CELEX: 51999PC0044
Language: en
Date: 1999-02-01
Title: Amended proposal for a Council Regulation (EC) on the European Social Fund

18.3.1999             EN               Official Journal of the European Communities                          C 74/7
                                                              II
                                                      (Preparatory Acts)
                                                 COMMISSION
                     Amended proposal for a Council Regulation (EC) on the European Social Fund (Î)
                                                       (1999/C 74/07)
                                           COM(1999) 44 final — 98/0115(SYN)
               (Submitted by the Commission pursuant to Article 189a(2) of the EC Treaty on 1 February 1999)
               (Î)ÙOJ C 176, 9.6.1998.
                      ORIGINAL PROPOSAL                                            AMENDED PROPOSAL
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community, and in particular Article 125 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and
Social Committee,
Acting in accordance with Article 189c of the Treaty in
cooperation with the European Parliament,
  (1)ÙWhereas Council Regulation (EC) No .Ø.Ø. (general
      Regulation) replaced Regulation (EEC) No
      2052/88Ø(Î), as last amended by Regulation (EC)
      No 3193/94Ø(Ï) and Council Regulation (EEC) No
      4253/88Ø(Ð), as last amended by Regulation (EC)
      No 3193/94; whereas it is necessary also to replace
      Council Regulation (EEC) No 4255/88 of 19
      December 1988 laying down provisions for
      implementing the European Social FundØ(Ñ) (herein-
      after referred to as ‘the Fund’), as last amended by
      Regulation (EC) No 2084/93Ø(Ò);
(Î)ÙOJ L  185, 15.7.1988, p. 9.
(Ï)ÙOJ L  337, 24.12.1994, p. 11.
(Ð)ÙOJ L  374, 31.12.1988, p. 1.
(Ñ)ÙOJ L  374, 31.12.1988, p. 21.
(Ò)ÙOJ L  193, 31.7.1993, p. 39.
 ---pagebreak--- C 74/8               EN                Official Journal of the European Communities                              18.3.1999
                    ORIGINAL PROPOSAL                                               AMENDED PROPOSAL
  (2)ÙWhereas Regulation (EC) No .Ø.Ø. (general Regu-             (2)ÙWhereas Regulation (EC) No .Ø.Ø. defines the
      lation) defines the general arrangements governing              general arrangements governing the Structural
      the Structural Funds as a whole and that it is                  Funds as a whole and that it is necessary to define
      necessary to define the nature of the activities                the nature of the activities which the European
      which the European Social Fund (hereinafter ‘the                Social Fund (hereinafter ‘the Fund’) may finance
      Fund’) may finance within Objectives 1, 2 and 3, in             within Objectives 1, 2 and 3, in the Community
      the Community initiative combating discrimination               initiative combating discrimination and inequalities
      and inequalities in access to the labour market, and            of any kind in access to the labour market, and
      under innovative measures and technical assistance;             under innovative measures and technical assistance;
  (3)ÙWhereas it is necessary to define the mission of the
      Fund in relation to the tasks prescribed in the
      Treaty and in the context of the priorities agreed by
      the Community in the fields of human resource
      development and employment;
  (4)ÙWhereas the conclusions of the European Council
      in Amsterdam in June 1997 and its resolution on
      growth and employmentØ(Î) initiated the implemen-
      tation of the European employment strategy, the
      annual guidelines on employment, and the process
      of establishing national action plans for
      employment;
  (5)ÙWhereas it is necessary to redefine the scope of the        (5)ÙWhereas it is necessary to redefine the scope of the
      Fund, in particular following the restructuring and             Fund, in particular following the restructuring and
      simplification of the objectives of the Structural              simplification of the objectives of the Structural
      Funds and following the implementation of the                   Funds taking account of the European employment
      European employment strategy and the national                   strategy and the national action plans for
      action plans for employment related to it;                      employment related to it;
  (6)ÙWhereas it is necessary to define a common
      framework for Fund interventions in all three
      Structural Fund objectives so as to ensure
      consistency and complementarity of actions across
      those objectives to improve the workings of the
      labour market and to develop human resources;
  (7)ÙWhereas the Member States and the Commission                (7)ÙWhereas the Member States and the Commission
      should ensure that programming and implemen-                    should ensure that programming and implemen-
      tation of the actions financed by the Fund in the               tation of the actions financed by the Fund in the
      context of all the objectives contribute to the                 context of all the objectives contribute to the
      promotion of equality between women and men;                    promotion of equality of opportunity between
                                                                      women and men, including the removal of unequal
                                                                      treatment;
(Î)ÙOJ C 236, 2.8.1997, p. 3.
