Proposal for a DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on the mobilisation of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (application from Greece – EGF/2015/011 GR/Supermarket Larissa)
Date: 2016-04-14
Institutions: Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, European Commission
Subjects: Central Macedonia, European Globalisation Adjustment Fund, Greece, Thessaly, collective dismissal, commitment of expenditure, employment aid, financial aid, reintegration into working life, supermarket

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   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 14.4.2016  COM(2016) 210 final   Proposal for a DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on the mobilisation of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund  (application from Greece – EGF/2015/011 GR/Supermarket Larissa)  
 
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

1. 

2. 

3. 

The  rules  applicable  to  financial  contributions  from  the  European  Globalisation 
Adjustment  Fund  (EGF)  are  laid  down  in  Regulation  (EU)  No 1309/2013  of  the 
European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  17 December  2013  on  the  European 
Globalisation  Adjustment  Fund  (2014-2020)  and  repealing  Regulation  (EC) 
No 1927/20061 (the ‘EGF Regulation’). 

26 

November 

On 
application 
EGF/2015/011 GR/Supermarket  Larissa  for  a  financial  contribution  from  the  EGF, 
following redundancies2 in Supermarket Larissa ABEE in Greece. 

submitted 

Greece 

2015, 

an 

Following  its  assessment  of  this  application,  the  Commission  has  concluded,  in 
accordance with all applicable provisions of the EGF Regulation, that the conditions 
for awarding a financial contribution from the EGF are met.  

SUMMARY OF THE APPLICATION 

EGF application 

EGF/2015/011 GR/Supermarket Larissa 

Member State 
Region(s) concerned (NUTS3 level 2) 

Date of submission of the application 

Greece 
Central Macedonia  
(Κεντρική Μακεδονία) (EL12) 
Thessalia 
(Θεσσαλία) (EL14) 
26 November 2015 

Date of acknowledgement of receipt of the 
application 

1 December 2015 

Date of request for additional information 

10 December 2015 

Deadline for provision of the additional 
information 

21 January 2016 

Deadline for the completion of the assessment  14 April 2016 

Intervention criterion 

Primary enterprise 

Article 4(1)(a) of the EGF Regulation 

Supermarket Larissa ABEE 

Number of enterprises concerned 

1 

Sector of economic activity 
(NACE Revision 2 Division)4 

Division 47 (Retail trade, except of 
motor vehicles and motorcycles) 

Number of subsidiaries, suppliers and 

0 

1 
2 
3 

4 

OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 855. 
Within the meaning of Article 3 of the EGF Regulation. 
Commission  Regulation  (EU)  No 1046/2012  of  8  November  2012  implementing  Regulation  (EC) 
No 1059/2003  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  on  the  establishment  of  a  common 
classification of territorial units for statistics (NUTS) as regards the transmission of the time series for 
the new regional breakdown (OJ L 310, 9.11.2012, p. 34). 
OJ L 393, 30.12.2006, p. 1. 

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2 

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downstream producers 

Reference period (four months): 

3 May 2015 – 3 September 2015 

Number of redundancies during the reference 
period (a) 

557 

Number of redundancies before or after the 
reference period (b) 

Total number of redundancies (a + b) 

Total number of eligible beneficiaries 

Total number of targeted beneficiaries 

Number of targeted young persons not in 
employment, education or training (NEETs) 
Budget for personalised services (EUR) 
Budget for implementing EGF5 (EUR) 
Total budget (EUR) 
EGF contribution (60 %) (EUR) 

ASSESSMENT OF THE APPLICATION 

Procedure 

0 

557 

557 

557 

543 

10 530 000 
250 000 
10 780 000 
6 468 000 

4. 

