ShaPE - The Social Partners as shapers and makers of Social Europe: discovering foundations and futures

The ShaPE project, which was led by Professor Claire Kilpatrick and involved a European research consortium, examined the role social partners have played in treaty-making and law-making for social Europe. The research results of the project’s enquiry into treaty-making for Social Europe and European social dialogue can be found in the EUI Academy of European Law Working Paper : Kilpatrick, Claire, Steiert, Marc, Cellini, Jacopo, The social partners and EU treaty-making : revisiting Maastricht through the archives, EUI, LAW, AEL, Working Paper, 2025/01. ShaPE’s researchers also produced other academic analyses and practice-oriented reports and proposals to update the EU Treaties to enable the social partners to meet future challenges. This new knowledge helps scholars and practitioners to reflect on the roles of trade unions, employer organisations and EU institutions in current large-scale challenges, most notably green, digital and demographic transitions as well as the objectives of EU 'open strategic autonomy’ and resilience.

ShaPE explored Social Europe’s foundations through innovative archival and multidisciplinary analysis of EU Treaty-making and law-making. Together with a public history digital exhibition, the meta-archive available in this collection may serve as a template and anchor for future research on European social dialogue and EU (social) integration more at large. ShaPE further elaborated and disseminated its results with the aim to bridge:
- old and newer Member States;
- old and newer generations of social partner representatives;
- contributions from history, law and industrial relations research and various methods and tools for researching Social Europe; and
- insights from social partners and project partners in academia and the policy community.

ShaPE was funded by the European Union (EU). Views and opinions expressed are however those of the authors only and do not necessarily reflect those of the EU or European Commission. Neither the EU nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.

ShaPE commences its mission by delving into archival analysis to reconstruct the historical roles of social partners, paving the way for adjustments necessary to navigate present and future challenges.

1. Through innovative archival analysis and multidisciplinary research, the project aims to decipher the foundations of Social Europe while reflecting on the evolving roles needed to confront modern challenges such as green and digital transitions, demographic shifts, and the pursuit of EU ‘open strategic autonomy’ and resilience.

2. By dissecting Treaty-making and law-making processes, ShaPE aims to produce a meta-archive and digital exhibition to guide future research and policymaking.

Structured around three work packages, ShaPE brings together academia, social partners, and policymakers to conduct comprehensive research and facilitate information exchange. Through accessing archival sources and conducting multidisciplinary analysis, the project aims to unravel the roles of social partners in Treaty-making during pivotal periods like the Single European Act and the Maastricht Treaty era.

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