 ---pagebreak--- 18.3.1999           EN                Official Journal of the European Communities                              C 74/9
                    ORIGINAL PROPOSAL                                              AMENDED PROPOSAL
                                                                 (7a)ÙWhereas the Member States and the Commission
                                                                       should further ensure that the planning and
                                                                       implementation of measures financed by the Fund
                                                                       under all objectives help to promote the inte-
                                                                       gration of disadvantaged groups and individuals
                                                                       into the labour market;
 (8)ÙWhereas the Member States and the Commission                (8)ÙWhereas the Member States and the Commission
     should ensure that the social and labour market                 should ensure that the social dimension of the
     dismension of the information society is duly taken             information society and the employment aspect are
     into account in implementing actions financed by                duly taken into account in implementing actions
     the Fund;                                                       financed by the Fund;
 (9)ÙWhereas it is necessary to ensure that operations
     relating to industrial adaptation should meet the
     general needs of workers of either sex resulting
     from industrial change and changes in production
     systems identified or predicted and are not designed
     to benefit a single firm or a particular industry;
     whereas particular attention should be devoted to
     small and medium-sized enterprises and to
     enhancing access to training and to improving work
     organisation;
(10)ÙWhereas it is necessary to ensure that the Fund
     continues to strengthen employment and job
     qualifications by supporting anticipation, coun-
     selling, networking and training operations
     throughout the Community and that the activities
     funded must therefore be horizontal, covering the
     economy as a whole, without a priori reference to
     specific industries or sectors;
(11)ÙWhereas it is necessary to redefine eligible actions
     in order to increase the effectiveness of the
     implementation of policy aims in the context of all
     objectives under which the Fund takes action;
     whereas it is necessary to define expenditure
     eligible for Fund assistance within the framework of
     the partnership;
(12)ÙWhereas it is necessary to supplement and specify
     the content of plans and forms of assistance,
     especially following the redefinition of Objective 3;
(13)ÙWhereas it is necessary to ensure that the support
     of the Fund is concentrated under each objective on
     the most important needs and the most effective
     operations;
 ---pagebreak--- C 74/10             EN                Official Journal of the European Communities                               18.3.1999
                   ORIGINAL PROPOSAL                                                AMENDED PROPOSAL
                                                                (13a)ÙWhereas it is necessary to include provisions that
                                                                       ensure that in the decentralised implementation of
                                                                       aid from the Fund sufficient account is taken of
                                                                       the Community’s social and employment policy
                                                                       priorities; this applies in particular to preventive
                                                                       labour market policy and equal treatment of men
                                                                       and women at work;
(14)ÙWhereas it is necessary to introduce arrangements          (14)ÙWhereas it is necessary to introduce arrangements
     whereby local groups may gain simple and rapid                  whereby local groups, including non-governmental
     access to Fund support for operations concerned                 organisations, may gain simple and rapid access to
     with combating social exclusion and thereby build               Fund support for operations concerned with
     up their capacity for action in that field;                     combating social exclusion and thereby build up
                                                                     their capacity for action in that field;
(15)ÙWhereas measures of major importance to the
     Community undertaken at the initiative of the
     Commission have an important role to play in
     achieving the general objectives of Community
     structural action referred to in Article 1 of Regu-
     lation (EC) No .Ø.Ø.; whereas such initiatives should
     primarily promote policy innovation and trans-
     national cooperation;
(16)ÙWhereas the Fund also contributes to support for
     technical assistance, innovative measures, and
     preparatory, monitoring, evaluation measures and
     control in accordance with Articles 21 and 22 of
     Regulation (EC) No .Ø.Ø. (general Regulation);
(17)ÙWhereas it is appropirate to lay down the powers
     for the adoption of the implementing provisions
     and to set out transitional provisions;
(18)ÙWhereas it is necessary to repeal Regulation (EEC)
     4255/88,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
                         Article 1
                         Mission
Within the framework of the task entrusted to the               Within the framework of the task entrusted to the
European Social Fund (hereinafter referred to as ‘the           European Social Fund (hereinafter referred to as ‘the
Fund’) by Article 123 of the Treaty and of the tasks            Fund’) by Article 123 of the Treaty and of the tasks
entrusted to the Structural Funds pursuant to Article           entrusted to the Structural Funds pursuant to Article
130b of the Treaty and laid down in Regulation (EC)             130b of the Treaty and laid down in Regulation (EC)
 ---pagebreak--- 18.3.1999             EN               Official Journal of the European Communities                                 C 74/11
                     ORIGINAL PROPOSAL                                              AMENDED PROPOSAL
No .Ø.Ø. (general Regulation), the Fund shall support            No .Ø.Ø. (general Regulation), the Fund shall support
human resource development measures to promote a                 measures to prevent and combat unemployment and
high level of employment and social protection, equality         human resource development measures to promote a
between men and women, sustainable development, and              high level of social protection, sustainable development,
economic and social cohesion. In particular, the Fund            and economic and social cohesion. In particular, the
shall contribute to the actions undertaken in pursance of        Fund shall contribute to the actions undertaken in
the European employment strategy and the annual                  pursuance of the European employment strategy and the
guidelines on employment.                                        annual guidelines on employment.
