ARCHIVESHISTORIQUES
DELACOMMISSION
COLLECTION RELIEEDES
DOCUMENTS "COM"
COM(80)411
Vol.1980/0145

Disclaimer
Conformément aurèglement(CEE,Euratom)n°354/83duConseildu1erfévrier1983
concernantl'ouvertureaupublicdesarchiveshistoriquesdelaCommunauté économique
européenne etdelaCommunauté européenne del'énergieatomique(JOL43du15.2.1983,
p.1),telquemodifiéparlerèglement(CE,Euratom)n°1700/2003du22septembre2003
(JOL243du27.9.2003,p.1),cedossierestouvertaupublic.Lecaséchéant,lesdocuments
classifiésprésentsdanscedossierontétédéclassifiés conformément àl'article5dudit
règlement.
Inaccordance withCouncilRegulation(EEC,Euratom)No354/83of1February1983
concerningtheopeningtothepublicofthehistoricalarchivesoftheEuropeanEconomic
Community andtheEuropeanAtomicEnergyCommunity (OJL43,15.2.1983,p.1),as
amendedbyRegulation(EC,Euratom)No1700/2003of22September2003(OJL243,
27.9.2003,p.1),thisfileisopentothepublic.Wherenecessary,classifieddocuments inthis
filehavebeendeclassified inconformitywithArticle5oftheaforementioned regulation.
InÜbereinstimmung mitderVerordnung(EWG,Euratom)Nr.354/83desRatesvom1.
Februar1983überdieFreigabederhistorischen ArchivederEuropäischen
Wirtschaftsgemeinschaft undderEuropäischen Atomgemeinschaft (ABI.L43vom15.2.1983,
S.1),geändertdurchdieVerordnung (EG,Euratom)Nr.1700/2003vom22.September2003
(ABI.L243vom27.9.2003,S.1),istdieseDateiderÖffentlichkeit zugänglich.Soweit
erforderlich,wurdendieVerschlusssachen indieserDateiinÜbereinstimmung mitArtikel5
dergenanntenVerordnungfreigegeben.

COMMISSION OPTHEEUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
COM(80)411 final
Brussels/22thJuly1980
Û£'?rSP'HorVA
"'>^'9Jfrai
^Ss<oî
PROPOSAL .FORACOUNCILDECISION CONCERNING
EUROPEAN SOCIALFUNDAIDMEASURES FORPERSONS
EMPLOYEDINTHETEXTILEANDCLOTHING INDUSTRIES,
FORMIGRANTWORKERS,FORPERSONSAFFECTED BY
EMPLOYMENT DIFFICULTIES (YOUNGPEOPLEUNDER25)
ANDFORWOMEN . .
(presented bytheCommissiontotheCouncil)
C0M(80)411final

Explanatory Memorandum
1.Among the Decisions togrant aid from theEuropean Social Fund adopted
under Article 4ofCouncil Decision 71/66/EEC (1),those concerning workers
inthetextile andclothing industries (2),migrant workers (3),young
people under 25 (4)andwomen (5)will expire on31December 1980 .Itis
proposed tothe Council totake aDecision toextend these .>
four decisions .TheDecision ofDecember 1977 concerning women .will .be
extended forthe first time ;theother three ,already extended atdifferent
times inthe past ;will berenewed once more .
(1)Decision amended byDecision 77/801/EEC of20.12.1977 ,OJN°L28of
4.2.1971 ,p.15and L337 of27.12.1977 ,p.8.
(2)Decision 77/802 /EEC of20.12.1977 ,OJL337 of27.1211977 ,
P.10 . , "
(3)Decision 77/803/EEC of20.12.1977 ,0JL337 of27.12.1977 ,p.12.
(4)Decision 75/459/EEC of22.7.1975 ,last amended byDecision 77/802/EEC of
20.12.1977 ,0JL199of30.7.1^75 ,p.36and L374of30.12 .1978,p.37
(5)Decision 77/805/EECof20.12.1977 ,0JL337 of27.12.1977 ,p.14.

