EU political structuring during the ‘social turn’ (2014–2024)

The article examines the political underpinnings of the European Union’s “social turn” between 2014 and 2024. Taking stock of the literature indicating the importance of transnational coalitions of interest mobilising for a stronger Social Europe, the article builds on the concept of “political structuring” developed by state formation theories and argues that the increase in social policy production was accompanied by the development of new formal and informal channels, arenas and practices linking organised labour, political parties and EU institutions. These structures fostered both bottom-up mobilisation by trade unions and top-down initiatives by the Commission and the Parliament, enabling negotiation, coalition-building and joint policy production. Drawing on a qualitative assessment of EU policy documents, media outlets and elite interviews, the analysis identifies processes of vertical structuring between EU institutions and trade unions and between EU-level and national unions, as well as horizontal structuring between trade unions and political parties. The findings indicate that the social turn, alongside a phase of significant policy innovation, also coincided with a process of polity consolidation.