Classes and Nations: Which Articulation at the European Level?

This article starts with the observation that the “construction of the classes” at the European level remains weak, while the inequalities between social groups remain strong and persistent. After presenting some of the key theoretical issues of a class analysis at the European level and building upon the data of the large European surveys ECHP and EU-SILC, the article focuses on the respective weight of class-and national differences in determining the socioeconomic hardships and on its evolution. The analysis concludes that class inequalities remain extremely important and that they have remained stable over time when they have not become more pronounced, depending on the country under scrutiny. The article also emphasizes that class differences are less intense than national differences, with which they interact strongly. This suggests that the question of class can be formulated at the European level through a systematic correlation with the question of inequalities between countries.