Workers made redundant as a result of the financial crisis or globalisation are entitled to faster aid payments, the European Parliament decided today.
In a decision with positive implications for workers such as those in Waterford Crystal, MEPs in Strasbourg voted in support of financial aid under the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF) to be made available more speedily.
The problems and delays in securing payments under the EGF were highlighted in a detailed report compiled by Portuguese MEP, Miguel Portas.
Mr Portas said there was a trend of governments cutting social expenditures and the European Parliament's vote aimed to counter that for those who lost their jobs due to globalisation or the financial crisis.
"We would like not only to improve the regulation, but also to sustain the EGF, preferably by transferring it into a permanent fund," he said. "I hope we will be able to convince the Member States to continue the EGF for the period 2013-2020."
During the debate, MEPs said the duration of EGF application procedures could be further reduced and further information was needed concerning how the programme works in practice.
MEPs asked the European Commission to report regularly on the programme's implementation and to submit its mid-term review of the programme sooner than initially agreed, preferably by end of June 2011.
MEPs also urged further simplification of the EGF application procedure to remedy the most obvious shortcomings and welcomed the proposed introduction of a separate heading for the EGF in the 2011 budget
Speaking during the debate, Fine Gael MEP Seán Kelly said the implementation of the EGF had let people down somewhat in terms of their expectations. This was partly due to State agencies and partly due to inflexibility in implementation of the fund, he said.
The European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF) has been in operation since 2007. In May 2009, the European Parliament voted to change the rules so as to make the aid available to a larger group of people who had lost their jobs, specifically those who lost their jobs due to the finanical crisis.
Measures financed by the fund include assistance in seeking a job, occupational guidance, tailor-made training and re-training and measures to assist disadvantaged or older workers to remain in or return to the labour market.
