# CE2004070EN.01022401.xml

| 20.3.2004 | EN | Official Journal of the European Union | CE 70/224 |
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20.3.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

CE 70/224

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(2004/C 70 E/242)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3149/03

by Ilda Figueiredo (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(23 October 2003)

Subject:   Location of the Melka dressmaking company

Subject:

The Swedo-British dressmaking multinational, Melka, is preparing to close down its factory in Sulin, in the Sintra district in Portugal, and sack some 100 workers. The reason appears to be relocation of production to the Asian market, despite good financial health. It should be noted that the company has already closed down two of its four factories, in Evora and Palmela, cutting its workforce from 1 200 to 200.

Can the Commission answer the following:

| 1. | Has Melka been in receipt of Community aid during its time in Portugal? |
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1.

Has Melka been in receipt of Community aid during its time in Portugal?

| 2. | What measures does the Commission intend to take to protect the employment of these workers, given that Portugal today has the fastest growing unemployment rate in the European Union? |
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2.

What measures does the Commission intend to take to protect the employment of these workers, given that Portugal today has the fastest growing unemployment rate in the European Union?

Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(4 December 2003)

(4 December 2003)

| 1. | The Commission hereby informs the Honourable Member that the MELKA company received Community financial assistance during CSF I (1990-1993), in particular EUR 1 095,44 under the European Social Fund in 1991. |
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1.

The Commission hereby informs the Honourable Member that the MELKA company received Community financial assistance during CSF I (1990-1993), in particular EUR 1 095,44 under the European Social Fund in 1991.

| 2. | In recent years, the Union has developed a worker involvement policy for dealing adequately with the social consequences of company restructuring. As a result of that policy, restructuring operations must be preceded by information and consultation of employees' representatives with the aim of avoiding or reducing their social impact, in accordance with the Community Directives on ‘Collective Redundancies’ (1), ‘Transfers of Undertakings’ (2), ‘European Works Councils’ (3) and, from March 2005 onwards, ‘Information and Consultation’ (4).
  As regards the case in question, the Commission has not been informed about the way in which the Melka company intends to deal with the social implications.
  The aforementioned Directives have been transposed in the Member State concerned. It is therefore up to the national authorities to ensure that the workers’ rights laid down in these Directives are respected. Directive 2002/14/EC establishing a general framework for informing and consulting employees must be transposed into national law by 25 March 2005 at the latest.
  The Commission argues that, when restructuring, enterprises should always take into account the effects that those decisions could have on their employees as well as on the social and regional context. This has recently been underlined in the Commission Communication concerning Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) — A business contribution to Sustainable Development (5).
  Furthermore, in January 2002 the Commission invited the European social partners to engage in a dialogue on anticipating and managing change with a view to applying a dynamic approach to the social aspects of corporate restructuring. The social partners have recently sent to the Commission the results of their joint work on this topic. They consist of a set of reference guidelines for companies and their workers in the event of restructuring. The Commission very much hopes that these results, as well as other follow-up actions, will disseminate throughout Europe good practices of corporate restructuring, thus helping companies and their workers adequately to address the social dimension involved. |
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2.

In recent years, the Union has developed a worker involvement policy for dealing adequately with the social consequences of company restructuring. As a result of that policy, restructuring operations must be preceded by information and consultation of employees' representatives with the aim of avoiding or reducing their social impact, in accordance with the Community Directives on ‘Collective Redundancies’ (1), ‘Transfers of Undertakings’ (2), ‘European Works Councils’ (3) and, from March 2005 onwards, ‘Information and Consultation’ (4).

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As regards the case in question, the Commission has not been informed about the way in which the Melka company intends to deal with the social implications.

The aforementioned Directives have been transposed in the Member State concerned. It is therefore up to the national authorities to ensure that the workers’ rights laid down in these Directives are respected. Directive 2002/14/EC establishing a general framework for informing and consulting employees must be transposed into national law by 25 March 2005 at the latest.

The Commission argues that, when restructuring, enterprises should always take into account the effects that those decisions could have on their employees as well as on the social and regional context. This has recently been underlined in the Commission Communication concerning Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) — A business contribution to Sustainable Development (5).

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Furthermore, in January 2002 the Commission invited the European social partners to engage in a dialogue on anticipating and managing change with a view to applying a dynamic approach to the social aspects of corporate restructuring. The social partners have recently sent to the Commission the results of their joint work on this topic. They consist of a set of reference guidelines for companies and their workers in the event of restructuring. The Commission very much hopes that these results, as well as other follow-up actions, will disseminate throughout Europe good practices of corporate restructuring, thus helping companies and their workers adequately to address the social dimension involved.

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(1)  Council Directive 98/59/EC of 20 July 1998 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to collective redundancies, OJ L 225, 12.8.1998 (this Directive consolidates Directives 75/129/EEC and 92/56/EEC).

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(2)  Council Directive 2001/23/EC of 12 March 2001 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the safeguarding of employees’ rights in the event of transfers of undertakings, businesses or parts of undertakings or businesses, OJ L 82, 22.3.2001.

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(3)  Council Directive 94/45/EC of 22 September 1994 on the establishment of a European Works Council or a procedure in Community-scale undertakings and Community-scale groups of undertakings for the purposes of informing and consulting employees, OJ L 254, 30.9.1994.

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(4)  Directive 2002/14/EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2002 establishing a general framework for informing and consulting employees in the Community, OJ L 80, 23.3.2002.

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(5)  COM(2002) 347 final.

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