                           Article 2
                    Scope of intervention
1.ÚÙThe Fund shall support and complement the
activities of Member States in the following policy fields,
in particular in the context of their multiannual national
action plans for employment:
(a)Ùdeveloping active labour policies to combat unem-            (a)Ùdeveloping and supporting active labour market
     ployment, to prevent both women and men from                    policies to combat and prevent unemployment, to
     moving into long-term unemployment, to facilitate               prevent long-term unemployment, to facilitate the
     the reintegration of the long-term unemployed into              reintegration of the long-term unemployed into the
     the labour market, and to support the occupational              labour market, and to support the occupational inte-
     integration of young people and of returners to the             gration of young people and of returners to the
     labour market;                                                  labour market;
(b) promoting social inclusion and equal opportunities
     for all in accessing the labour market;
(c) developing education and training systems as part of         (c) expanding and improving training and education
     lifelong learning policy to enhance and sustain                 systems to facilitate access to and integration into the
     employability, mobility, and integration into the               labour market as part of lifelong learning policy,
     labour market;                                                  enhancing and sustaining employability, encouraging
                                                                     occupational mobility, and improving integration
                                                                     into the labour market;
(d) improving systems to promote a skilled, trained and          (d) improving systems and implementing measures to
     adaptable workforce, foster innovation and adapta-              promote a skilled, trained and adaptable workforce,
     bility in work organisation, support entrepreneurship           fostering innovation and adaptability in work organi-
     and employment creation, and boost human                        sation, supporting entrepreneurship and employment
     potential in research, science and technology;                  creation, enhancing skills and boosting human
                                                                     potential in research, science and techology;
(e) improving the participation of women in the labour           (e) specific measures to improve the particiaption of
     market including their career development, their                women in the labour market including their career
     access to new job opportunities and to entrepre-                development, their access to new job opportunities
     neurship, and reducing vertical and horizontal segre-           and to entrepreneurship, and reducing gender-
     gation in the labour market.                                    specific vertical and horizontal segregation in the
                                                                     labour market.
 ---pagebreak--- C 74/12              EN                 Official Journal of the European Communities                                18.3.1999
                     ORIGINAL PROPOSAL                                                AMENDED PROPOSAL
2.ÚÙThe Fund shall contribute to promoting local devel-
opment, including local employment initiatives and terri-
torial employment pacts.
3.ÚÙThe social and labour market dimensions of the
Information Society shall be taken into account, notably
by developing policy and programmes designed to
harness the employment potential of the information
society and to ensure equal access to its facilities and
benefits.
