Brussels, 25/09/2002 (Agence Europe) - Refocusing labour market reform, working conditions, poverty and pensions, social dialogue, respect of acquis communautaire in social matters by candidate countries: such are the main aims for action by the European Commission (Directorate General for Employment and Social Affairs) for the period mid-2002 to end 2004. These objectives are presented in an information memo published on 24 September by the Commission's spokesman's service, which also sets out the achievements of the DG Employment since Commissioner Anna Diamantopoulou took up office during in the second half of 1999 until the first half of 2002. The memo states:
I. Objectives mid-2002 to end 2004: (1) Refocusing of labour market reform: The Commission is to propose and implement a new, high-focus European employment strategy (target groups: low-wage, women, older workers); (2) Working Conditions: Continuing on the Lisbon theme, the Commission plans to: - gain the support of Member States for implementing its newly proposed Health and Safety Strategy 2002-2006 (including computer-related muscular-skeletal conditions, new stress-related conditions and a possible directive on bullying and intimidation at work); - raise the political profile of and promote the financial participation of employees in their business in the post-Enron environment; - formulate new EU rules on data protection for workers, over and above the existing EU law on data protection in general (e.g. genetic fingerprinting data; employer access to employees' e-mails …). The second consultation of labour and management on this issue will be launched during October; - confer EU-level value to business initiatives in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) by organising the debate Europe wide and proposing an Action Plan to encourage transparency for the investor and customer through external evaluation; (3) Poverty and pensions: The Commission hopes to win the "psychological battle" of coordination at EU level by end 2004; (4) Social dialogue: The Commission will soon propose a process to benchmark the European -level social partners against their own multiannual programme, in order especially to keep the process of adapting to business change moving; (5) Miscellaneous: The Commission will ensure that the candidate countries comply with EU social policy, mainly health and safety at work rules; - on the international front, the Commission will examine a document on general equality and EU external relations policy; - the Commission will try to obtain concrete results from the European Year of Disabled People in 2003 by, for example, abolishing the (price) obstacles that the disabled encounter for the purchase of wheelchairs and other equipment.
II. Achievements mid 1999 to mid 2002. The Commission has played a determining role by reaching consensus on the main reforms of the labour market needed for achieving the Lisbon objectives, which has mainly led to fairer access to the EU labour markets for all, especially women, as well as better use of the EU's pool of qualified professionals. It has also developed a series of minimum labour norms for the Union (adoption of the status of European Company and the directive on worker participation, adoption of the directive on worker information-consultation, etc.), which has made it possible to set up a European base of minimum standards to protect workers. The Commission has also managed to convince Member States that they should carry out regular coordination of policies in order to reduce poverty and social exclusion within the EU (at present, the best practices will become the rule), and also to formalise their cooperation as regards pension reforms. The Commission now hopes to reach a balance between the long term macrobudgetary balance of public systems and fair treatment of those whose pension is the only source of revenue. Finally, it has managed to convince European social partners to implement a common multiannual work programme after several years of deadlock. At present, European social dialogue agreements are then applied at national level.