-2-
2.EachoftheDecisionsresultingfrommeasuresadoptedinconnectionwith
Communitypoliciesorcommonactionsrelatestoanimbalanceintheem­
ploymentsituationforagivencategoryofworkers.Fromthedetailsgiven
below,itappearsthattheseimbalancespersistandinviewoftheirscale,
Communityactionisjustified.
3.ThecontextinwhichFundassistanceisgiventodaymay,dependingonthe
area,havechangedtoagreaterorlesserextentascomparedwiththe
situationatthetimetheinitialdecisionsgrantingaidwereadopted.
ThisdoesnotmeanthattheDecisionsshouldbeamendedasregardsthe
personstowhomtheyapplyorthetypeofaidgiven:theannualadjustment
oftheFundbudgetandtheguidelinesforthemanagementoftheFundmake
itpossible,intheirapplication,totakeaccountefficiently ofspecific
needs.
4.ItisproposedtoextendtheDecisionsfortwoyears,takingaccountofthe
timellmitimposedfor'thenextreview-oftheSocialFund,
whichmusttakeplaceatthelatestby31December1982.
.TheSocialFundCommittee,whichwasconsultedatitsmeetingon27June
1980,expressedafavorableopinionabouttheproposal.
Personsworkinginthetextileandclothingsectors*
5.Formanyyears,thetextileandclothingindustries havebeenindifficult­
ieslargelyduetotheweakgrowthofinternaldemandandtherapid
industrialisation ofthetextileindustryinthethirdworld.Thesedifficulties
havebeenexacerbated bytheeconomicrecessionandhaveaffectedthe
industry'sabilitytofindthefinancialmeansneededtocarryoutthe
necessarymodernisation .
" I
./.
*Thisfieldofintervention canalsobecoveredbyArticle5,paragraph (c)
("Groupsoffirms:")ofDecision71/66/EEC.However,tounderlinetheimportance
ofaspecificcommonactionforthesector,therenewalofDecision76/206/EEC,
takenundertheheadingofArticle4ofDecision71/66/EEC,isnecessary. j

-S-
6.With respect toemployment ;more pressure hasbeen exerted onthetextile
andclothing industry than onanyother .Thework force hassteadily diminish­
edinalltheCommunity countries .Inthefive years from 1973 to1978
361000jobs were lost intextiles and256000inclothing .
7.Confronted with this situation ,inrecent years the industry hasdeveloped
large-scale programmes toadjust their strategy andmodernize their structures .
Like theMember States ,the Community hasgradually stepped upitsaction
tomeet international competition andmaintain asubstantial employment
level over the long term .This hasbeen done through thenegociation of
multifibre agreements ,the redefinition ofguidelines with respect toaids ,
theintroduction ofthesecond technological research programme andby
facilitating thefinancing ofreorganisation andconversion measures inthe
synthetic fibres sector .The Social Fund hashelped tocushion theeffects
ofthese developments onthe labour force :thevolume ofassistance has
risen from 5to20million EUA per year ,facilitating vocational training
and,incertain cases ,geographiqcal mobility for some 120000 workers .
8.Inview oftheoutlook for thetextile and clothing industries today .Social
Fund assistance should bemaintained and bedeveloped inadirection that takes
account ofthe sectorial objectives defined within theCommunity framework of
assistance tothetextile industry (1).Regardless ofthedegree ofcontrol
over imports that could beobtained through arenewal oftheMultifibre
Agreement ,imports from developing countries and new competition from indus­
trialized third countries will constitute agrowing challenge .Theforeseeable
weak growth infinal demand fortextiles onthe Community market and the
changes inthe terms oftrade that could result from theforthcoming enlarge­
ment oftheCommunity will force the industry into new paths ,asregards both
technology and creativity .
./.
(1)Documents SEC <71)363 final official statements toMember States dated
30.7.1971 ,andtonewMember States dated 19.12.1973 ;additional statement
dated 4.2.1977 (annex IV 382/76ofthe letter dated 4.2.1977 ).

