P9_TA(2021)0492

Mobilisation of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund: application EGF/2021/002 IT/Air Italy — Italy

European Parliament resolution of 14 December 2021 on the proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on the mobilisation of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund for Displaced Workers following an application from Italy — EGF/2021/002 IT/Air Italy (COM(2021)0936 — C9-0400/2021 — 2021/0338(BUD))

(2022/C 251/26)

The European Parliament,

— having regard to the Commission proposal to the European Parliament and the Council (COM(2021)0936– C9-0400/2021),

— having regard to Regulation (EU) 2021/691 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 April 2021 on the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund for Displaced Workers (EGF) and repealing Regulation (EU) No 1309/2013 (1) (‘EGF Regulation’),

— having regard to Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2093 of 17 December 2020 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2021-2027 (2), and in particular Article 8 thereof,

— having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 16 December 2020 between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the Commission on budgetary discipline, on cooperation in budgetary matters and on sound financial management as well as on new own resources, including a roadmap towards the introduction of new own resources (3), and in particular point 9 thereof,

— having regard to the letter of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs,

— having regard to the letter of the Committee on Regional Development,

— having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgets (A9-0346/2021),

A. whereas the Union has set up legislative and budgetary instruments to provide additional support to workers who are suffering from the consequences of globalisation and of technological and environmental changes, such as changes in world trade patterns, trade disputes, significant changes in the trade relations of the Union or the composition of the internal market and financial or economic crises, as well as the transition to a low-carbon economy, or as a consequence of digitisation or automation;

B. whereas on 15 July 2021 Italy submitted application EGF/2021/002 IT/Air Italy for a financial contribution from the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF), following the displacement of 466 workers in the company Air Italy SpA in the economic sector classified under the NACE Revision 2 Division 51 (Air transport), in the NUTS 2 region of Sardegna (ITG2) in Italy, within a reference period for the application from 1 September 2020 to 1 January 2021;

C. whereas the application relates to 466 displaced workers whose activity has ceased during the reference period in the company Air Italy SpA, while 145 workers were displaced before or after the reference period as a consequence of the same events that triggered the cessations of activity of the displaced workers during the reference period and will thus also be considered eligible beneficiaries;

D. whereas the application is based on the intervention criteria of Article 4(2), point (a), of the EGF Regulation, which requires the cessation of activity of at least 200 displaced workers over a reference period of four months in an enterprise in a Member State;

E. whereas Air Italy had faced various difficulties (4) since its inception in 2018 from the merger of Meridiana Fly and Air Italy, leading from losses of EUR 160 million in 2018 to losses of EUR 230 million in 2019;

F. whereas on 11 February 2020, Air Italy’s shareholders approved a voluntary liquidation and the cancellation of all operations as from 25 February 2020;

G. whereas the collective redundancy procedure for the 1 453 employees of Air Italy was put on hold until September 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic (5);

H. whereas the EGF shall not exceed a maximum annual amount of EUR 186 million (in 2018 prices), as laid down in Article 8 of Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2093 of 17 December 2020 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2021 to 2027 (6);

1. Agrees with the Commission that the conditions set out in Article 4(2), point (a), of the EGF Regulation are met and that Italy is entitled to a financial contribution of EUR 3 874 640 under that Regulation, which represents 85 % of the total cost of EUR 4 558 400, comprising expenditure for personalised services of EUR 4 376 000 and expenditure for implementing the EGF ( 7 ) of EUR 182 400;

2. Notes that the Italian authorities submitted the application on 15 July 2021, and that the Commission finalised its assessment on 28 October 2021 and notified it to Parliament on the same day;

3. Notes that the total number of eligible and targeted beneficiaries is 611 and points out that almost half of the eligible persons are women (48,11 %);

4. Recalls that the social impacts of the redundancies are expected to be considerable for the Sardinian economy, which was also significantly affected by the COVID-19 crisis, and where employment numbers fell by 4,6 % in 2020 compared to a decrease of 2,0 % in Italy as a whole ( 8 ) ; further notes that another ongoing EGF application concerns displacements in Porto Canale in Sardegna;

5. Stresses that because of the pandemic, the number of Sardinian households without labour income increased up to 16,5 % in 2020 (+3,5 pp from 2019);

6. Points out that most of the displaced workers have an upper secondary or post-secondary education (93,3 %) and have between 30 and 54 years (69,23 %); notes that the second largest age group is over 54 years (30,77 %), which may face additional challenges in re-integrating into the labour market;

7. Notes that Italy started providing personalised services to the targeted beneficiaries on 4 November 2020 and that the period of eligibility for a financial contribution from the EGF will therefore be from 4 November 2020 until 24 months after the date of the entry into force of the financing decision;

8. Recalls that personalised services to be provided to the workers consist of the following actions: general information and vocational guidance, job search assistance, training, tutoring for business creation, financial contribution to business startup, as well as incentives and contribution to specific costs;

9. Welcomes the possibility for special time-limited measures within the coordinated package including, inter alia, to pay childcare allowances, as provided in Article 7(2), point (b), of the EGF Regulation in order to facilitate job seekers’ participation in the activities proposed and their transition to work;

10. Considers it to be a social responsibility of the European Union to provide displaced workers with the necessary qualifications for the ecological and just transformation in line with the European Green Deal, especially for employees with qualifications relevant for sectors that are currently highly carbon intensive; welcomes, therefore, that training will focus on the green economy, blue economy, personal services, health and social services, promotion of cultural heritage and cultural activities;

11. Notes that Italy started incurring administrative expenditure to implement the EGF on 4 November 2020 and that expenditure on preparatory, management, information and publicity, control and reporting activities will therefore be eligible for a financial contribution from the EGF from 4 November 2020 until 31 months after the date of the entry into force of the financing decision;

12. Welcomes that the measures were planned to be in line with the Italian National Strategy for Sustainable Development (SNSvS) and that the co-ordinated package of personalised services was discussed between ASPAL, the regional public employment services, the Regione Sardegna and the relevant trade unions; notes that the social partners were fully involved in planning the measures;

13. Stresses that the Italian authorities have confirmed that the eligible actions do not receive assistance from other Union funds or financial instruments;

14. Reiterates that assistance from the EGF must not replace actions which are the responsibility of companies, by virtue of national law or collective agreements, or any allowances or rights of the recipients of the EGF allocation to ensure full additionality of the allocation;

15. Notes that all the procedural requirements were met;

16. Approves the decision annexed to this resolution;

17. Instructs its President to sign the decision with the President of the Council and arrange for its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union ;

18. Instructs its President to forward this resolution, including its annex, to the Council and the Commission;

(1) OJ L 153, 3.5.2021, p. 48.

(2) OJ L 433 I, 22.12.2020, p. 11.

(3) OJ L 433 I, 22.12.2020, p. 28.

(4) Such as disputes with Alitalia over routes between mainland Italy and Sardinia: www.quifinanza.it/soldi/air-italy; the opposition of three American carriers to the increase of Air Italy’s nonstop flights between the U.S. and Europe: https://www.politico.com/f/?id=0000016a-26c5-d80c-a7ea-7fc56fae0000; or the grounding of three new Boeing 737 Max due to security flaws: www.quifinanza.it/soldi/air-italy.

(5) Decreto Legge 17 marzo 2020, n.18. art. 46.

(6) OJ L 433 I, 22.12.2020, p. 11.

(7) In accordance with Article 7(5) of the EGF Regulation.

(8) Banca d’Italia. L'economia della Sardegna. Rapporto annuale, giugno 2021.