EU job-search aid: €1.8m for 800 former retail workers in the Netherlands

EU job search aid worth €1,818,750 for 800 former retail workers in the Netherlands was approved in plenary in a vote on Tuesday. The workers were made redundant by six retail trade companies which recently went bankrupt in the Drenthe and Overijssel provinces. The European Globalisation Adjustment Fund i (EGF) aid still needs to be approved by the Council of Ministers i on 17 February.

The redundancies were due to the effects of the global financial and economic crisis, which EU Commission i figures show have hit the retail sector more recently than some others. Some of the biggest retail outlets in the Netherlands went bankrupt by the end of 2015. In both the Drenthe and Overijssel provinces, the retail sector is one of the biggest in the regional economy.

Today's decision will help to prepare the former workers at the six Dutch companies (Aktiesport, Dolcis, Manfield, Perry Sport, Scapino and V&D) for new job opportunities.

The resolution by rapporteur Nedzhmi Ali (ALDE, BG), recommending that the aid request be approved was passed by 616 votes to 73, with 6 abstentions.

Background

The contributes to packages of tailor-made services to help redundant workers find new jobs. Its annual ceiling is €150 million. The measures co-financed by the EGF include active career guidance, job-search support, vocational training and training in transversal skills, promoting entrepreneurship and contributing to business start-ups.

REF. : 20170210IPR61907