Greece  submitted  application  EGF/2015/011 GR/Supermarket  Larissa  within  12 
weeks of the date on which the intervention criteria set out in Article 4 of the EGF 
Regulation were met, on 26 November 2015. The Commission acknowledged receipt 
of  the  application  on  1  December  2015,  and  requested  additional  information  from 
Greece,  within  two  weeks  of  the  date  of  submission  of  the  application,  on  10 
December 2015. Such additional information was provided within six weeks of the 
request. The deadline of 12 weeks of the receipt of the complete application within 
which the Commission should finalise its assessment of the application's compliance 
with the conditions for providing a financial contribution expires on 14 April 2016.  

Eligibility of the application 

Enterprises and beneficiaries concerned 

5. 

The  application  relates  to  557  workers6  made  redundant  in  Supermarket  Larissa 
ABEE.  This  enterprise  operates  in  the  economic  sector  classified  under  the  NACE 
Revision 2 Division 47 (Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles). The 
redundancies made by Supermarket Larissa are located in the NUTS level 2 regions 
of  Central  Macedonia  (Κεντρική  Μακεδονία)  (EL12)  and  Thessalia  (Θεσσαλία) 
(EL14).  

Intervention criteria 

6. 

5 
6 

Greece submitted the application under the intervention criteria of Article 4(1)(a) of 
the EGF Regulation, which requires at least 500 workers being made redundant over 
a  reference  period  of  four  months  in  an  enterprise  in  a  Member  State,  including 
workers  made  redundant  by  suppliers  and  downstream  producers  and  /  or  self-
employed persons whose activity has ceased. 

In accordance with the fourth paragraph of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 1309/2013. 
422 employees and 135 worker-owners 

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7. 

The reference period of four months for the application runs from 3 May 2015 to 3 
September 2015. During the reference period 557 workers were made redundant in 
Supermarket Larissa ABEE. 

Calculation of redundancies and of cessation of activity 

8. 

The redundancies during the reference period have been calculated from the date of 
the de facto termination of the contract of employment or its expiry. 

Eligible beneficiaries 

9. 

The total number of eligible beneficiaries is 557. 

Link  between  the  redundancies  and  the  global  financial  and  economic  crisis  addressed  in 

Regulation (EC) No 546/2009 

10. 

11. 

12. 

13. 

14. 

In order to establish the link between the redundancies and the global financial and 
economic crisis addressed in Regulation (EC) No 546/2009, Greece argues that the 
Greek economy was in deep recession for six consecutive years (from 2008 to 2013). 
According to ELSTAT, the Greek Statistical Authority, since  2008 the Greek  GDP 
has decreased by 25,7 percentage points, public consumption by 21 percentage points 
and private consumption by 32,3 percentage points  whilst unemployment increased 
about 19 percentage points.  

Moreover  the  decline  in  GDP  has  widened  the  gap  between  the  Greek  per  capita 
GDP and  the per capita GDP of the EU, cancelling the progress towards economic 
convergence made by Greece in the 1995-2007 period. 

Furthermore, to deal with foreign debt repayments, since 2008 the Greek government 
has been taking unpopular measures such as increasing tax rates, streamlining public 
expenditure  and  decreasing  public  employees'  salaries.  Wages  in  the  private  sector 
have also been decreasing in an attempt to increase the competitiveness of the Greek 
economy.  

Since 2008, thousands of enterprises have stopped their activities and closed down, 
making  their  staff  redundant  and  thousands  of  self-employed  persons  have  ceased 
their  activities,  contributing  to  the  sharp  increase  in  unemployment  already 
mentioned.  

An immediate effect of the reduced income has been a decrease in consumption. In 
2009,  the  drop  of  household  consumption  in  Greece  followed  the  same  negative 
trend  as  in  the  EU-27.  In  2010,  2011  and  2013  there  was  a  recovery  in  household 
consumption at EU-27 level. Household consumption in Greece has been declining 
since  the  beginning  of  the  financial  and  economic  crisis  and  the  figures  have  been 
worsening every year over the period 2008-2013. 

Household consumption 
(% change compared with the previous year) 

2008 

2009 

2010 

2011 

2012 

2013 

EU-27 

Greece 

0,9 

2,9 

-0,6 

-0,3 

1,0 

-6,8 

0,2 

-7,2 

-0,5 

-8,9 

0,1 

-5,6 

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Source: Eurostat7 

15. 

