Brussels, 29/03/2012 (Agence Europe) - A €1.6 million package from the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF) to help workers in Spain who have been made redundant was approved by the European Parliament (EP) on Thursday 29 March.
The package will help 1,138 former construction workers made redundant by 513 small and medium-sized firms in Valencia due to the economic recession. It will finance training, or supplement their incomes while they seek alternative employment.
In 2011, at the time of the Comunidad Valenciana application, EGF aid was available to those hit by the economic crisis, as well as those specifically affected by globalisation. However, on 2 December 2011, the Council of Ministers suspended a rule that had allowed EGF aid to be made available to those needing help in times of economic crisis. This meant that, from then on, only applications clearly linked to globalisation could be considered. Following this change, some MEPs opposed allocating this EGF aid to Valencia, arguing that it is not intended to help those hit by the collapse of the Spanish property market, which is in no way linked to globalisation. Any aid applications made before the December 2011 change will nonetheless be considered - only those made after January 2012 must adhere to the new criteria. 23 further applications will be considered under the old derogation. (LC/transl.rt)