                           Article 3
                      Eligible activities
1.ÚÙThe financial support of the Fund shall in particular
be devoted to the following activities:
(a)Ùassistance to persons:
      (i)Ùeducation and vocational training (including                  (i)Ùeducation, apprenticeships and vocational
          vocational training equivalent to compulsory                      training     (including    vocational     training
          schooling), pre-training, including provision and                 equivalent      to     compulsory      schooling),
          upgrading of basic skills (including literacy),                   pre-training, including provision and upgrading
          guidance and counselling;                                         of basic skills (including literacy), measures to
                                                                            promote employability on the labour market,
                                                                            guidance, counselling and continuing training;
     (ii) employment aids and aids for self-employment;
    (iii) in the field of research, science and technology
          development, post-graduate training and the
          training of managers and technicians at research
          establishments and in enterprises;
    (iv) development of new sources of employment;                    (iv) development of new sources of employment, in
                                                                            particular in the sector of social entrepre-
                                                                            neurship;
(b) assistance to structures and systems:
      (i)Ùdevelopment and improvement of the quality                    (i)Ùdevelopment and improvement of training and
          and content of training, education and qualifi-                   education systems and of the quality and
          cation systems, including the training of                         content of skills provision in relation to the
          teachers, trainers and staff, and improving the                   labour market, including the training of
          access of workers to training and qualifications;                 teachers, trainers and staff, and improving the
                                                                            access of workers to training and qualifications;
 ---pagebreak--- 18.3.1999              EN               Official Journal of the European Communities                                 C 74/13
                      ORIGINAL PROPOSAL                                                 AMENDED PROPOSAL
      (ii) modernisation and improved          efficiency  of
           employment services;
     (iii) development of links between the world of work
           and education, training, and research es-
           tablishments;
     (iv) development of systems for forward planning                  (iv) development of systems for forward planning
           and anticipation of changes in employment and                     and anticipation of changes in employment and
           skills development, particularly in relation to                   skills development, particularly in relation to
           patterns of work and new forms of work                            patterns of work and new forms of work
           organisation;                                                     organisation, taking into account the need for
                                                                             the reconciliation of family and working life and
                                                                             the flexible transition from working life to
                                                                             retirement;
(c) accompanying measures:
       (i)Ùassistance in the provision of services to benefi-
           ciaries, including the provision of care services
           and facilities for dependants, healthcare and
           legal assistance;
      (ii) capacity-building, in particular to facilitate the           (ii) promoting socio-educational development to
           pathway approach to labour market integration;                    facilitate the pathway approach to labour
                                                                             market integration;
     (iii) awareness-raising, information and publicity.
2.ÚÙThe activities under paragraph 1 above may be
combined or complemented as part of a pathway
approach to labour market integration.
3.ÚÙThe Fund may finance activities in pursuit of                 3.ÚÙThe Fund may finance activities in pursuit of the
Articles 21 and 22 of Regulation (EC) No .Ø.Ø. (general           second subparagraph of Article 2(4) of Regulation (EC)
Regulation).                                                      No .Ø.Ø. (general Regulation).
                             Article 4
                  Concentration of assistance
1.ÚÙIn order to maximise the efficiency of Fund                   1.ÚÙIn order to maximise the efficiency of Fund
support, its interventions within each of the priority            support, its interventions within each of the priority
fields referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 2 will be            fields referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 2 will be
concentrated to cover a limited number of areas or                concentrated on the most important themes and needs
themes and be directed towards the most important                 and the most effective operations, having due regard to
needs and the most effective operations, having due               the relevant ex ante evaluations. To support these needs
regard to the relevant ex ante evaluations. To support            and operations, variable co-financing rates should be
these needs and operations, variable co-financing rates           used within the limits defined in Article 28 of Regulation
should be used within the limits defined in Article 28 of         (EC) No .Ø.Ø. (general Regulation).
Regulation (EC) No .Ø.Ø.Ø (general Regulation).
 ---pagebreak--- C 74/14              EN               Official Journal of the European Communities                             18.3.1999
                    ORIGINAL PROPOSAL                                             AMENDED PROPOSAL
2.ÚÙThe programming of Fund interventions shall,
subject to the results of the ex ante evaluations, ensure
that measures relating to each of the five policy fields
referred to in paragraph 1(a) to (e) of Article 2 above
will be undertaken. Fund appropriations available for the
intervention in question shall give a particular emphasis
to the policy fields set out in paragraph 1(d) and (e) of
Article 2.
Where the financial scale of the programme is insuf-
ficient to support effective policy intervention within
each of the five policy fields set out in paragraph 1 of
Article 2, the strategy set out in the programming of the
activities financed by the Fund must nevertheless take
explicit account of all of those policy fields.
