ARCHIVESHISTORIQUES
DELACOMMISSION
COLLECTION RELIEEDES
DOCUMENTS "COM"
COM(77)442
Vol.1977/0141

Disclaimer
Conformément aurèglement(CEE,Euratom)n°354/83duConseildu1erfévrier1983
concernantl'ouvertureaupublicdesarchiveshistoriquesdelaCommunauté économique
européenneetdelaCommunautéeuropéennedel'énergieatomique(JOL43du15.2.1983,
p.1),telquemodifiéparlerèglement(CE,Euratom)n°1700/2003du22septembre2003
(JOL243du27.9.2003,p.1),cedossierestouvertaupublic.Lecaséchéant,lesdocuments
classifiésprésentsdanscedossierontétédéclassifiésconformément àl'article5dudit
règlement.
InaccordancewithCouncilRegulation(EEC,Euratom)No354/83of1February1983
concerningtheopeningtothepublicofthehistoricalarchivesoftheEuropeanEconomic
CommunityandtheEuropeanAtomicEnergyCommunity(OJL43,15.2.1983,p.1),as
amendedbyRegulation(EC,Euratom)No1700/2003of22September2003(OJL243,
27.9.2003,p.1),thisfileisopentothepublic.Wherenecessary,classifieddocumentsinthis
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),istdieseDateiderÖffentlichkeitzugänglich.Soweit
erforderlich,wurdendieVerschlusssachen indieserDateiinÜbereinstimmung mitArtikel5
dergenanntenVerordnungfreigegeben.

COMMISSION OFTHEEUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
COM(77)442 final .
Brussels ,23September 1977
Proposal for aCouncil Decision regarding European Social Fund
assistance towards women
Proposal for aCouncil Regulation concerning operations qualifying -for
ahigher rate ofintervention bytheEuropean Social Fund
(submitted totheCouncil bytheCommission )
COM(77 )442final

ProposalforaCouncilDecisionregardingEuropeanSocialFund
assistance towardswomen
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
1.UnderthetermsofArticle5oftheCouncilDecisionof1February1971,
theEuropeanSocialFundcanundertake measuresfortheabsorption or
reabsorption intoanoccupationofwomenagedover35"whowishtopursue
aprofessional ortradeactivityforthefirsttimeorwhosequalifications ,
afteralapseoftime,arenolongerthoseindemand."
However,toqualifyforassistance fromtheFund,thistypeofoperation
shouldeitherbeundertaken inless-favoured regions,orshouldfacilitate
adaptationtotherequirements oftechnicalprogressineconomicsectors
indifficulty,orbecarriedoutingroupsofundertakings forcedtocease,
reduceortransformtheiractivitypermanently .
Therestrictive natureoftheseconditions haspreventedtheSocialFund
fromtakingeffectiveactiontofurthertheemploymentofwomen.
2.Thesituationonthelabourmarket-inparticularforwomen,whorepresent
36%oftheworkingpopulation-isparticularly disturbing :of
5.5millionregistered unemployedinApril1977,2.2millionor39Xwere
women;moreover,whereasunemployment amongstmenhasincreased by
0.9%sinceApril1976,unemployment amongstwomenhasincreasedbyalmost
15%.
Inmostmemberstatesunemployment isnotonlyaffectingyoungpeople,but
equallywomenwhowishtakeuporreturntoworkusuallyafteraperiodof
domesticresponsibilities ;thesewomenaregsuallyover25yearsold.