16. 

17. 

18. 

According  to  a  study  by  INE-GSEE8,  published  in  July  2014,  three  out  of  four 
workers or employees stated that his/her income level has declined in 2014 compared 
with the previous year due to salary cuts. Moreover, 38 % of respondents, believing 
that  their  salaries  will  be  cut  again  in  the  next  quarter,  had  reduced  their  expenses 
accordingly. 

Over the period 2009-2015, the consumer confidence indicator (weighted percentage 
of  positive  and  negative  answers)  has  been  negative.  The  indicator  deteriorated 
greatly  during  the  first three  years (-46  (2009)  -63  (2010)  -74  (2011)),  reaching  its 
worst result in 2012 (-75). Consumers have been regaining confidence since then and 
the indicator is almost back to the values of 2009: (-49 for the period 2014-2015). 

According to the ELSTAT report on household income and living conditions, 23 % 
of Greeks were below the poverty threshold9 in 2012. 
To date, the retail sector has been the subject of another five EGF applications10, all 
of which based on the global financial and economic crisis. 

Events giving rise to the redundancies and cessation of activity 

19. 

20. 

21. 

7 
8 
9 

10 

According to the Greek authorities, the events giving rise to these redundancies were 
the  bankruptcy  and  closure  of  the  company.  The  reasons  leading  the  company  to 
bankrupt were mainly two: (1) the decrease of available household income ― due to 
the  increase  in  the  tax  burden,  decreasing  salaries  (of  both  private  and  public 
employees)  and  rising  unemployment ―  resulting  in  a  huge  drop  of  purchasing 
power; (2) the drastic reduction of loans to enterprises and individuals due to the lack 
of cash in the Greek banks. According to the Bank of Greece, the annual growth rate 
for  loans  granted  to  households  and  enterprises  (excluding  financial  undertakings) 
has been negative since 2010 due to a cash shortfall in the Greek banks. 

In  1986  a  group  of  small  grocery  stores  in  the  prefecture  of  Larissa  set  up  a 
cooperative  (Supermarket  Larissa).  The  cooperative  grew  rapidly  and  opened  new 
stores integrating new worker-owners to the co-op. Eventually the enterprise had 42 
shops  and  600  workers  between  employees  and  worker-owners.  The  successful 
development of the cooperative was cut short by the economic and financial crisis.  

Due to the drop of purchasing power of Greek households following the decline of 
the Greek economy since the beginning of the economic and financial crisis, demand 
for  products,  even  basic  staples,  declined.  In  2015,  after  declining  for  five 
consecutive years, volumes of retail trade of food, beverages and tobacco were more 
than 30 % lower than the early-crisis volumes of 2008. 

Code: nama_fcs_k 
http://www.inegsee.gr/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Symperasmata.pdf 
In  Greece,  the  poverty  line  is  EUR 5 708  per  year  per  person  (for  individuals)  and  EUR 11 986  for 
households comprising two adults and two children up to 14 years old. 
EGF/2010/010 CZ Unilever, COM(2011) 61 
EGF/2010/016 ES Aragón retail, COM(2010) 615 
EGF/2011/004 GR ALDI Hellas, COM(2011) 580 
EGF/2014/009 GR Sprider Stores, COM(2014) 620 
EGF/2014/013 GR Odyssefs Fokas, COM(2014) 702 

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Volumes of retail trade of food, beverages and tobacco in Greece 
(annual percentage changes) 

2009 

2010 

2011 

2012 

2013 

2014-
201511 

Food-
beverages-
tobacco12 

Source: ELSTAT 

-6.1 

-5.5 

-6.0 

-9.0 

-9.1 

0.4 

22. 

The sales of Supermarket Larissa followed the same downturn as the Greek economy 
and in 2013 sales were 24 % lower than in 2009. 

