Parliament approves €1.36 million in job search aid for redundant workers in Finland

500 workers made redundant by electrical manufacturer Broadcom Communications Finland and two suppliers will get EU aid worth €1.36 million to help them find new jobs, following Parliament's approval of a European Commission proposal on Wednesday.

Mobile chipset developer Broadcom closed down all its activities in Finland when its manufacturing was relocated to Asia and the United States. The company made 568 workers redundant across Finland, over 400 of whom live in the worst-hit region, Northern Ostrobothnia.

The redundancies are part of a trend hitting the entire Finnish electronics industry.

The EU resources from the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF) will finance coaching for500 of the redundant workers, grants to start their own enterprises, and hiring incentives. The overall cost of the operations, co-financed by Finland, is €2.2 million.

Parliament approved the EGF aid with 589 votes in favour, 78 against and 10 abstentions.

Background

The European Globalisation Adjustment Fund contributes to packages of tailor-made services to help redundant workers find new jobs. Its annual ceiling is €500 million.

Redundant workers are offered measures such as support for business start-ups, job-search assistance, occupational guidance and various kinds of training. In most cases, national authorities have already started the measures and will have their costs reimbursed by the EU once their applications are approved.

Next step

The European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF) aid also needs to be approved by the EU Council of Ministers, on 13 July.

Additional information

Specialist: Eszter.

Procedure: budgetary

REF. : 20150703IPR73911