EN Official Journal of the European Union L 62/4

COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 207/2008

of 5 March 2008

adopting the specifications of the 2009 ad hoc module on the entry of young people into the labour market provided for by Council Regulation (EC) No 577/98

(Text with EEA relevance)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 577/98 of 9 March 1998 on the organisation of a labour force sample survey in the Community (1), and in particular Article 4(2) thereof,

Whereas:

(1) The European Employment guidelines (2) include a number of policy orientations relevant for youth employment, underlining that more efforts should be undertaken to build employment pathways for young people and to reduce youth unemployment. These guidelines also refer to the targets and benchmarks set in the European Employment Strategy since 2003 for the reduction of early school-leaving, the rise in educational attainment levels and the ‘new start’ for unemployed youth.

(2) The education benchmarks are enshrined in the Education and Training 2010 Work Programme which is implemented by Member States and the Commission (3). These benchmarks should help to monitor the rise in educational attainment levels and in lifelong learning and the reduction of number of early school-leavers — policy goals aimed to prepare best the young people to their professional and social life.

(3) The Council Decision 2006/702/EC of 6 October 2006 on Community Strategic Guidelines on Cohesion (4) calls upon Member States to pay special attention to ‘implementing the European Youth Pact, by facilitating access to employment for young people, by easing the transition from education to work, including through career guidance, assistance in completing education, access to appropriate training and apprenticeships’.

(4) Consequently, there is an evident need for a comprehensive and comparable set of data on the entry of the young people into the labour market in order to monitor progress towards the common objectives of the European Employment Strategy and of the Social Inclusion Process.

(5) Commission Regulation (EC) No 384/2005 of 7 March 2005 adopting the programme of ad hoc modules, covering the years 2007 to 2009, for the labour force sample survey provided for by Council Regulation (EC) No 577/98 (5) already included an ad hoc module on the entry of the young people into the labour market. The list of variables for this module should be defined.

(6) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Statistical Programme Committee,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

The detailed list of variables to be collected in 2009 by the ad hoc module on the entry of the young people into the labour market shall be as set out in the Annex.

Article 2

This Regulation shall enter into force on the seventh day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States. Done at Brussels, 5 March 2008. For the Commission Joaquín ALMUNIA Member of the Commission

(1) OJ L 77, 14.3.1998, p. 3. Regulation as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1372/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 315, 3.12.2007, p. 42).

(2) Council Decision of 12 July 2005 on Guidelines for the employment policies of the Member States (2005/600/EC), OJ L 205, 6.8.2005, p. 21.

(3) Council, Detailed work programme on the follow-up of the objectives of Education and training systems in Europe (2002/C 142/01), OJ C 142, 14.6.2002, p. 1.

(4) OJ L 291, 21.10.2006, p. 11.

(5) OJ L 61, 8.3.2005, p. 23. Regulation as amended by Regulation (EC) No 341/2006 (OJ L 55, 25.2.2006, p. 9).