11 
12 

Period covers from Jan. 2014-Nov. 2015 
Comprising big food stores and specialised food-beverage-tobacco stores. 

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Supermarket Larissa ABEE  
(sales - million euro) 

2009 

67,6 

2010 

66,9 

2011 

64,5 

2012 

58,6 

2013 

51,6 

23. 

In  order  to  adjust  to  the  market  situation,  the  enterprise  applied  some  austerity 
measures  such  as  wage  cuts  (-30%),  renegotiation  of  the  leases,  putting  off  the 
maturity  date  of  bills,  proposing  cheaper  products,  reducing  operation  cost  (e.g.  by 
reducing  the  lighting  hours  in  the  stores),  etc.  However  the  enterprise  could  not 
overcome  its  losses  and  eventually  had  to  close  the  shops  one  after  another  during 
Q2 2014. The closure of the enterprise and subsequent layoffs eventually happened 
one year later (Q2  2015), when the court ruled on the bankruptcy request filled by a 
supplier of Supermarket Larissa. 

Expected impact of the redundancies as regards the local, regional or national economy and 

employment 

24. 

The Greek authorities argue that the redundancies in Supermarket Larissa will further 
aggravate the unemployment situation, which already deteriorated as a result of the 
economic  and  financial  crisis  and  seems  to  be  particularly  fragile.  Greece  has  the 
highest  unemployment  rates  amongst  EU  Member  states  and  the  fifth  highest 
worldwide13. 

Unemployment rate 

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

EU-28

Greece

2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Source: Eurostat14 and ELSTAT 

In  addition,  Supermarket  Larissa's  debts  to  third  parties  are  estimated  at  about 
EUR 33,5 million. This is believed to affect particularly the supermarket’s suppliers, 
resulting in cascading bankruptcies and additional redundancies. 

Most  of  the  redundancies  (97,5 %)  are  concentrated  in  Thessalia,  in  the  NUTS 
level 3  territory  of  Larissa  (EL142).  The  employment  situation  in  Thessaly  which 

Source: ILO. 
http://www.ilo.org/global/research/global-reports/global-employment-
trends/2014/WCMS_233936/lang--en/index.htm 
Eurostat Code tsdec450. 

25. 

26. 

13 

14 

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seemed to be slightly better than the national average (51,8 % vs 50,8  % in 2012 and 
49,6 %  vs  48,8 %  in  2013)  was  slightly  worse  in  2014  (49 %  vs  49,4 %)15. 
Furthermore,  there  is  a  lack  of  job  offers  in  the  region  if  compared  with  the  high 
number  of  job  seekers.  As  a  result,  73,5 %  of  the  unemployed  persons  have  been 
unemployed for more than 12 months in Thessalia16. 

Targeted beneficiaries and proposed actions 

Targeted beneficiaries 

27. 

All  the  redundant  workers  are  expected  to  participate  in  the  measures.  The 
breakdown of these workers by sex, citizenship and age group is as follows: 

Sex: 

Category 

Men: 

Women: 

Citizenship:  EU citizens: 

non-EU citizens: 

Age group: 

15-24 years: 

25-29 years: 

30-54 years: 

55-64 years: 

over 64 years: 

Number of  
targeted beneficiaries 

194 

363 

(34,8 %) 

(65,2 %) 

556 

(99,8 %) 

1 

0 

(0,2 %) 

(0,0 %) 

50 

(9,0 %) 

479 

(86,0 %) 

28 

0 

(5,0 %) 

(0,0 %) 

28. 

Additionally, Greece will provide personalised services co-financed by the EGF up 
to  543  young  people  not  in  employment,  education  or  training  (NEETs)  under  the 
age of 30 on the date of submission of the application, given that the redundancies 
referred  to  in  paragraph  5  occurred  in  the  NUTS  level  2  regions  of  Thessalia 
(Θεσσαλία)  (EL14)  and  Central  Macedonia  (Κεντρική  Μακεδονία)  (EL12),  which 
are eligible under the Youth Employment Initiative. 

