1.

Agrees with the Commission that the conditions set out in Article 4(2), point (a), of the EGF Regulation are met and that Belgium is entitled to a financial contribution of EUR 2 661 564 under that Regulation, which represents 85 % of the total cost of EUR 3 131 252, comprising expenditure for personalised services of EUR 3 009 752 and expenditure for preparatory, management, information and publicity, control and reporting activities of EUR 121 500;

2.

Notes that the Belgian authorities submitted the application on 3 June 2024, and that, following the provision of additional information by Belgium, the Commission finalised its assessment on 16 September 2024 and notified it to Parliament on the same day;

3.

Notes that the application relates to 513 displaced workers whose activity has ceased in Match-Smatch; notes further that 365 displaced workers in total will be targeted beneficiaries and are expected to participate in the measures;

4.

Notes that Belgium applied for EGF co-financing solely to support former Match-Smatch workers living in Wallonia given the situation on the regional labour market (2023 unemployment rate of 8,2 %) and because more than 70 % of the layoffs are concentrated in Wallonia;

5.

Notes that half of the Match-Smatch redundant workers (46 %) are aged fifty or older, an age group that faces more barriers to employment, and that in the last quarter of 2023 there was a difference of 18,3 percentage points between the employment rate for the 20-54 age group (76,8 %) and the employment rate for the 55+ age group (58,5 %) at national level (6); stresses that reskilling and upskilling the workers in line with labour-market demand for qualified jobs will thus pose a challenge, all the more considering the large number of people dismissed at the same time;

6.

Welcomes the fact that the co-ordinated package of personalised services has been drawn up by Belgium in consultation with targeted beneficiaries, their representatives and the social partners to make the affected areas, and the overall labour market, more sustainable and resilient in the future;

7.

Recalls that personalised services to be provided to the workers and self-employed persons consist of the following actions: information services, occupational guidance and outplacement assistance, training, retraining and vocational training, support and contribution towards business creation, as well as incentives and allowances;

8.

Recalls that the Belgian authorities shall ensure that equality between men and women and the integration of the gender perspective are an integral part of and are promoted throughout the implementation period;

9.

Recalls that the Belgian authorities shall acknowledge the origin and ensure the visibility of the Union funding and highlight the Union added value of the intervention, by providing coherent, effective and targeted information to multiple audiences, including targeted information to beneficiaries, local and regional authorities, the social partners, the media and the public;

10.

Welcomes the fact that aiming to prepare a sound package of tailored measures to support the Match-Smatch workers’ efforts to return to work, the Regional Public Employment and Vocational Training Service of Wallonia (Le Forem), trade unions (FGTB and CSC), and other partners met on several occasion in 2024 to better understand workers' retraining needs, that the social counsellors who accompanied the workers after their dismissal were also consulted, and that these meetings resulted in a coordinated package of EGF measures that complies with Article 7(4) of the EGF Regulation;

11.

Welcomes the inclusion of a module on circular economy and efficient use of resources that was developed for former Swissport workers (EGF/2020/005 BE/Swissport) as part of the Regional Public Employment and Vocational Training Service (Forem) standard training offer, which will be co-financed by the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+); reiterates in this context the important role the Union should play in providing the necessary qualifications for the twin transformation; strongly supports the fact that, during the 2021-2027 MFF period, the EGF will continue to show solidarity with persons affected and maintain the focus on the impact of restructuring on workers; calls for future applications to maximise policy coherence;

12.

Considers it a social responsibility of the Union to provide these workers made redundant with the necessary qualifications for the digital and green transformation of the Union industry and economy, which will also have an effect on the labour market; calls, therefore, for special attention to be paid to qualified and relevant education, including vocational training;

13.

Notes that Belgium started providing the personalised services to the targeted beneficiaries on 1 January 2024 and that expenditure on the measures will therefore be eligible for a financial contribution from the EGF from 1 January 2024 until 24 months after the date of the entry into force of the financing decision;

14.

Notes that Belgium started incurring the administrative expenditure to implement the EGF on 22 September 2023 and that expenditure for preparatory, management, information and publicity, control and reporting activities shall therefore be eligible for a financial contribution from the EGF from 22 September 2023 until 31 months after the date of the entry into force of the financing decision;

15.

Stresses that the Belgian authorities have confirmed that the eligible actions do not receive assistance from other Union funds or financial instruments, and that the principles of equality of treatment and non-discrimination will be respected in the access to the proposed actions and their implementation;

16.

Reiterates that assistance from the EGF must not replace actions which are the responsibility of companies by virtue of national law or collective agreements, or any allowances or rights of the displaced workers, to ensure full additionality of the allocation; recalls that the Member States applying for funding support from the EGF must ensure that the requirements laid down in national and Union law concerning collective redundancies have been complied with and that the company concerned has provided for its workers accordingly;

17.

Approves the decision annexed to this resolution;

18.

Instructs its President to sign the decision with the President of the Council and arrange for its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union;

19.

Instructs its President to forward this resolution, including its annex, to the Council and the Commission.