NoC79/12 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities 30.3.92
moneyfromthe'counterpartfund'willonlybeavail­
ableaftersometime(whichmaybeconsiderable).
Giventheinflationarytrend,thismeansthatneedy
sectionsofthepopulationwillonlybeabletobuy
goods(assumingthatsuchgoodsareavailable)atmark­
edlyhigherprices.alreadyagreedbytheCommunity .Onceguarantees
havebeengivenbytheCommonwealth ofIndependent
States,thefirsttrancheofECU500millionshouldbe
madeavailableassoonaspossible.
4.2.Finally,theCommitteewouldrefertothepro­
posalmadeinitsopinionontherecentlyinitialled
EuropeanAgreementswithCzechoslovakia ,Poland
andHungary(!),namelythattheEuropeanCommunity
shouldmakefundsavailabletothesethreecountriesso
thattheiragriculturalproductscanbeexportedtoother
neighbouringEasternEuropeancountriesinexchange
forhardcurrency.Suchhelpshouldlastseveralyears;
itwouldatthesametimeconstituteapositivecontri­
butiontotheeconomicdevelopmentofEasternEurope.
(*)OJNoC339,31.12.1991.4.Conclusions
4.1.SincefoodshortagesintherepublicsoftheCIS
arenotonlyrefusingtogoawaybutareactually
growingdaily,theECCommissionshouldwhereposs­
iblestepupitsaidconsignments inthecomingweeks.
Thisdoesnotprimarilymeannewaction,butfirstand
foremost,thereleaseofECU1250millionofcredit
DoneatBrussels,29January1992.
TheChairman
oftheEconomicandSocialCommittee
MichaelGEUENICH
OpinionontheproposalforaCouncilDirectiveamendingDirective75/129/EEConthe
approximation ofthelawsoftheMemberStatesrelatingtocollectiveredundancies (1)
(92/C79/06)
On27November1991theCouncildecidedtoconsulttheEconomicandSocialCommittee,
underArticle100oftheTreatyestablishingtheEuropeanEconomicCommunity,onthe
abovementioned proposal.
TheSectionforSocial,Family,EducationalandCulturalAffairs,whichwasresponsiblefor
preparingtheCommittee'sworkonthesubject,adopteditsOpinionon21January1992in
thelightoftheReportbyMrLiverani.
Atits293rdplenarysession(meetingof30January1992)theEconomicandSocialCommittee
adoptedthefollowingOpinionby91votesto27with12abstentions .
1.Generalcomments
1.1.TheCommitteewelcomestheproposedrevision
ofDirective75/129/EECwhichwouldseemtoconform
topoints7,17and18oftheCommunityCharterofthe
FundamentalSocialRightsofWorkers,asannouncedin
theaccompanying CommissionActionProgramme .1.2.Themainpurposeoftheproposalistoensure
thatinformationandconsultationproceduresforcol­
lectiveredundancies laiddowninDirective75/129/EEC
alsoapplytoemployingundertakingsissuingcollective
redundanciesasaresultofproposalsordecisionstaken
bythecontrollingundertakingorbythecentraladmin­
istrationofamulti-establishment undertaking .This
issueisparticularlyimportantinthecontextof'1992'
andofincreasingmergers,acquisitionsandcorporate
restructuringofatransnationalcharacter. (»)OJNoC310,30.11.1991,p.5.

30.3.92 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities NoC79/13
immediatelyinformtheworkforce.Subsequently ,and
ingoodtimewithaviewtoreachinganagreementthe
employermustinstigateconsultationswiththeworkers'
representatives .Suchworkers'representatives should
beindependentinrelationtotheinterestsofthe
employersconcerned.
2.7.TheCommitteeendorsestheproposed
Article2.4withregardtodecisionsbytheemployer
orthecontrollingundertaking .However,itfeelsthat
economicandsocialfactorsshouldbeborneinmind,
withouthoweverprejudicingtheguaranteeofgenuine
equalityoftreatmentbetweenmenandwomen(1).
2.8.AsregardsArticles1.1and2.5,theCommittee
considersthattheworkers'righttoinformationand
consultationmustatalleventsbeguaranteed.
2.9.TheCommitteeendorsesthejudicialprocedures
laiddowninArticle5(a).However,theremaybecir­
cumstancesinwhichrenderingcollectiveredundancies
nullandvoidmaynotbepracticableorappropriate
(forexample,iftheundertakinghasalreadygoneout
ofbusinessorrisksbankruptcy).Insuchcircumstances ,
otheroradditionalmethodsforensuringtheappli­
cationofthedirectiveneedtobeenvisaged.Thepro­
posalshouldthereforehighlightpreventivemeasures
whichMemberStatesmightdrawuponinorderto
guarantee'ingoodtime'theinformationandconsul­
tationprocedureslaiddown.
2.10.TheCommitteewouldurgetheCouncilto
adopttheproposalassoonaspossible,andinanycase
beforeJanuary1993.ItconsidersthattheMember
Statesmustbringintoforceanylegislativeprovisions
neededinordertocomplywiththisDirectivewithin
12monthsafteritsadoptionbyCouncil.1.3.Thescopeoftheprovisionsrelatingtoundertak­
ingscontrolledbyacorporatecentreinthesameMem­
berState,inanotherMemberStateoroutsidethe
Community ,seemssufficientlyclearandrealistic.
1.4.IntheCommittee'sview,theDirectiveonTrans­
fersofUndertakingsrequiresrapidrevisioninlinewith
thecurrentproposal.