29. 

The  total  estimated  number  of  targeted  beneficiaries  expected  to  participate  in  the 
measures, including NEETs, is therefore 1 100. 

Eligibility of the proposed actions 

30. 

The personalised services to be provided to redundant workers and NEETs consist of 
the following actions:  

– 

Occupational guidance: This accompanying measure, which will be offered to 
all participants, covers the following stages: 

1 Information  addressed  to  NEETs.  Unlike    the  targeted  workers,  who  are 
already  identified  (Supermarket  Larissa  former  employees  and  owner-
workers),  the  group  of  targeted  NEETs  is  still  to  be  defined.  Among  other 
criteria for selecting the targeted NEETs, the Greek authorities will use criteria 
aligned  with 
the  Greek  Youth  Guarantee 
Implementation Plan (i.e. young people at risk of exclusion, level of household 

the  criteria 

included 

in 

15 
16 

Source: Eurostat [codes (lfst_r_lfe2emprt) and (lfsi_emp_a)] 
Source: Eurostat code [lfst_r_lfu2ltu] 

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income,  education  level,  duration  of  unemployment,  etc.),  as  well  as 
expressions  of  interest.  For  this  purpose  they  intend  to  launch  information 
campaigns aimed specifically at the NEETs. 

2 Intake  and  registration.  The  first  measure  provided  to  all  participants 
(workers and  NEETs)  includes information  on  available services  and  training 
programmes and on skills and training requirements.  

3 Personal  and  occupational  paper.  This  is  intended  to  help  workers  and 
NEETs  to  identify  their  own  strengths,  weaknesses  and  the  opportunities 
related  to  their  own  interests,  to  establish  a  realistic  career  plan.    Following 
these  assessments,  a  personal  and  occupational  paper  is  put  together,  setting 
out an individual project and an action plan. 

4 Job-search  support  and  career  guidance.  This  includes:  (1) training  in 
horizontal  issues  such  as  development  of  social  skills,  adjustment  to  new 
situations, decision making; (2) job-search assistance including information on 
available  jobs,  active  research  of  the  local  and  regional  employment 
opportunities, job-search techniques and training on drafting of CVs and cover 
letters and how to prepare a job interview; (3) career guidance : the counsellors 
will provide vocational guidance to the dismissed workers and NEETs and will 
steer them towards specific job offers. 

5 Guidance  towards  employment.  The  counsellors  will  also  accompany  the 
workers and NEETs during the implementation of their training pathways and 
individual  plans  of  reintegration  into  employment.  The  participants  interested 
in  setting  up  a  business  will  receive  general  support  and  counselling  towards 
entrepreneurship in the framework of this occupational guidance measure. 

6 Monitoring.  This  provides  a  follow  up  of  the  participants  during  the  six 
months that follow the end of the implementation of the measures. This activity 
will be carried out at Member State expense. 

Training, retraining and vocational training. This measure consists in providing 
vocational  training  courses  to  workers  and  NEETs  which  correspond  to  their 
needs, as identified during the occupational consultancy activity, and in areas 
and  sectors  with  good  developments  prospects  and  that  correspond  to 
recognised  needs  in  the  labour  market.  The  training  courses  might  also  be 
complemented with internships. 

Contribution to business start-up. The workers or NEETs who set up their own 
businesses will receive up to EUR 15 000 as a contribution to cover setting-up 
costs.  In  Greece,  one  of  the  major  difficulties  that  entrepreneurs  face  when 
starting up a business is access to funding. Banks, due to the shortage of cash, 
turn  down  the  majority  of  loan  requests.  This  measure  aims  to  promote 
entrepreneurship  through  this  financial  support.  The  contribution  will  be  paid 
in instalments after reaching certain milestones such as drawing up a business 
plan,  registering 
the  background  as  co-op 
members/worker-owners  of  a  significant  number  of  beneficiaries,  the  Greek 
authorities consider it highly likely that some of the new businesses will take 
the  form  of  social  cooperatives  and  thus  be  eligible  for  assistance  under  the 
Greek law on the social economy and social entrepreneurship17. 

the  enterprise,  etc.  Given 

– 

– 

17 

Law 4019/2011. 

