The European Parliament adopted a resolution tabled by the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs on the future of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund, which was established by Regulation (EC) No 1927/2006 and set up with the aim of demonstrating the EU's solidarity with workers affected by mass redundancies resulting from globalisation, extended in 2009 to cover dismissals caused by the financial and economic crisis as well. Members are pleased that the EGF was able to support about 10% of all dismissed workers in the EU during the 2009-2010 period, and note that 40% of workers targeted by the EGF in 2009 were successfully reintegrated into the labour market despite the negative effects of the financial and economic crisis on labour markets.
Parliament notes that the Commission is proposing to extend this temporary derogation until the end of 2013, and it supports the Commission's proposal to continue the EGF, and asks for urgent clarification as to the situation with regard to farmers and those on fixed-term contracts. Members take the view that the greatest added value a renewed EGF could provide would be effective support for the training and retraining of workers with a view to reintegrating them into employment in difficult labour market situations resulting from unforeseen restructuring of companies or sectors which creates or aggravates skills mismatches. Such an instrument would provide a valuable complement to those measures financed by the ESF which are aimed predominantly at adapting to global challenges with a view to sustainable economic growth. They also stress that on the one hand this instrument would ensure EU solidarity with workers adversely affected by restructuring, and that on the other hand all Member States could benefit from its timely, targeted and tailored intervention in order to prevent long-term unemployment.
Noting that the lengthy procedure for mobilising the EGF has been identified as a major shortcoming of the relevant regulation, Parliament is of the opinion that introducing faster intervention procedures so as to enable the EGF to be mobilised more efficiently and quickly is the main challenge for the future. It takes into account the Commission's efforts to present viable solutions with a view to reducing the length of the application and mobilisation procedure to a maximum of six months but notes the lack of progress made in the four years in which the EGF has been operational, and urges Member States to speed up its operation by front-loading the measures within its scope without disadvantaging those Member States facing budgetary difficulties.
Parliament goes on to call on the Commission to:
Lastly, Parliament stresses that the social partners and local authorities should be heavily involved in the application procedure and, above all, the design of the coordinated package of measures. The social partners should participate in monitoring implementation and evaluating the outcomes for workers.