Inthecircumstances ,thetrainingofthelabourforceformoreskilled
workandtheretraining ofworkerstransferred toreplacement jobswill
continuetobeofprimordial importance .Theeffortrequiredwillbeallthe
greatergiventhatthetextileandclothingindustries,atleastincertainof
theiractivities,arestilllargelylabour-intensive ,withagreatmanysmall
medium-sized firmsconcentrated incertainruralareaswhere.economicsurvival
/
injeopardy.
Migrantworkers
9.Since1976,themigrantpopulation intheCommunity hasmoreorless
stabilized at12millionpeople,ofwhom6millionareworkers.Theeffect
ofMemberStates'restriction onimmigration fromthirdcountries andthe
returnofmigrantstotheircountriesoforiginseemstohavebeenoffset
bythearrivalonthelabourmarketofthewivesandchildrenofworkers
alreadyestablished inthehostcountries.Theproportion ofthepopulation
represented bythissecondgenerationissteadilyincreasing;ithasbeen
estimatedthatthemigrantpopulation accountsfor30-40%ofthe
birthrateinindustrial zonesintheCommunity.
10.Inthesameperiod,theMemberStateshaveincreasingly acceptedrespons­
ibilityforintegrating thismigrantpopulation .Particular attention has
been,giventovocationaltrainingor,morefrequently,preparatory training
schemes,socio-cultural integration ofthefamilyandeducationadaptedto
theneedsofmigrantchildren.Manyofthesemeasuresareeligiblefor
SocialFundassistance underArticle4"migrants"oftheDecisiontobe
extended-atleast,withinthelimitsofanextremelysmallbudget
(16million EUAin1978and23millionin1979).

-s-
11.Everywhere,however,needsarefarinexcessofthemeansavailable.
Thissituationwilltendtoworsenintheyearstocome.Thedemo­
graphicfactormentionedabove,theunification ofmigrantfamiliesin
thehostcountries,whichimmigration curbsseemtoencourage,
effortstosetupsomeformoflabourmarketmachineryatCommunity
levelandtheaccessionofGreece,aresomeofthesalientfactorsthat
willinfluencefuturedevelopment .Theyfullyjustifythecontinuation
ofthespecificcommonactionstoimprovesocialandlivingconditions
formigrantworkersandtheirfamiliesinitiatedbytheCouncilin
1974andgiveneffectthroughSocialFundassistanceforthiscategory
ofpersons.
12.ItisexpectedthatFundassistanceinthisareawilltakeoncertain
newforms,inparticularinrelationto:
-thescaleoftherequirements ofvocationalpreparation ofyoungpeople
whoaresecondgeneration"migrants.Sincemostoftheseyoungpeople
leaveschoolwithoutobtainingacertificate oftheendofstudies,and
arenotable,asaconsequence,toproceedtovocationaltraining
• ,
courses,theMemberStatesare,moreandmore,implementing specific
programmesintheirfavourtotrytoremedythissituation;
-increaseduseofaidmeasuresforreturningmigrants.Theincreasingly
frequentinitiatives takenbycertainregionsoforiginsuggestthataction
implemented undertheintegrated programmesasdefinedinDecision77/803/EEC
willarouseincreasinginterest.
-inaddition,therequirements ofadultmigrantsinrelationtolanguage
trainingandvocationalskillsremainimportant,particularly whenaccountis
takenofthethreatofunemployment .

-6-
Youngpeopleunder25
13.Since1975,thedateofthedecisiononactionbytheEuropean
SocialFundforpersonsaffectedbyemploymentdifficulties,thenumber
ofunemployedpersonsunder25hasrisenfrom1.5milliontoover
2million,some35%ofthetotalnumberofjobless.Thesamplelabour
forcesurveymadein1979,stillincomplete,showsthatthesituationvaries
considerably fromoneregiontoanother.
14.Bearinginmindtheeffectsofveryloweconomicgrowthandthemassive
arrivalonthelabourmarketofyoungpeopleunder25,theforecastfor
thenextfewyearsissombre;theunemployment rateforyoungpeople
under25WillrisebyafewpointsinsomeofthelargerCommunity
countriesin1980-81andthesituationwill'notchange-until1985.
Therehasalsobeenaconsiderable increaseinthenumberofyoungpeople
unemployedformorethan6months.Unemployment isatitsworstinthe
20-24agegroup.
•; i i
. ' !,.
15.AtCommunitylevel,theEuropeanSocialFundhashelpedin
copingwiththeyouthemploymentsituation,bysupporting,
particularly inregionswithahighyouthunemployment rate,preparations
trainingandvocationaltrainingmeasure^followedupbyaidstoem­
ployment.In1979,suchassistancerepresented 40%oftheFundbudget
andhelped450000youngpeople.Inanotherconnection,theCommunity
hassupportedtheimprovement oftrainingfacilitiesforyoungpeople.
Inthiscontext,theCouncilrecommended thedevelopment oftraining
linkedwithworkexperience,inotherwords,theinclusioninthe

