Oostenrijk en Duitsland willen toegang Oost-Europeanen tot eigen arbeidsmarkt nog drie jaar extra blokkeren (en)
Bilateral talks between the Austrian Economics Minister and the German Labour Minister - guest speech at the Deutsche Telekom anniversary reception
Berlin (BMWA-OTS) Austria and Germany intend to coordinate their approach concerning the extension of the three-year transition period for access of workers from the new Member States to the domestic employment market, the Austrian Federal Minister for Economics and Labour, Martin Bartenstein, and the German Vice-Chancellor and Minister for Labour and Social Affairs, Franz Müntefering, stressed today following a bilateral meeting in Berlin.
It was a fact that there was pressure from the new Member States, and the developments in the employment markets in Austria and Germany meant that a joint approach was both necessary and sensible. With regard to the Commission's report, he had used today's meeting in Berlin to discuss this subject intensively with the German Labour and Social Affairs Minister, Bartenstein said. Germany and Austria would at all events proceed jointly and inform the Commission of the application of the transition periods in time before 1 May.
During the talks, the Austrian Presidency's priorities were also discussed in detail. For example, there were two delicate points in the Working Time Directive, on which a consensus had to be reached. Austria would endeavour to find a compromise acceptable to everyone on the questions of opt-out and whether maximum limits on working time should apply to the employee or to the employment contract.
With regard to the main topic of the Informal Meeting of the Ministers for Employment and Social Affairs in Villach, "Flexicurity - Flexibility Through Security", Bartenstein emphasised that if top-class performance was to be demanded of employees in matters of flexibility, then they should also be offered top-class security. Vice-Chancellor Müntefering had added that this came very close to his concept of "changing security", in that it proposed security for employees in times of rapid change. Bartenstein advocated involving the European social partners in this matter as well as in the consultations on the Working Time Directive and the Services Directive.
Confidence in Project Europe must be increased
In his guest speech following the discussions with Müntefering at the New Year's reception given by Deutsche Telekom in Berlin, Bartenstein stressed "The most important task of the Austrian EU Presidency is to increase citizens' confidence in Project Europe". Europe must prove that it can solve the problems that concern people. Hence its goal under the slogan "Europe 4 People - People 4 Europe" was to bring Europe closer to the population, Bartenstein explained.
Objectives of the Presidency
"The EU Presidency is a service to Europe and the world", Bartenstein continued. The two thousand or so meetings and sessions would focus on promoting and safeguarding employment and growth, further developing the specific European social model, guaranteeing collective security in Europe and positioning the EU more strongly as a global player and as a responsible international partner.
Bartenstein ranks the creation of more jobs and growth as one of the most urgent tasks of European politics. The Lisbon Strategy drawn up to tackle this problem had been designed from the outset as the European answer to the challenges of globalisation, though it had not yet achieved the ambitious objectives due to conflicting priorities, poor coordination and, above all, a lack of determination in political dealings, according to the Minister. However, the weaknesses of the European social system had nothing to do with globalisation.
Development of employment markets under the "Flexicurity" banner
With increasing demands on companies regarding their adaptation to global market developments, demands on their employees were also rising, Bartenstein noted. Success in the workplace would increasingly depend on employees' positive attitude towards lifelong learning, flexibility and mobility. Europe therefore required an employment market model based on a balance between flexibility and security. Flexibility and security were not a contradiction in terms, but mutually beneficial, the Minister said. For employees, efficient social security systems constituted the basis for the mobility and adaptability required by companies, and the international competitiveness of the European companies that were flexible in this respect was, in turn, the basis for the sustainable financing of these very systems.
"We must explain to people that the increase in European competitiveness does not pose a threat - nor is it a necessary evil, but an investment in a bright future for Europe, and it represents prosperity and security for them and the generations to come. This is not an easy task but if we succeed, we need have no further worries on the subject of Euro-scepticism", Bartenstein concluded.
Contact:
Federal Ministry for Economics and Labour
Office of the Minister: Dr. Ingrid Nemec, Tel.: (01) 711 00-5108
Press officer: Dr. Harald Hoyer, Tel.: (01) 711 00-5130