"Employment package", social agenda and worker information-consultation will be focus of Council session next week

Brussels, 24/11/2000 (Agence Europe) - Elisabeth Guigou, Employment and Solidarity Minister, is for the first time to chair the EU Employment/Social Policy Council to be held on Monday 27 (from 17h00) and Tuesday 28 November. Anna Diamantopoulou will represent the European Commission. Three key issues will be on the table of the ministers: the "employment" package, the European social agenda and the directive on worker information-consultation.

The agenda is full, conforming to the general tendency for Social Councils, which shows recovery in this sector at European level following the Amsterdam Treaty, the Lisbon Summit (which gave extraordinary impetus) and the French Presidency which made the social chapter one of its top priorities, commented Claire Aubin, Adviser, who presented the agenda to the press. Work will be in two sections:

• Employment. On the table there will be: a) an "autumn 2000 employment" package on which a political agreement is expected; b) the agenda for social policy, the text of which should be ready for the Nice Summit; c) the draft directive on worker involvement in the European company, to be the subject of an oral report from the Presidency; d) the proposal of directive on worker information and consultation at national level or a political agreement on a "common position" is hoped for by the Presidency but, for the time being, a blocking minority is opposed to this (the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany and Denmark).
• Social legislation. Comprising issues such as: the coordination of the social security systems (state of progress of work); the report of the High Level Group on the future of social protection (state of progress of work); the equal opportunities programme for men and women (a political agreement is expected); EC action programme relating to the fight against social exclusion; follow-up to Beijing (women) with the adoption of the conclusions; the directive on minimum health and safety provisions for workers exposed to mechanical vibration (political agreement on a common position).

The work will therefore begin at 17h00 on Monday with the employment package followed by the presentation of the High Level Group on the future of retirement systems. During dinner, the ministers will discuss and finalise the text of the French Presidency on the European social agenda with a view to adopting it on Tuesday for transmission to Nice.

Regarding the social agenda, the document prepared by the Presidency after a broad consultation process (Member States, European Parliament, Economic and Social Committee, Committee of the Regions, Committee on Employment, social partners, etc..) was the subject on two occasions of discussions within Coreper, and a revised version will form the basis of discussion in Council. The latter should come to consensus on this text "mitigated by the Presidency in its political part". In fact, the European Commission believed it was over-mitigated and the United Kingdom, as other States; felt there will still too many commitments. A compromise seems possible and the Agenda will set out the social objectives for the next five years, if the Nice Summit agrees.