WRITTEN QUESTION E-0525/03 by Ilda Figueiredo (GUE/NGL) to the Commission. Closure of the BAWO factory in Portugal.
Date: 2003-02-24
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EU aid, Portugal, cessation of trading, labour law, multinational enterprise, transfer of businesses, worker consultation

14.8.2003

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 192 E/195

of animals for transport. No commitments were however received to indicate that the deficiencies detected
at slaughterhouses were being addressed.

The Commission remains very concerned about
implementation and enforcement of
Community Law in this domain in Spain and will not fail to take such other measures as are necessary
including further resort to infringement proceedings under Article 226 of the EC Treaty.

the level of

(2003/C 192 E/235)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0525/03

by Ilda Figueiredo (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(24 February 2003)

Subject: Closure of the BAWO factory in Portugal

Another German multinational, BAWO Confecções, Lda, is preparing for the possible closure of its factory
in Estarreja, Portugal.

The workers, numbering about eighty, have had to cut short their (cid:1) enforced (cid:1) leave in order to prevent
the closure of the factory and the resulting removal of the machines, these being the company’s only
assets, given that the premises are rented.

Has BAWO received any form of Community aid in Portugal or other Member States? If so, what

1.
amounts were granted and under what conditions?

In the light of corporate social responsibility, what steps can the Commission take to defend the

2.
rights of the workers concerned?

Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(4 April 2003)

1.
The Commission would like to inform the Honourable Member that, in line with the information
provided by the Portuguese authorities, the company in question has not received any Community funding
from either the European Social Fund (ESF) or the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

2.
The Commission would like to point out that several Directives provide for information and
consultation with the workers’ representatives (1). In particular, Directive 98/59/EC (2) concerning collective
redundancies provides for information and consultation with the workers’ representatives in cases where
the employer is contemplating such redundancies. These consultations should be carried out in good time
with a view to reaching agreement and cover, at least, ways and means of avoiding collective redundancies
or reducing the number of workers affected as well as of mitigating the consequences by recourse to
accompanying social measures. These measures aim, inter alia, at aid for redeploying or retraining workers
made redundant.

Furthermore, the Commission has called on the European social partners to engage in a dialogue on
anticipating and managing change with a view to applying a dynamic approach to the social aspects of
corporate restructuring. The social partners have agreed to incorporate this issue in their recently adopted
pluriannual work programme.

(1) Council Directive 94/45/EC of 22 September 1994 on the establishment of a European Works Council or a
procedure in Community-scale undertakings and Community-scale groups of undertakings for the purposes of
informing and consulting employees (cid:1) OJ L 254, 30.9.1994; Directive 2002/14/EC of 11 March 2002 establishing
a general framework for informing and consulting employees in the European Community (cid:1) OJ L 80, 23.3.2002.
The latter Directive has to be transposed by 23 March 2003.

(2) Directive 98/59/EC of 20 July 1998 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to collective

redundancies (cid:1) OJ L 225, 12.8.1998.