On Tuesday 1 April, the European Commission presented two legislative amendments to the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) and the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund with regard to workers who have been made redundant (EGF).
It is proposing to extend their scope and make it easier to mobilise aid, according to a press release.
The “Member States would gain flexibility in redirecting ESF+ funding towards skills development in strategic sectors, such as defence and clean industries. The EGF would also be able to intervene earlier – before job losses occur – and mobilise aid more quickly by means of a simplified procedure”.
The ESF+ has a budget of €95.8 billion for the period 2021–2027. When Member States decide to use ESF+ funds in these new strategic sectors, they will be able to benefit from an immediate financial injection and new flexibilities. The proposal also introduces specific financial support for regions bordering Russia, Belarus and Ukraine, with increased pre-financing and the possibility for the EU to fully fund projects (programmes funded by ESF+ with NUTS 2 regions bordering Russia, Belarus or Ukraine should benefit from a one-off pre-financing amount of 9.5% and 100% EU funding).
As far as the EGF is concerned, support has been extended to workers at imminent risk of losing their jobs, thereby allowing earlier intervention. Funding must cover personalised packages of activation measures.
To date, the EGF only supports workers who have already been made redundant.
Links to the proposals: https://aeur.eu/f/g76 ; https://aeur.eu/f/g79 (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)