-2-
Oneofthemainreasonsforthissituationistheinadequate preparation of
womenforworkingLife.Communityresearchintospecificproblemsconcerning
theemploymentofwomenshowsthatbetween60%-85%,depending onthe
countryconcerned,havehadnovocationaltrainingordonotusetheirquali­
ficationsintheirjobs.
Thesefewdataindicate averyseriousimbalanceintheemploymentsituation
forwomengreatenoughtojustifyspecificCommunityassistance.
3.Consequently theCommission,initsmemorandumtotheCouncilonthereview
oftheEuropeanSocialFund,of23March1977(1),proposedamendingArticle 1
§2ofRegulation 2396/71layingdowntherulesfortheimplementation of
Article5.Thisamendment wasdesignedtoexpandthepossibilities for
grantingassistanceforwomen/inter-alia byabolishing theverylimitative
conditions referredtounder1above.
TheSocialFundCommittee,whenconsulted onthisproposal,wasalsoin
favourofextendingpossibilities forgrantingassistanceforwomen.Several
members,however,emphasisedthatacategoryofworkersforwhomaseriesof
Communityinstruments andrulesexistwasideallysuitedtotheimplementa­
tionofaspecificcommonmeasuretoimprovethebalancebetweensupplyand
demandonCommunitylabourmarkets,asprovidedforinArticle4ofthe
basicdecision (2).
4.OnexaminingtheCommission'smemorandumtotheCouncil,theEuropeanParlia­
mentandtheEconomic andSocialCommittee stressedthefactthatwomenwere
oneofthemostvulnerable categories onthelabourmarketandwereinfavour
ofassistance beingextendedtoimprovetheirposition.
(1)Doc.COM(77)90final.
(2).Memorandum presentedbytheCommissiontotheCouncilinFebruary1975
onequaltreatmentformenandwomen(accesstoemployment andtraining,
advancement andworkingconditions).
.CouncilDirectiveof9February1976ontheimplementation ofthe
principleofequaltreatment.

-3-
5.TheEuropean Council ,atitsmeeting inRome on25and 26March 1977 ,agreed
that action should betaken tohelp solve certain problems concerning women 's
employment .Atitsmeeting inLondon on29and30June 1977 itwelcomed the
agreement reached bytheSocial Affairs Council on28June aimed atimproving
theeffectiveness oftheSocial Fund ,under this agreement theCommission is
tosubmit proposals forFund assistance for aprogramme todeal with women 's
employment problems .
The "Social Affairs "Council of28June 1977 invited the Commission tosubmit
aproposal making Fund assistance available towomen pursuant toArticle 4
oftheDecision of 1February 1971 ;itspower tomake this request derives
from Article 4§1ofthat Decision ,which states that Fund assistance shall
beauthorised "byaspecific decision taken bytheCouncil acting byaquali­
fied majority onaproposal from theCommission ,the latter acting either on
itsowninitiative oratthe request ofthe Council orofone ormore Member
States ".
6.Inresponse totheCouncil 'sinvitation ,theCommission hastoprepare a
draft Council decision .Since theSocial Fund isunable togive assistance
toalltheoperations required inMember States tosolve theproblem of
•women 'semployment ,thearea opened forassistance ought tobelimited to
those actions which domost toremove specific obstacles totheemployment
ofwomen .Thus given thepresent economic position theaim isnotonly to
make acontribution inthefight against women 'sunemployment ,butalso to
stimulate theintroduction ofmeasures which will ensure equal opportunity
forwomen inthesearch foremployment .
7.Theguidelines mentioned below depart tosome extent from theideas contained
inthememorandun from theCommission totheCouncil ;theCommission having
taken into account discussions ontheoriginaL draft bythevarious institu­
tions consulted ;andacting through anintervention under Article 4ofthe
Fund hasattempted tooutline aspecific common measure designed tomake
•a/••

-4-
contribution tosolvingtheseproblemsasdescribedinparticularinthe
memorandum ontheequaltreatmentformenandwomenasregardsaccessto
employment andtraining.ResearchbytheCommission showsthatthemain
obstaclestoaccesstovocationaltrainingandemploymentare:
-inadequacyofguidanceandvocationalcounsellingservices,
-theconcentration ofwomeninalimitednumberoftrainingandemployment
areas,
-lackofprospection andplacementfacilities,
-insufficient follow-upatjoblevel.
8.Takingintoconsideration theabovepoints,theCommission recommends apro­
grammecontainingthefollowingprovisions :
a)Womenmustbeagedover25;sinceitisfromthisagethatwomenmeet
thegreatestdifficultyinfindingemploymentwhethertheyareseeking
workforthefirsttimeorreturningafteraperiodofdomesticrespon-
sibilities.
b)Trainingoperationsoughttobeprecededbyaninductionprogrammefor
employment (givenatabasiclevelonlifeinacompanythedifferentjob
prospectsoffered,etc.)andfollowedbymeasuresdesignedtofacilitate
entryintoemploymentatthelevelappropriatefortheirqualification .
Thevariousstudiesandpilotprojectsmadeontheemploymentofwomen
partlyfinancedbytheSocialFundbringouttheneedforthissetof
complementary phasesasnecessarytoensurealastingsuccessofthe
trainingeffortundertaken.
t•/••