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– 

Participation allowance and training allowance. To cover the expenses incurred 
when participating in the occupational guidance measure, the beneficiaries will 
receive EUR 50 per day of participation. While in training the allowance will 
be EUR 6 per hour. 

–  Mobility  allowance.  The  workers  or  NEETs  who  accept  a  job  involving  a 
change  of  residence  will  receive  a  lump  sum  of  EUR 2 000  to  cover  the 
necessary expenditure. 

The  proposed  actions,  here  described,  constitute  active  labour  market  measures 
within the eligible actions set out in Article 7 of the EGF Regulation. These actions 
do not substitute passive social protection measures. 

Greece has provided the required information on actions that are mandatory for the 
enterprise concerned by virtue of national law or pursuant to collective agreements. 
They have confirmed that a financial contribution from the EGF will not replace such 
actions. 

31. 

32. 

Estimated budget 

33. 

The  estimated 
total  costs  are  EUR 10 780 000,  comprising  expenditure  for 
personalised  services  of  EUR 10 530 000  and  expenditure  for  preparatory, 
information  and  publicity,  control  and  reporting  activities  of 
management, 
EUR 250 000. 

34. 

The total financial contribution requested from the EGF is EUR 6 468 000 (60 % of 
total costs). 

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Actions 

Estimated 
number of 
participants 

Estimated cost 
per participant 
(EUR) 

Estimated total 
costs 
(EUR) 

Personalised services (Actions under Article 7(1)(a) and (c) of the EGF Regulation) 

Occupational guidance 

1 100 

1 250 

1 375 000 

Training, retraining and vocational training 

1 100 

2 690 

2 960 000 

Contribution to business start-up  

200 

15 000 

3 000 000 

Sub-total (a): 
Percentage of the package of personalised 
services  

– 

7 335 000 

(69,66 %) 

Allowances and incentives (Actions under Article 7(1)(b) of the EGF Regulation) 

Participation allowance  

1 100 

1 250 

1 375 000 

Training allowance 

Mobility allowance and contribution to 
commuting expenses  

Sub-total (b): 
Percentage of the package of personalised 
services: 

Actions under Article 7(4) of the EGF Regulation 

1. Preparatory activities 

2. Management 

3. Information and publicity 

4. Control and reporting 

Sub-total (c): 
Percentage of the total costs 

Total costs (a + b + c): 

EGF contribution (60 % of total costs) 

900 

100 

1 800 

1 620 000 

2 000 

200 000 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

3 195 000 

(30,34 %) 

40 000 

110 000 

50 000 

50 000 

250 000 

(2,32 %) 

10 780 000 

6 468 000 

35. 

The costs of the actions identified in the table above as actions under Article 7(1)(b) 
of  the  EGF  Regulation  do  not  exceed  35 %  of  the  total  costs  for  the  coordinated 
package of personalised services. Greece confirmed that these actions are conditional 
on  the  active  participation  of  the  targeted  beneficiaries  in  job-search  or  training 
activities. 

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36. 

Greece confirmed that the costs of investments for self-employment, business start-
ups and employee take-overs will not exceed EUR 15 000 per beneficiary. 

Period of eligibility of expenditure 

37. 

38. 

Greece  started  providing  the  personalised  services  to  the  targeted  workers  and 
NEETs  on  26  February  2016.  The  expenditure  on  the  actions  for  workers  will 
therefore  be  eligible  for  a  financial  contribution  from  the  EGF  from  26  February 
2016 to 26 February 2018 whilst the expenditure on the actions for NEETs will be 
eligible  for  a  financial  contribution  from  the  EGF  from  26  February  2016  to  31 
December 2017. 

