WRITTEN QUESTION E-2252/02

by Ilda Figueiredo (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(23 July 2002)

Subject: Community support

Since 1 June 2002, following the transfer of the firm, the 100 workers employed by Asoni Ltd., a garment manufacturer based in Cucujães, Oliveira de Azeméis, Portugal and owned by Asoni SA, based in Zurich, Switzerland, have been working for a different firm, Cachoeira Confecções Ltd, which is based in Vila do Conde but appears to be linked to the Asoni SA group.

The management of the new firm has now decided to dismiss six workers, including a trade union leader, without any justification or compensation, which is unacceptable under both Portuguese and Community law.

Can the Commission say whether it is aware of any Community support having been provided for the firms concerned and, if so, what steps it will take to uphold the right to employment of all the employees?

Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(17 September 2002)

In accordance with Article 8(3) of Council Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999 of 21 June 1999 laying down general provisions on the Structural Funds(1), the implementation of assistance is the responsibility of the Member States, in application of the principle of subsidiarity. According to the information received from the Portuguese authorities, the firm in question did not benefit from co-financing under the European Regional Development Fund during the 1989-1993 and 1994-1999 programming periods.

As far as Community legislation applicable to the facts outlined by the Honourable Member regarding dismissal is concerned, the Commission would like to point out that Directive 98/59/EC(2) would not appear to apply in this case(3). Furthermore, under present Community law, questions relating to individual dismissals, such as those raised by the Honourable Member, are in principle subject to the national laws of the Member States.

However, the Commission would like to refer to Directive 2001/23/EC(4) which, in Article 4, provides that the transfer of an undertaking, a business or a part of an undertaking or business shall not in itself constitute grounds for dismissal by the transferor or the transferee. Nevertheless, this provision does not stand in the way of dismissals that may take place for economic, technical or organisational reasons entailing changes in the workforce.

Moreover, Article 6 of the said Directive lays down the conditions for the preservation of the status and function of the representatives of the employees and for the protection of these representatives in the event of the transfer of an undertaking.

In addition, Article 7 requires the transferor and the transferee to inform the representatives of their respective employees affected by the transfer of, inter alia, the social implications of the transfer for the employees and any measures envisaged in relation to the employees.

It is up to employees who consider themselves wronged by failure to comply with the obligations arising from the Directive to pursue their claims, including through the courts, in the Member State concerned(5).

(1) OJ L 161, 26.6.1999.

(2) Council Directive 98/59/EC of 20 July 1998 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to collective redundancies (OJ L 225, 12.8.1998).

(3) Cf. Article 1(1)(a)(i), second indent thereof.

(4) Council Directive 2001/23/EC of 12 March 2001 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the safeguarding of employees' rights in the event of transfers of undertakings, businesses or parts of undertakings or businesses (OJ L 82, 22.3.2001).

(5) Cf., in this respect, Article 9 of the said Directive.