Presentation of the activities for 2025 and those planned for 2026

Good morning again to all those attending this plenary session.

1. In the roadmap I presented to the Executive Committee at the first meeting after my appointment as President of the Council on March 19, I proposed, firstly, to continue all the activities initiated during the term of the previous President, Mr. Francesc Castellana i Aregall, and secondly, the preparation of two reports: one on the size of companies in Barcelona and the metropolitan region and their impact by sector, and another on the environmental obligations of metropolitan businesses under the new EU regulations on sustainability and the environment.

2. During 2025, the CESB presented the following work:

• January: internal session before the Economy and Finance Committee to present the study on “The Minimum Reference Wage.”

• February: distribution to organizations and presentation to the executive committee of the study on “The Suitability of Training Offerings to the Productive Fabric of the Barcelona Metropolitan Region.”

• May: public presentation of the study on “The Housing Stock in Barcelona and the Barcelona Metropolitan Region.”

• June: public presentation of the study on “The Situation of Women in the Barcelona Labor Market.”

• September: presentation of the 2024 Socioeconomic Report of Barcelona at the CESB Plenary Session.

• November: presentation of the study on “Migration Flows: Demographic Analysis of the Territorial Settlement Processes of the Population of Barcelona.”

• December: presentation of the opinions on the 2026 General Budget and Tax Ordinances of the Barcelona City Council.

3. Collaboration Agreements:

- On July 22, a collaboration agreement was formalized between the Department of Business and Labor, the Public Employment Service, the Consortium for Continuing Education in Catalonia, and the Barcelona Economic Council for the transfer of information to the Council for the analysis of active employment policies in Barcelona and the Barcelona Metropolitan Area (RMB).

- The collaboration agreement between the Barcelona Economic and Social Council and the Department of Business and Labor of the Government of Catalonia for the promotion and strengthening of social dialogue, with special attention to the local level, is in its final stages of formalization. 

4. Works completed by CESB and pending presentation:

• January 2026: Study on “Public Investment in Active Employment Policies in Barcelona and the RMB.”

• Study on “The Right to Training for Workers and its Strategic Importance for Adapting to the Challenges Arising from the Digital and Green Transformation of the Labor Market.” First quarter of 2026.

5. Works in progress:

• Study of the characteristics of business production and organizational structures in Barcelona and the RMB. Study of the business fabric.

• Study on the social and solidarity economy and its impact in Barcelona and the RMB, and its importance in different business areas and sectors of activity, as well as on the working conditions of the workers employed by it.

• Study of social clauses in public procurement by the Barcelona City Council and their impact on the labour market.

• Opinions on the studies on “unemployment of young people without compulsory training in Barcelona and the RMB” and on “Labor mobility to the RMB”.

6. Lines of work for 2026 and very possibly subsequent years:

- The obligations of metropolitan businesses regarding environmental matters based on the new EU regulations on sustainability and the environment.

This could not be initiated in 2025.

- Transformation of the labour market and the impact of digitalization and automation on employment and society. Technological infrastructure and competitiveness in the metropolitan economic system.

- Analysis of urban experiences in European cities and their economic and social development, which may be useful for Barcelona.

- Bipartite and tripartite social dialogue in Barcelona and the RMB. Institutional and business spheres.

- Policies for training, attracting, and retaining talent in metropolitan companies.

- Analysis of social and economic inequalities in the Metropolitan Region.

- The application of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the institutional and business spheres of the metropolitan system.

- Employment policies at the local level. Possibilities and limitations for their development.

7. International Projection

- On February 5, 2025, the CESB was admitted as a member of the United Nations Economic and Social Council and the European Economic and Social Committee. We are also affiliated with the Global Coalition for Social Justice and the International Labour Organization.

- We have worked, and continue to work, to ensure trilingual content on our website and in all our publications and studies.

- We have already published two issues of the International Bulletin, with information on the activities of the European Economic and Social Committee, EU institutions, the UN, and the ILO.

8. Final Reflections

The CESB has no limits to its activity on all economic and social issues that may be of interest to the Barcelona City Council, the trade union and business organizations represented on the Executive Committee, the municipal political groups, and the other CESB entities. We are open, to the best of our ability, to listening to the voices and interests of all of them.

Therefore, I believe it is very important to ask, if I may say so very clearly, that the CESB be used more. It is a space for social dialogue of paramount importance where, in addition to preparing studies, reports, opinions, and recommendations, we can speak and debate calmly and seriously about everything that may affect the economic and social life of our city.

And why not contribute our work to the initiatives recently undertaken by the Generalitat within the framework of the Strategy for attracting, capturing, and retaining investment in Catalonia 2026-2030?

And I would also like to emphasize that we will continue working to improve the dissemination of all reports and activities carried out, and that we will continue to insist on having the necessary resources to develop the Work Plan for each year. Finally, a suggestion beyond our regular activities for everyone present: watch the series “City of Shadows,” based on the novel “Gaudí’s Executioner” by Aro Sáinz de la Maza. Besides being an excellent thriller, it's a superb showcase of our city and its most emblematic cultural sites linked to Gaudí's work.

And as always, the Council team is at your service.

Thank you very much,

Eduardo Rojo Torrecilla

President of CESB