3.ÚÙThe programming of Fund interventions shall                 3.ÚÙThe programming of Fund interventions shall
provide that at least 1Ø% of the Fund appropriations            provide that at least 1Ø% of the Fund appropriations
available for the intervention in question shall be             available for the intervention in question shall be
available, in conformity with Article 26 of Regulation          available, in conformity with Article 26 of Regulation
(EC) No .Ø.Ø. (general Regulation), for the distribution by     (EC) No .Ø.Ø.Ø (general Regulation), for the distribution
intermediary organisations of small grants with special         by intermediary organisations of small grants in
access arrangements for non-governmental organisations.         particular for local projects, with preference going to
                                                                non-governmental organisations or local partnerships
                                                                involving non-governmental organisations. Special access
                                                                arrangements shall be made for non-governmental
                                                                organisations.
                          Article 5
                    Community initiative
1.ÚÙPursuant to Article 19 of Regulation (EC) No .Ø.Ø.
(general Regulation), the Fund shall, in accordance with
Article 20(1) of that Regulation, contribute to the
implementation of the Community initiative for
combating discrimination and inequalities in access to the
labour market.
2.ÚÙIn conformity with Article 20(2) of Regulation
(EC) No .Ø.Ø. (general Regulation), the decisions on the
contribution of the Fund to the Community initiative
may extend the scope of assistance referred to in Article
3 of this Regulation to cover measures which can be
funded by the Regulations so as to permit the implemen-
tation of all the measures foreseen in the initiative.
 ---pagebreak--- 18.3.1999             EN                Official Journal of the European Communities              C 74/15
                      ORIGINAL PROPOSAL                                          AMENDED PROPOSAL
                           Article 6
         Innovative measures and technical assistance
1.ÚÙIn conformity with Article 21(2) of Regulation
(EC) No .Ø.Ø. (general Regulation), the Commission may
finance preparatory, monitoring and evaluation
operations in Member States or at Community level
which are necessary for the implementation of the
operations referred to the present Regulation. They may
include:
(a)Ùoperations of an innovatory nature and pilot projects
      concerning labour markets, employment, and
      vocational training;
(b) studies, technical assistance and the exchange of
      experience which has a multiplier effect;
(c) technical assistance for the preparation, monitoring,
      and evaluation, as well as control of operations
      financed by the Fund;
(d) operations directed, within the framework of social
      dialogue, at staff from enterprises in two or more
      Member States and concerning the transfer of special
      knowledge relating to areas of intervention by the
      Fund;
(e) informing the various partners involved, the final
      beneficiaries of assistance from the Fund and the
      general public.
2.ÚÙIn accordance with Article 21(2) of Regulation
(EC) No .Ø.Ø. (general Regulation), the field for projects
covered by point (a) of paragraph 1 of this Article is
extended by the decision for the participation of the
Funds to measures that can be financed under Regu-
lations (EC) No .Ø.Ø.Ø in order to implement all the
measures envisaged by the innovative actions concerned.
                           Article 7
                  Applications for assistance
Applications for a contribution from the Fund shall be
accompanied by a computerised form, drawn up by the
Commission in consultation with the Member States,
listing the operations regarding each form of assistance
so that it can be followed through from budgetary
commitment to final payment.
 ---pagebreak--- C 74/16             EN                Official Journal of the European Communities              18.3.1999
                   ORIGINAL PROPOSAL                                           AMENDED PROPOSAL
                          Article 8
                 Implementing provisions
The detailed implementing rules for this Regulation shall
be adopted by the Commission according to the
procedure laid down in Article 53 of Regulation (EC)
No .Ø.Ø. (general Regulation).
                          Article 9
                  Transitional provisions
The transitional provisions set out in Article 52 of Regu-
lation (EC) No .Ø.Ø.Ø (general Regulation) shall apply
mutatis mutandis to the present Regulation.
                         Article 10
                       Review clause
On a proposal from the Commission, the Council shall
review this Regulation by 31 December 2006.
It shall act on this proposal in accordance with the
procedure laid down in Article 130d of the Treaty.
                         Article 11
                           Repeal
Regulation (EEC) 4255/88 as amended by Regulation
(EEC) 2084/93 is hereby repealed as from 1 January
2000.
References to the repealed Regulation shall be construed
as references to this Regulation.
                         Article 12
                      Entry into force
This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day
following that of its publication in the Official Journal of
the European Communities.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and
directly applicable in all Member States.