Meer dan 2 500 vroegere arbeiders van Mura krijgen hulp met een waarde van € 2 247 940 van het Europees Fonds voor de aanpassing aan de Globalisering (en)
The European Commission has approved an application from Slovenia for assistance from the European Globalisation adjustment Fund (EGF). The application was submitted after 2 554 employees were made redundant by Mura, European Fashion Design, Proizvodjna oblacil, d.d., a company operating in the clothing sector. The application will now be sent to the European Parliament and EU Ministers (the EU's Budgetary Authority) for approval.
EU Employment Commissioner László Andor said: "About 7 % of people employed in the region of Pomurje, where Mura is located, were employees of this clothing company. I am therefore glad that the Slovenian authorities have chosen to apply for EGF funding, which will help to get these workers back into employment."
The Slovenian application relates to 2 554 redundancies in Mura, European Fashion Design, Proizvodjna oblacil, d.d., an enterprise operating in the clothing sector. The dismissals were a consequence of the financial and economic crisis which resulted in a substantial decrease in demand: production in the clothing sector dropped by 14 % in the first quarter of 2009 compared to the same period in 2008.
This drop in demand was directly felt in Slovenia and in particular in the enterprise Mura. The resulting termination of contracts by several big customers of Mura (Hugo Boss, Escada and René Lezard) and the shortfall of orders due to the economic and financial crisis are at the base of these redundancies.
The redundancies occured in the region de Pomurje, where Mura is based. At the beginning of 2008 Mura employed 3 135 workers, representing more than 7 % of people employed in the region of Pomurje. This region has been economically lagging behind the Slovenian average; therefore the redundancies in Mura will have a significant local and regional impact.
The package of EGF assistance for the former 2 554 Mura workers will help them on their way back into employment by offering them: job search assistance, training and re-training, occupational guidance, entrepreneurship promotion, aid for self-employment, motivation and neuro-linguistic workshops and on the job training. The total estimated cost of the package is almost € 3.45 million, of which the European Union has been asked to provide EGF assistance of € 2.25 million.
Background
There have been 65 applications to the EGF since the start of its operations in January 2007, for a total amount of about €373.6 million, helping more than 70,000 workers. EGF applications relate to the following sectors: automotive (France, Spain, Portugal, Austria, Germany, Sweden); textiles (Italy, Malta, Lithuania, Portugal, Spain and Belgium); mobile phones (Finland and Germany); domestic appliances (Italy); computers and electronic products (Ireland and Portugal); mechanical/electronic (Denmark and Germany); repair and maintenance of aircraft and spacecraft (Ireland); crystal glass (Ireland); ceramics and natural stone (Spain); construction (Netherlands, Ireland and Lithuania); carpentry and joinery (Spain); electrical equipment (Lithuania) publishing and printing industry (Netherlands), furniture (Lithuania), retail trade (Czech Republic and Spain) and wholesale trade (Netherlands). Final reports from the earlier cases supported by the EGF show strong results in helping workers stay in the labour market and find new jobs.
The EGF, an initiative first proposed by President Barroso to provide help for people who lose their jobs due to the impact of globalisation, was established by the European Parliament and the Council at the end of 2006. In June 2009, the EGF rules were revised to strengthen the role of the EGF as an early intervention instrument. It forms part of Europe's response to the financial and economic crisis. The revised EGF Regulation entered into force on 2 July 2009 and applies to all applications received from 1 May 2009 onwards.
Further information
EGF website : http://ec.europa.eu/egf
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