Building Economic Democracy in Europe

Policy Study

The current economic system has concentrated power in the hands of the few and created record inequality, stagnation and ecological damage. This brings into question the fundamentals of our economic system. The way to transform the economy in a way that is fair and sustainable is through economic democracy. 

This policy study is part of the ongoing FEPS – Open Society Foundations (OSF) project and aims to contribute to a debate about the ways to advance economic democracy in Europe. It argues that we need to rethink our approach to economic democracy, moving beyond older traditions centred upon the workplace and collective bargaining to consider how we can both empower individuals and increase democratic and deliberative decision-making across the economy as a whole. 

Based on interviews with changemakers, the study explores experiences of democratic transformation in public finances, employment and public services domains to understand the driving factors and successful strategies that result in the transfer of economic power to people. It also investigates some of the obstacles towards more systematic transformative change in the direction of economic democracy and considers what policies are required to resolve them.

This policy study was launched on 3 July 2024, hosted by the European Economic and Social Committee.