-7-
transitiontoworkingLifeofperiodscombiningtrainingandon-
the-'jobexperienced ).TheSocialFundcanassisttheimplementation
ofexperimental projectsinvolvingtraining/workexperience .
16.Theimpactofrecentactionscannotyetbeassessed;Fundassistance
forrecruitment andtemporary employment schemesdidnotcomeinto
I
effectuntilDecember1978,whileothermeasures(Training/workex­
perienceschemes)areonthepointofbeinglaunched.Areporton
experience gainedintheapplication ofaidsforyoungpeoplebased
oninformation providedbytheMemberStatesisbeingpreparedand
willbesubmittedtotheCouncilbefore 1October1980.
Inviewofthediscouraging outlookforyouthemployment,itis
likelythateffortstofacilitatetheiraccesstothelabourmarket
willbestillfurtherreinforced intheMemberStates.Common
actionforyoungpeopleunderArticle4ofDecision 71/66/EECshould
beextendedsothatalltheseeffortscancontinuetobesupported
bysubstantial contributions fromtheSocialFund.
(1)SeeCouncilResolutionof18December1979,OJC1of3.1.1980,p.1.

Womenover25
17.Thesituationofwomenonthelabourmarketcontinuesto§ive
causeforseriousconcern:theemploymentrateforwomenhasrisen
slightly-to36.2%in1978-whileatthesametimetheirshare
intotalregistered unemployment hasrisenfrom38.7'/.in1976to
42.8%in1978,and44.8%in1979.
Thisdivergenceissignificant;thesituationofwomen,alreadyworse
thanthatofmen,hasbeenfurtheraggravated bythecrisis.The
vulnerability ofwomencanlargelybeascribedtothesensitivity of
thesectorswheretheyareverynumerous'(footwear,textiles-clothing ,
skinandhides,certainjobsinthetertiarysector),thecontinuing
inadequacyoftheirqualifications ,feweryearsofserviceintheirfirmand
thefactthatthey>aremainlyemployedatalow>levelofqualification
orunderfixedtermcontractsorforpart-timejobssolelyperformed
bywomen.Inaddition,womenremainunemployedforlongerthanmen.
18.Inviewofthesituation,theCommunityhascontinueditseffortsto
bringaboutequalitybetweenmenandwomeninemployment.Onthe
legalplane,ithassupplemented existingprovisions onequalityas
regardsremuneration andaccesstoemploymentandvocationaltraining
(1).Inaddition,theCommission hassupportedattemptstobreakdown
thecompartmentalization ofthelabourmarketwithaviewtomaking
roomforwomeninbetterconditions :forexample,ithasproposeda
programmetopromoteequalopportunityforgirlsinsecondary
educationandhasassociateditselfwiththeprogrammetocompileand
disseminate information onpioneeringmeasuresbytheMemberStatesin
respectofvocationaltrainingforwomeninitiatedbytheEuropean
CentrefortheDevelopment ofVocationalTraining(CEDEFOP).
• m/m
(1)SeeCouncilDirective79/7of19.12.1978 onequaltreatmentfor
menandwomeninmattersofsocialsecurity,OJL6of10.1.1979,p.24.