Greece started incurring the administrative expenditure to implement the EGF on 26 
February  2016.  The  expenditure  for  preparatory,  management,  information  and 
publicity,  control  and  reporting  activities  shall  therefore  be  eligible  for  a  financial 
contribution from the EGF from 26 February 2016 to 26 August 2018.  

Complementarity with actions funded by national or Union funds 

39. 

40. 

The source of national pre-financing or co-funding is the National Public Investment 
Programme. 

Greece  has  confirmed  that  the  measures  described  above  receiving  a  financial 
contribution  from  the  EGF  will  not  also  receive  financial  contributions  from  other 
Union financial instruments. 

Procedures  for  consulting  the  targeted  beneficiaries  or  their  representatives  or  the  social 

partners as well as local and regional authorities 

41. 

Greece has indicated that the co-ordinated package of personalised services has been 
drawn  up  in  consultation  with  the  representatives  of  the  targeted  beneficiaries,  the 
Labour  Institute  of  the  Greek  General  Confederation  (GSEE)  and  the  Manpower 
Employment  Organisation  (OAED)18.  There  was  a  first  contact  meeting  in  March 
2015  to  check  the  eligibility  of  a  case  in  support  of  the  former  workers  of 
supermarket Larissa. After various contacts between the Ministry of Labour, Social 
Security  and  Social  Solidarity  and  the  workers’  representatives,  the  proposed 
application and the content of the integrated package of measures were agreed in July 
2015. 

Management and control systems 

42. 

The application contains a description of the management and control system which 
specifies  the  responsibilities  of  the  bodies  involved.  Greece  has  notified  the 
Commission  that  the  financial  contribution  will  be  managed  and  controlled  by  the 
same  bodies  that  manage  and  control  the  European  Social  Fund  (ESF)  funding  in 
Greece.  The  ESF  Actions  Implementation  Authority  (EYE-EKT)  will  act  as 
managing  authority,  the  Financial  Control  Committee  of  the  General  Secretariat  of 
Fiscal Policy of the Ministry of Finances as audit authority and the Special Service 
for  Certification  and  Verification  of  Co-financed  Programs  of  the  Ministry  of 
Economy, Infrastructure, Shipping and Tourism as certification authority. 

Commitments provided by the Member State concerned 

43. 

Greece has provided all necessary assurances regarding the following:  

18 

O.A.E.D.  is  the  main  instrument  for  implementation  of  Government  Policy  on  Employment.  It  is  a 
Legal Entity of Public Law and directly accountable to the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. 

EN 

12 

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– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

the principles of equality of treatment and non-discrimination will be respected 
in the access to the proposed actions and their implementation, 

the  requirements  laid  down  in  national  and  EU  legislation  concerning 
collective redundancies have been complied with, 

the proposed actions will not receive financial support from other Union funds 
or financial instruments and any double financing will be prevented, 

the  proposed  actions  will  be  complementary  with  actions  funded  by  the 
Structural Funds, 

the  financial  contribution  from  the  EGF  will  comply  with  the  procedural  and 
material Union rules on State aid. 

BUDGETARY IMPLICATION 

Budgetary proposal 

44. 

45. 

46. 

The  EGF  shall  not  exceed  a  maximum  annual  amount  of  EUR 150 million  (2011 
prices),  as  laid  down  in  Article 12  of  Council  Regulation  (EU,  Euratom) 
No 1311/2013  of  2  December  2013  laying  down  the  multiannual  financial 
framework for the years 2014-202019. 

Having examined the application in respect of the conditions set out in Article 13(1) 
of  the  EGF  Regulation,  and  having  taken  into  account  the  number  of  targeted 
beneficiaries, the proposed actions and the estimated costs, the Commission proposes 
to mobilise the EGF for the amount of EUR 6 468 000, representing 60 % of the total 
costs  of  the  proposed  actions,  in  order  to  provide  a  financial  contribution  for  the 
application. 