-5-
9.Toallowthisdevelopment theFundshouldalsobeabletohelpfinancethe
specialisttrainingofthenecessarystaff,especiallyinteachingmethods,
knowledgeofthespecificproblemsofwomen'semploymentandknowledgeof
thejobsandcareersopentowomenapartfromthetraditionalsectorstowards
whichtheyaremostoftendirected.
10.Article3ofCouncilRegulationno.2396/71,asamendedbytheCouncil
RegulationofdefiniestheaidsforwhichassistancefromtheFund
maybegranted.
11.Fundassistanceforoperationsdescribedinthisproposalwillnotinvolve
verylargefinancialcommitments ;thesenewoperationswillonlydevelop
slowly.Accordingtoapreliminaryestimate,expenditure oftheorderof
8millionUAistobeexpectedin1978.Subsequentexperiencewillpermit
amoreexactassessmentoftheappropriations requiredtofinancethistype
ofmeasure.

-6-
CouncilDecisiononintervention bytheEuropeanSocialFundinfavour
ofwomen
THECOUNCILOFTHEEUROPEANCOMMUNITIES,
HavingregardtotheTreatyestablishing theEuropeanEconomicCommunity,
HavingregardtotheCouncilDecisionof1February1971onthereformofthe
EuropeanSocialFund,asamendedbytheCouncilDecisionof...(1),andin
particularArticle4thereof,
HavingregardtotheproposalfromtheCommission,
HavingregardtotheopinionoftheEuropeanParliament (2),
HavingregardtotheopinionoftheEconomicandSocialCommittee (3),
Whereas,atitsmeetinginRomeon25and26March1977,theEuropeanCoun-
ciIagreed"inparticulartoseekactionattheCommunitylevelinthree
directions :firstlytopromotemeasurestohelpresolvespecificlabourmar­
ketproblems,especially inimprovingtrainingandemployment opportunities
foryoungpeopleandwomen;...Tothisend,theEuropeanCouncilinvites
ontheonehandtheCommission,inparticular bythebetteruseofCommunity
instruments,...toseekwaysofimprovingtheeffectiveness oftheiracti­
vities.";
Whereasthesituation asregardswomenunemployed orseekingjobsshowsthe
needforjointactionspecifically aimedatimprovingthebalancebetween
supplyanddemandontheCommunitylabourmarket;
WhereastheCouncilDecisionof1February1971onthereformoftheEuropean
SocialFund,andinparticularArticle5thereof,hasnotfacilitated effec­
tiveactiontopromotetheemployment ofwomen;»
Whereas,whenconsulted onthereviewoftherulesgoverningthetasksand
operationoftheEuropeanSocialFund,theCommitteeoftheEuropeanSocial
Funddeclareditselfinagreementwiththeprincipleofexpandingthescope
forintervention bytheFundinfavourofwomen;
Whereas,inordertoovercomespecificobstaclestotheemploymentofwomen,
vocationaltrainingforwomenmustbecomplemented bymeasuresaimedatmaking
iteasierforthemtoprepareforworkinglifeandtofindjobscommensurate
withtheirtraining;
'••■/•••
(1)...
(2)...
(3)...

