92002E3872

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3872/02

by Ilda Figueiredo (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(10 January 2003)

Subject: Defence of employment and social inclusion

The Portuguese branch of the Danish footwear-manufacturing multinational ECCO, which operates a plant in São João de Ver, in the municipality of Santa Maria da Feira (Portugal) that currently employs about one thousand workers, has announced via an internal circular that it intends to close a production unit, thus making some 180 workers redundant.

This follows on the heels of earlier restructurings which made some 300 workers, both male and female, redundant.

The Commission:

1. Can it state whether the ECCO group has received Community aid in Portugal or in any other EU Member State in order to set up factories, develop production, provide training, etc?

2. Is it aware of other restructurings accompanied by redundancies in companies belonging to this group in other EU Member States?

3. Can it state what information exists on the economic and financial evolution of the ECCO group? What measures will be taken to prevent unemployment in Portugal from rising further, in the context of the European Employment Strategy and the vital importance of social inclusion?

Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(20 February 2003)

In accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, the Council Regulation (EC) no 1260/1999 of 21 June 1999 laying down general provisions on the Structural Funds(1) for the period (2000-2006) assigns the responsibility of implementing and monitoring of structural funds assistance to the Member States.

Therefore, the decision to approve projects submitted by private companies for Community funding is the responsibility of the Member State, through the power assigned to the management authorities of the various operational programmes.

The Commission has, however, been informed by the Instituto de Gestão do Fundo Social Europeu (IGFSE), that the company ECCO'LET (Portugal) Fábrica de Sapatos, Lda. has benefited from the following incentives for training their staff:

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According to the information of General Direction for Regional Development in Portugal, the company ECCO'LET has benefited as well from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) incentives in the amount of EUR 3 166 101, concerning the Community Structural Fund (CSF) II (1994-1999). In what concerns the CSF III (2000-2006), the amount of incentives included in the programme for economy is EUR 2 020 907 as indicated in the following table.

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The Commission is not aware of other restructurings accompanied by collective redundancies in companies belonging to the ECCO group in other Member States.

More generally, the Commission would like to note that it invited the European social partners to engage in a dialogue on anticipating and managing change with a view to applying a dynamic approach to the social aspects of corporate restructuring. The social partners agreed to incorporate this important issue in their recently adopted pluriannual work programme.

(1) OJ L 161, 26.6.1999.