Since CEOE established its Competitiveness, Trade and Consumption Commission (C4) less than a year ago, it has as one of its main objectives to serve as a voice to value trade and consumer consumption, in the broadest sense, as strategic sector for our economy and our society.
With 17% of the total Social Security affiliates, it is the first sector of the economy in terms of employment. In addition, it has a more stable employment than the average, given that 77.5% of wage earners in commerce have an indefinite contract, 2.3 percentage points above the average. Likewise, It was one of the sectors with the highest productivity gain between 2000 and 2018. In this period, it increased by 44.3%, more than double the increase registered in all sectors, of 18.6%.
A fundamental part of the action of the C4 is maintain a permanent and fluid dialogue with all the agents that represent consumption and, especially, with consumer associations, since they represent the voice of consumers.
Therefore, it is very important to know the opinion of consumers through the associations that represent them, so that the decisions adopted by this CEOE advisory body have the global vision that society needs. In this way, the importance and contribution of trade can be better translated as a strategic sector for our economy and to meet the needs of consumers.
During the meeting, the role of the Public Administrations as guarantors to develop adequate legislation for this and of the Consumer Associations that watch over and help to protect the consumer when it is not fulfilled or does not adapt to the real situation was revealed. as provided in the General Law itself for the defense of Consumers and Users.
In this context, both the CEOE president and the C4 president conveyed what the Commission was working on, with examples such as the recent position paper on multi-recidivist theft or the economic impact report of the commerce sector; but above all they proposed to look for synergies to share the vision of the consumers and the business world, and to establish communication channels to know the opinion and the positions of the consumers.
For his part, the Secretary General of Health and Consumer Affairs stressed the importance of establishing the Competitiveness, Trade and Consumer Affairs Commission in CEOE, stressing that “the achievement of the welfare of our citizens will only be effective through the cooperation of all market agents: economic operators, market surveillance authorities or organized civil society, each in its sphere of competence, with the mission of saving the risk of fragmented markets and with different levels of protection of consumers and users. The objective is the achievement of a single market and with the same level of protection of citizens ”.
Likewise, the General Director of Consumption highlighted the priority lines of work of the General Directorate of Consumption.
The meeting was attended by the following organizations of the Council of Consumers and Users (CCU), with the presence of its vice president, Félix Martín; the Confederation of Consumers and Users (CECU); the National Civic Union Federation of Consumers and Homemakers of Spain (UNAE); the Association of Users of Banks, Savings Banks and Insurance (ADICAE); the Federation of Independent Users and Consumers (FUCI); the Organization of Consumers and Users (OCU); the General Consumers Association (ASGECO); and the Spanish Confederation of Consumer and User Cooperatives (HISPACOOP). In addition, the Confederation of European Users and Consumers Associations (CAUCE) has participated, as well as the three vice-presidents of the C4: Pedro Campo, Juan Moral and Arturo Molinero.