V*"
19.ThespecificactionbytheSocialFundonbehalfofwomenwithno
skillsorwithinsufficient ski11,wishingtoworkagainaftera
breakorlossofjoborseekingfirstemployment,wasgivensubstance
bythefirstappropriation of8millionEUAin1978,raisedto
18millionin1979and20million(proposai)in1980.
Some16000womenbenefitedfromFundassistancein1979comparedto12000
inthepreviousyear,withoutcountingthosewhohavebenefittedfromaid
fromtheSocialFundinotherfieldsofintervention .
TheCommission hasexpresseditspreferenceforprogrammes aimedat
wideningthevocationalopportunities forwomenwhilstre-affirming
thatthepriorityobjectiveofthisfieldofintervention isto
promoteamixofjobsandtoimprovethepossibilities forwomenin
thelabourmarket.
Consequently,priorityisgiventonontraditionaltrainingprogrammes,
gearedtowardsnewskillsoraimedattrainingwomenintheseskills
orfunctionsinwhichtheyhavebeentraditionally under-represented .
20.Itcannotbedeniedthatthedemandforworkbywomenisanirreversible
trenddespitetheunfavourable generalcontext.Itisimportantthat
theCommunityshouldrespondtothisdemandbypursuingthecommunity
SocialFundaction,decidedonin1977,underwhichvocationaltraining
shouldbeaccompanied bysupplementary measurestoovercomethespecific
obstaclestothe''integration orre-integration ofwomeninworking
life.

ProposalforaCouncilDecisionconcerningEuropeanSocialFund
aidmeasuresforpersonsemployedinthetextileandclothing
industries,migrantworkers,personsaffectedbyemployment
difficulties (youngpeople <under25)andwomen.
/
TheCounciloftheEuropeanCommunities,
HavingregardtotheTreatyestablishing theEuropeanEconomicCommunity,
HavingrecprdtotheCouncilDecision71/66/EECof1February1971
concerningthereformoftheEuropeanSocialFund(1)amendedby
Decision77/801/EEC(2)andinparticularArticle4ofthatDecision,
)
HavingregardtotheproposalfromtheCommission,
HavingregardtotheopinionoftheEuropeanParliament (3)
HavingregardtotheopinionoftheEconomicand.SocialCommittee (4),
!
Whereas:
-theCouncilDecision76/206/EECof9February1976concerning
EuropeanSocialFundaidforpeopleemployedinthetextileand
clothingindustries (5),lastamendedbytheDecision77/802/EEC(6),
(1)OJ.N°L28dated4.2.1971,p.15
(2)OJ.N°L337dated27.12.1977,p.8
(3)0J.
(4)0J.
(5)OJ.N°L39dated14.2.1976,p.39
(6)OJ.N°L337dated27.12.1977,p.10

\
\
-2-
ν
Ν
Y
-CouncilDecision77/805/Et\of20December1977concerning European
SocialFundaidformigrant\^\ers(7)
\ •.
-CounciIDecision75/459/EECof22u^y1975concerning European
%
SocialFundaidforpeopleaffected\employmentdifficulties (8),
lastamendedbyDecision78/1036/EEC\)anc|
\
-CouncilDecision77/804/EECof20Decembe\i977 concerning
EuropeanSocialFundaidforwomen(10)\
\\
expiringon31December1980;
\\\
•'Weastheimbalanceofemployneritwithintr.aCommunity h^smade
appart^;thenecessitytofollowjointspecificactionforpeop'e
employed>\t^etextileandclothingsectors,migr;>tworkersand
theirfamilies,v«,rsonsaffectedbyemploymentdiffi\jLties(young
peopleunder25)ar;«vv0men,x •
DECIDED v
■NY. \Article 1 V,\
1.Inarticle5ofDecision 75/459/EECthedate1January19t;
isreplacedby1January1^3
2.Inarticle3ofDecisionN°\/206/EECthedate1January1981
isreplacedby1January1983\
x
3.Inarticle4line2oftheDecis\.n77/803/EECthedate'
1January1981isreplacedby1j\uary1983
4.Inarticle3line2oftheDecision\x77/804/EECthedate
1January1981isreplacedby1Janu,\y1983.
\
\
\
(7)OJ.N°L337dated27.12.1977,p.12\
(8)OJ.N°L199dated30.7.1975,p.36\
(9)0J.N°L374dated30.12.1978,p.37
(10)0J.N°L337dated27.12.1977,p.14\\\\\

-3-
Article2
ThisDecisionistobepublishedintheOfficialJournalof
theEuropeanCommunities andshallenterintoforceon1January1981
DoneatBrussels
FortheCouncil