HASDECIDEDASFOLLOWS
Article 1
1.Assistance maybegrantedfromtheEuropeanSocialFundpursuanttoArti­
cle4oftheCouncilDecisionof1February1971onthereformofthe
Fund,asamendedbytheCouncilDecisionof...,forvocationaltraining
programmesforwomenover25yearsofage,providedthattheseprogrammes
(areencompassedwithinmeasuresaimedatpreparingthebeneficiaries for
jworkinglifeandplacingtheminjobscommensurate withthequalifications
'obtained; –
2.Assistance mayalsobegrantedfromtheFundfortrainingschemesforvo­
cationalguidancecounsellors,instructors andspecialists intheplacement
offemalelabour.
Article 2
Thetypesofaideligibleforassistance fromtheFundpursuanttothis
DecisionarethosedefinedinArticle3ofCouncilRegulation No2396/71
implementing theCouncilDecisionof1February1971onthereformofthe
EuropeanSocialFund,asamendedbyRegulation (EEC)No...
Article3
Thisdecisionshallenterintoforceon
DoneatBrussels,
FortheCouncil

-8-
ProposalforaCouncilRegulationconcerningoperationsqualifyingfor
ahigherrateofintervention bytheEuropeanSocialFund
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
1.InitsopiniontotheCouncilinconnectionwiththereviewofthetasks
andoperationoftheSocialFund,theCommissionadvocatedgreaterconcen­
trationofFundintervention onemploymentproblemsinregionsmarkedby
particularly seriousandprolongedimbalancesinemploymentorbythe
declineofoneorseveraleconomicsectorsofvitalimportance (1).
Inview,inparticular,ofthelimitedresourcesavailabletosuchregions,
itwouldbeappropriate fortheFundtoofferadditionalfinancialincen­
tivestopromoteemployment andvocationaltrainingopportunities inthose
regions.
2.Atitsmeetingon28June1977,theCouncilpartiallyadoptedtheCommission
proposalandenvisagedinsertingitinthenewArticle8,paragraph3ofthe
CouncilDecisionof1February1971aprovisionstipulating 1that:
"foroperationsinregionswithaparticularly seriousandprolonged em­
ploymentimbalance-suchregionstobedefinedbytheCouncilonaproposal
"fromtheCommission-Fundintervention shallbeincreasedby10'A*(2).
jitneverthelessexcludedtheideaofapplyinganincreasedrateforregions
experiencing thedeclineofoneorseveralpredominantsectors.
AtthesametimetheCouncilundertooktospecifytheregionsreferredto
inthisparagraphbeforetheendof1977andtheCommission wasinvited,
whendrawingupproposalstothisend,toconcentrate mainlyonthefollow­
ing:Greenland,theFrenchOverseasDepartments,Ireland,NorthernIreland
andtheMezzogiorno .
TheseregionsoftheCommunity,astheCommissionstatedinitscommunication
totheCouncilonguidelinesforaCommunityregionalpolicy,arestillvery
backwardinspiteoftheeffortsmadeandrequiremassiveintervention by
theCommunityoverquitealongperiod(3).
(1)Doc.C0M(77)90fin.,23March1977,p.21,and
section3ofAnnexI.
(2)DecisionamendingtheCouncilDecisionof1February1971
onthereformoftheEuropeanSocialFund(notyet
published).
(3)Doc.C0MC77)195of1June1977,paragraphs 38and39.

-9"
3.Themorethoroughexaminationoftheeconomicandsocialsituationandin
IparticularofemploymentintheseregionsleadstheCommissiontopropose
|thatonlytheseregionsbenefitfromincreasedinterventionrates.
Themostreliableindicatorsforper-capitagrossnationalproduct,^gODuli"^tionstructureandrateofactivity,employmentstructure,unemployment/trend
andnetmigrationcumulatively representindisputable factorsreflectingthe
structuralweaknessandunderdevelopment oftheseregions.Moreover,their
geographical locationontheCommunity'speripheryrepresents anadditional
obstacletotheirintegration .Finally,toevaluatethechancesofarapid
improvement inthesituationintheseregions,accountmustbetakenoftheir
relativeimportanceinthenationaleconomyfromthepointofviewofpopu­
lation,area,activityandinfrastructure (forIreland,theregionconcerned
isidenticaltothewholecountry).Preferential intervention bytheSocial
FundandotherCommunityfinancialinstruments appearsthemorejustified
inthatinsomecasedtheMemberStatesconcernedcannot,duetotheir
financialposition,resolvetheseproblemsalone.
4.Ahigherrateofintervention willnot,atleastintheshortterm,haveany
overallbudgetaryimplications fortheFund.Norshouldit,eveninthelonger
term,affectthebalancebetweenthevarioustypesofoperation,sinceappli­
cationsunderbothArticle4andArticle5oftheDecisionof1February1971
willqualifyforthehigherrate.Ontheotherhand,itwillimmediately
enableagreaterproportionoftheavailablefundstobeusedforthebenefit
ofthefivepriorityregions.