2.Specificcomments
2.1.TheproposedDirectivewouldcomeintoforce
throughnationallegislationand/orappropriatecollec­
tiveagreements .Its'enforceability 'wouldinduecourse
beensuredbyjudicialproceduresrendering'nulland
void'collectiveredundancies effectedwithoutcom­
plyingwiththeDirective'srequirements .
2.2.TheCommitteeendorsestheCommission's
decisiontouseArticle100asanappropriatelegalbasis.
2.3.TheCommitteeagreesthattheproposed
revisionisalsoapplicabletocrewsofseagoingvessels
unlesstheyarecoveredbyaspecialregimeproviding
protectionequivalenttothatresultingfromtheDirec­
tive.
2.4.TheCommitteeendorsesthedefinitionofan
employer,givenintheCommissionproposal,viz'any
naturalorlegalpersonwhohasanemployment
relationshipwiththeworker'.
2.5.TheCommitteefeelsthatArticle1.3ofthepro­
posedDirective,whichrelatestoArticle4ofDirective
75/129/EEC,shouldnotbeapplicabletocollective
redundancies effectedwhereanestablishment 'sbank­
ruptcyorjudicialconstraintscausingcollectiveredun­
dancies,theworkersconcernedmustbeinformedand
consulted .
2.6.TheCommitteetakestheviewthatwhenan
employercontemplatescollectiveredundancies ,hemust(J)OJNoL45,19.2.1975(CouncilDirectiveof10February
1975).
DoneatBrussels,30January1992.
TheChairman
oftheEconomicandSocialCommittee
MichaelGEUENICH

NoC79/14 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities 30.3.92
APPENDIX 1
totheOpinionoftheEconomicandSocialCommittee
Thefollowingmembers,ortheirrepresentatives ,votedfortheOpinion:
Mr/Mrs/Miss:AbejonResa,Amato,Aspinall,AtaídeFerreira,Barbagli,Barrow,Beale,Bell,Bleser,Boisserée,
Bonvicini,Bordes-Pages ,Bottazzi,Bredima-Savopoulou ,VascoCai,Carroll,Cassina,Chevalier,Christie,
Colombo,vanDam,Decaillon,d'Elia,Diapoulis,Drilleaud,Elstner,Engelen-Kefer ,Frandi,Freeman,Gaffron,
Giatras,GomezMartinez,Gredal,Guillaume,Guyau,Hagen,HovgaardJakobsen,Janssen,Jenkins,Kafka,
Korfiatis,Lappas,Larsen,Laur,Little,Liverani,Low,Lustenhouwer ,Lyons,Maddocks,MargalefMasia,
Masucci,MayayoBello,Mercier,Meyer-Horn,Mobbs,MolinaVallejo,Moreland,Mourgues,B.Nielsen,
P.Nielsen,Noordwal,OvideEtienne,Pasquali,Pe,Pellarini,Ch.Pelletier,Pompen,Pricolo,Quevedo-Rojo ,
Ramaekers,Rangoni-Machiavelli ,Robinson,Saitis,Sala,Sanderson,SantillanCabeza,Santos,Sauwens,
Schade-Poulsen ,Schmidt,Sequeira,Silva,Smith,Syroudis,Strauss,Tixier,Vandermeeren ,Vidal,Waldack,
Whitworth .
Thefollowingmembersortheirrepresentatives votedagainsttheOpinion:
Messrs:Andrade,BentoGonçalves,Bernabei,CavaleiroBrandao,Ceyrac,Delorozoy,vanDijk,Donck,
Draijer,Etty,Frerichs,Giacomelli,Giesecke,Hilkens,Jaschick,Kanellopoulos ,deKnegt,Nierhaus,Panero
Florez,Pardon,R.Pelletier,Petersen,Petropoulos,Proumens,Theonas,Tukker,Wagenmans .
Thefollowingmembers,ortheirrepresentatives ,abstained:
Messrs:Arena,Beltrami,Dunkel,Eulen,Flum,Ghigonis,Groben,LacaMartin,Schmitz,vonSchwerin,
Thys,Verboven .
APPENDIX U
totheOpinionoftheEconomicandSocialCommittee
Theamendmentssetoutbelowwhichreceivedatleastaquarterofthevotes,weredefeatedinthecourseof
thediscussions :
Point2.8
Addthefollowing:
'andthatnumericalthresholdsmustnotbefixed.'
Reasons
Theworkers'righttoinformationandconsultationcanbeguaranteedonlyifnumericalthresholdsarenot
laiddownintheDirective .
Voting
For:46,against:66,abstentions :5.
Point2.9
Replacewiththefollowingtext:
'TheCommitteeendorsestheproposalinArticle1(6)ofthedraftDirectiveforanewArticle5(a)tobe
insertedinDirective75/129/EECtoprovideforaccesstolegalproceduresforworkers'representatives (or,
whereappropriate ,workers).However,theCommitteewouldpointoutthat,incaseswheretheemployeris
declaredbankrupt,thesanctionofrenderingcollectiveredundanciesnullandvoidcanleadtoanincreasein
assetdisposalcostsandhencehinderapossiblecompleteorpartialcontinuationoftheenterprise'sactivities
throughtakeoverbyanotheremployer.TheCommitteeaskstheCommissiontoexaminehowthisundesirable
effectcanbeavoided.'
Reasons
InthefirstsentencetherelevantarticleofthedraftDirective[Art.1(6)]isconfusedwiththeArticle5(a)to
beaddedtotheearlierDirective;theamendmentclarifiesthis.Therestoftheamendmentgivesamore
detailedaccountoftheproblemposedbybankruptcycases,andcallsupontheCommissiontoseeka
solution.
Voting
For:79,against:88,abstentions :10.