The  proposed  decision  to  mobilise  the  EGF  will  be  taken  jointly  by  the  European 
Parliament  and  the  Council,  as  laid  down  in  point  13  of  the  Interinstitutional 
Agreement of 2 December 2013 between the European Parliament, the Council and 
the Commission on budgetary discipline, on cooperation in budgetary matters and on 
sound financial management20. 

Related acts 

47. 

48. 

At the same time as it presents this proposal for a decision to mobilise the EGF, the 
Commission will present to the European Parliament and to the Council a proposal 
for a transfer to the relevant budgetary line for the amount of EUR 6 468 000. 

At the same time as  it adopts this  proposal for a decision to mobilise the  EGF, the 
Commission  will  adopt  a  decision  on  a  financial  contribution,  by  means  of  an 
implementing  act,  which  will  enter  into  force  on  the  date  at  which  the  European 
Parliament and the Council adopt the proposed decision to mobilise the EGF. 

19 
20 

OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 884. 
OJ C 373, 20.12.2013, p. 1. 

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13 

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Proposal for a 

DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on the mobilisation of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund  
(application from Greece – EGF/2015/011 GR/Supermarket Larissa) 

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, 

Having  regard  to  Regulation  (EU)  No 1309/2013  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the 
Council of 17 December 2013 on the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (2014-2020) 
and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1927/200621, and in particular Article 15(4) thereof, 

Having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 2 December 2013 between the European 
Parliament,  the  Council  and  the  Commission  on  budgetary  discipline,  on  cooperation  in 
budgetary matters and on sound financial management22, and in particular point 13 thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

21 
22 
23 

The  European  Globalisation  Adjustment  Fund  (EGF)  aims  to  provide  support  for 
workers  made  redundant  and  self-employed  persons  whose  activity  has  ceased  as  a 
result  of  major  structural  changes  in  world  trade  patterns  due  to  globalisation,  as  a 
result of a continuation of the global financial and economic crisis, or as a result of a 
new  global  financial  and  economic  crisis,  and  to  assist  them  with  their  reintegration 
into the labour market. 

The  EGF  is  not  to  exceed  a  maximum  annual  amount  of  EUR 150  million  (2011 
in  Article 12  of  Council  Regulation  (EU,  Euratom) 
prices),  as 
No 1311/201323. 

laid  down 

26 

2015, 

Greece 

November 

On 
application 
EGF/2015/011 GR/Supermarket  Larissa  for  a  financial  contribution  from  the  EGF, 
following redundancies in Supermarket Larissa ABEE in Greece. It was supplemented 
by additional information provided in accordance with Article 8(3) of Regulation (EU) 
No 1309/2013.  That  application  complies  with  the  requirements  for  determining  a 
financial  contribution  from  the  EGF  as  laid  down  in  Article 13  of  Regulation  (EU) 
No 1309/2013. 

submitted 

an 

In accordance with Article 6(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1309/2013, Greece has decided 
to  provide  personalised  services  co-financed  by  the  EGF  also  to  543  young  persons 
not in employment, education or training (NEETs). 

The EGF should, therefore, be mobilised in order to provide a financial contribution of 
EUR 6 468 000 in respect of the application submitted by Greece. 

OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 855. 
OJ C 373, 20.12.2013, p. 1. 
Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1311/2013 laying down the multiannual financial framework for 
the years 2014-2020 (OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 884). 

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(6) 

In  order  to  minimise  the  time  taken  to  mobilise  the  EGF,  this  decision  should  apply 
from the date of its adoption, 

HAVE ADOPTED THIS DECISION:  

For  the  general  budget  of  the  European  Union  for  the  financial  year  2016,  the  European 
Globalisation  Adjustment  Fund  shall  be  mobilised  to  provide  the  sum  of  EUR 6 468 000  in 
commitment and payment appropriations. 

Article 1 

Article 2 

This Decision shall enter into force on the day of its publication in the Official Journal of the 
European Union. It shall apply from [the date of its adoption]. 

Done at Brussels, 

For the European Parliament 
The President 

For the Council 
The President 

  

Date to be inserted by the Parliament before the publication in OJ. 

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