-10-
Proposal for aCouncil Regulation concerning operations qualifying
for ahigher rate ofintervention bytheEuropean Social Fund
THE COUNCIL OFTHE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES ,
Having regard totheTreaty establishing the European Economic Community ,
and inparticular Article 127thereof ,
Having regard totheproposal from theCommission ,
Having regard totheopinion ofthe European Parliament (*1),
Having regard totheopinion ofthe Economic andSocial Committee (2),
Whereas ,pursuant toArticle 8paragraph 3ofthe Council Decision of
1February 1971 amended bytheDecision of..., theregions marked byan
especially serious orprolonged imbalance inemployment ,inwhich operations
carried out with assistance from theSocial Fund shall qualify for ahigher
rate ofintervention ,must bedefined ;
Whereas particular account must betaken ,indefining these regions ,of
their slower economic andsocial development ,their peripheral location in
the Community andtheir significance intheir respective national economies ;
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION :
Article 1
Operations carried out inGreenland ,the French Overseas Departments ,
Ireland ,Northern Ireland andtheMezzogiorno shall qualify forthe higher
rate ofintervention provided for inArticle 8paragraph 3ofthe Council
Decision of 1February 1971 ,asamended bythe Decision of...
Article 2
This Regulation shall enter into force on...
Done atBrussels
On.............
For the Counci l
(1)0«J•no. •■•of ••§ _. _
(2)O.J. no....of... Theresident

FINANCIAL SHEEt
ι
PROPOSAL FORACOUNCILDECISION ONINTERVENTION BYTHEEUROPEAN SOCIALFUNDIN
FAVOUROFWOMEN
1.BudgetHeading:Article505
2.Titte:AidfromtheSocialFundforwomen.
3.Legalbasis:
DecisiontobetakenbytheCouncilpursuanttoArticle4tofthebasicDecision
of1February1971(71/66/EEt)(ProposalsubmittedtotheCommission on
21September 1977).
4.Objectives oftheproject:
Renderingtheemploymentofworkerseasierandincreasingtheirgeographical
andoccupational mobility(Article123oftheTreaty).
Specificobjective .:topromotetheintegration ofwomenover25yearsofage"
intoemployment .
5.Appropriations :
Theappropriations forcommitmenttobeenteredinthebudgetfor1978amount
to8m.u.a.
Thescheduleofduedatesforpaymentsisasfollows:
AswithotherFundintervention paymentsarespreadoverseveralyears.
Itisenvisagedtheywillbemadeataquickerrategiventheproposalsfor
advancepaymentsnowbeforetheCouncil.For1978theappropriations will
beinsertedinthebudgetbymeansofanamendinglettertothedraftbudget
for1978.
ftultiannual forecasts :
Onthebasisofdataatpresentavailable,thefollowingEstimatescanbe
made:
Methodoxcalculation :
Becauseoftheinnovatorynatureoftheoperationsplanned,thevolumeof
expenditurewillberelativelysmallinthefirstyear.Takingintoaccount,
inaddition,earlierexperience asregardsthecostofinterventions bythe
Fund,itisanticipated thattheplannedbudgetforaidinfavour*ofwomen
willallowacontributiontobemadetotrainingexercisesofanaverageof
4months'^durationforsome6,000personsatanaveragecostof330e.u.a.
amonthincludingexpenditure onthespecialisedservicesofthetraininastaff.

-12-
B.PROPOSAL FOR ACOUNCIL REGULATION CONCERNING OPERATIONS QUALIFYING
FORAHIGHER RATE OFINTERVENTION FROM THEEUROPEAN SOCIAL FUND
Theintroduction ofahigher rate ofintervention will not itself affect
theoverall volume ofFund Appropriations .Itwill >6ntheother hand ,as 4
regards thevarious categories ofintervention ,provide forasupplementary
financial stimulus topromote operations ,inparticular o*vocational
training ,inthefive prior'lty regions defined inthis proposal .