Proposal for a Council Decision on guidelines for the Employment Policies of the Member States
Date: 2006-12-12
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU employment policy, European Employment Strategy, member country

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 12.12.2006 
COM(2006) 815 final 

2006/0271 (CNS) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

On guidelines for the Employment Policies of the Member States 

(presented by the Commission) 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

The new Lisbon strategy operating from 2005 onwards is based on a new cycle of governance 
with an integrated package of guidelines remaining valid until 2008. Based on the integrated 
guidelines, which encompass economic, social and environmental dimensions, Member States 
have  drawn  up  their  national  reform  programmes,  which  set  out  their  three  year  strategy  to 
deliver growth and jobs.  

The  assessment  of  the  national  reform  programmes  by  the  Commission  is  set  out  in  the 
Annual Progress Report and in the accompanying draft Joint Employment Report, which will 
be adopted in accordance with the procedure of Article 128(1) of the Treaty. The assessment 
confirms that employment is increasing and unemployment is falling. However, productivity 
growth  and  quality  of  jobs  remain  below  Europe's  needs.  The  responsiveness  of  European 
labour  markets  to  the  challenges  of  globalisation  and  ageing  remain  critical  issues. 
Furthermore the analysis of the NRPs indicates the following key issues on each of the three 
European Employment Strategy priorities: 

•  Attracting  and  retaining  more  people  in  employment  sees  most  policy  implementation. 
More attention has been paid to an integrated lifecycle approach to work but policies for 
young people, women and older workers are still mostly treated separately. 

•  The  implementation  reports  show  the  weakest  policy  implementation  in  the  area  of 
improving the adaptability of workers and enterprises. A more comprehensive approach is 
necessary, better combining flexibility and security. An integrated flexicurity approach is 
receiving  attention  but  a  range  of  policy  pathways  needs  to  be  developed  to  further 
flexicurity in all Member States.  

•  There is quite some focus on structural reforms of education and training systems and their 
link with the labour market. However, coherent and comprehensive strategies still need to 
be  set  up  in  many  Member  States.  Training  initiatives  still  tend  to  be  focussed 
predominantly  on  young  people  and  participation  in  lifelong  learning  by  those  over  45 
remains worrying low.  

These  conclusions  confirm  the  policies  and  the  reform  agenda  expressed  in  the  current 
Employment Guidelines. For procedural reasons laid down in Article 128(2), their validity for 
2007  needs  to  be  confirmed  by  a  Council  decision,  following  consultation  of  the  EP,  the 
Committee of Regions, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Employment 
Committee. 

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2006/0271 (CNS) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

On guidelines for the Employment Policies of the Member States 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 
128(2) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission1, 

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament2, 

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee3, 

Having consulted the Committee of the Regions, 

Having regard to the opinion of the Employment Committee4, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

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2 
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6 

The  reform  of  the  Lisbon  Strategy  in  2005  has  placed  the  emphasis  on  growth  and 
jobs.  The  Employment  Guidelines  of  the  European  Employment  Strategy  and  the 
Broad  Economic  Policy  Guidelines  have  been  adopted  as  an  integrated  package5, 
whereby 
the 
implementation  of  the  employment  and  labour  market  objectives  of  the  Lisbon 
Strategy. 

the  European  Employment  Strategy  has 

leading  role 

the 

in 

The  Union  must  mobilise  all  appropriate  national  and  Community  resources  - 
including cohesion policy - in the Lisbon strategy's three dimensions (economic, social 
and  environmental)  so  as  better  to  tap  into  their  synergies  in  a  general  context  of 
sustainable development6. 

The  Employment  Guidelines  and  the  Broad  Economic  Policy  Guidelines  should  be 
fully reviewed only every three years, while in the intermediate years until 2008 their 
updating  should  remain  strictly  limited  to  ensure  the  degree  of  stability  that  is 
necessary for effective implementation. 

OJ C , , p. . 
OJ C , , p. . 
OJ C , , p. . 
Opinion of 
OJ L 205, 6.8.2005 p. 21 (Employment Guidelines) and p. 28 (Broad Economic Policy Guidelines). 
Cf. OJ L 205, 6.8.2005 (Employment Guidelines), Recital 4. 

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(4) 

The examination of the Member States' National Reform Programmes contained in the 
Commission's Annual Progress Report and in the Joint Employment Report shows that 
Member States should continue to make every effort to address the priority areas of  

–  attracting and retaining more people in employment, increasing labour supply and 

modernising social protection systems, 

–  improving adaptability of workers and enterprises, and  

–  increasing investment in human capital through better education and skills. 

(5) 

(6) 

(7) 

The European Council of 23/24 March 2006 stressed the central role of employment 
policies  in  the  framework  of  the  Lisbon  agenda  and  the  necessity  of  increasing 
employment opportunities for priority categories, within a life-cycle approach. In this 
connection,  it  approved  the  European  Pact  for  Gender  Equality  that  should  further 
heighten  the  profile  of  gender  mainstreaming  and  give  impetus  to  improving  the 
perspectives and opportunities of women on a broad scale. 

The  removal  of  obstacles  to  mobility  for  workers,  as  elaborated  by  the  Treaties, 
including  the  Treaties  of  accession,  should  strengthen  the  functioning  of  the  internal 
market and enhance its growth and employment potential. 

In  the  light  of  both  the  Commission’s  examination  of  the  National  Reform 
Programmes  and  the  European  Council  conclusions,  the  focus  should  now  be  on 
effective  and  timely  implementation,  paying  special  attention  to  the  agreed 
quantitative  targets  as  laid  down  in  the  2005-2008  guidelines,  and  in  line  with  the 
conclusions of the European Council. 

(8)  Member  States  should  take  the  Employment  Guidelines  into  account  when 
programming  their  use  of  Community  funding,  in  particular  of  the  European  Social 
Fund. 

(9) 

In view of the integrated nature of the guideline package, Member States should fully 
implement the Broad Economic Policy Guidelines. 

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:  

Article 1 

The  guidelines  for  Member  States'  employment  policies  as  set  out  in  the  Annex  to  Council 
Decision  2005/600/EC  of  12  July  2005  on  Guidelines  for  the  employment  policies  of  the 
Member States are maintained for 2007 and shall be taken into account by the Member States 
in their employment policies.  

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Article 2 

This Decision is addressed to the Member States. 

Done at Brussels,  

For the Council 
The President 

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