the way.
As a first step, the Commission invited social partners to find commonly agreed solutions to address the challenges raised by telework, digitalization and the right to disconnect; social partners are now reviewing the agreement on telework from 2002. Once the agreement is updated, it will be put forward for an adoption. France was the first EU member country that recognized the right to disconnect in 2017; Spain, Portugal and Luxembourg have also implemented certain safeguards. The European Parliament has called on the Commission to prepare a directive that would implement an EU-wide right to disconnect.
Mental health is a major societal challenge facing the EU. It deeply affects the health and well-being of individuals and has profound implications for the economy and social cohesion. This initiative the Commission is preparing will set out:
- how action at EU level can help promote good mental health and prevent, mitigate and respond to mental health challenges
- how mental health considerations should be factored into a wide variety of resilient EU and national policies for the benefit of people across the EU.
As usual, we will be following closely the developments of this new initiative and inform you accordingly.
