Brussels, 17/03/2009 (Agence Europe) - Meeting in plenary session in Strasbourg, the European Parliament adopted a resolution on Thursday 12 March by 542 votes to 57 and 14 abstentions. The resolution was on worker participation in companies that have acquired European company status, and other accompanying measures.
With this resolution, the Parliament calls on the European Commission to: - begin consultation (on the basis of Article 138 of the Treaty) with social partners in order to assess and, where necessary, to readjust, create or strengthen provisions governing worker participation within the internal market: - examine cross-border problems relating to corporate governance, fiscal legislation and financial participation of workers in shareholder programmes, linked to the consultation exercise as suggested above; - and possible review and/or new proposals to be put to the Council and Parliament.
The Parliament also invited the Commission to: - assess the impact of existing European company by-laws and the relevant rulings of the EC Court of Justice ( for example, the affairs relating to “Daily Mail” and “General Trust”, “Sevic Systems”, “Inspire Art”, “Überseering” and “Cartesio”), regarding the participation of workers on company boards and the possibility of avoiding or circumventing relevant national provisions; - envisage fixing a rule for the status of European private company (EPC) whereby reimbursement of a loan granted or any other contribution made by a shareholder must be considered as a subordinated debt when a contribution to share capital would have been more appropriate (in the case of over-indebtedness of the company itself); - and envisage the introduction of a rule providing for shareholders to be under an obligation to reverse reimbursement if it has been made during a period close to corporate insolvency. (G.B./transl.jl)