Social and employment aspects of restructuring processes: the need to protect jobs and workers’ rights

What changes

• Reiterates the call to strengthen the economic governance framework with a common investment instrument at EU level to achieve current and future priorities, including the implementation of the European Pillar of Social Rights.
• Reiterates the call on the Commission and the Council to reinforce the European instrument for temporary support to mitigate unemployment risks in an emergency (SURE) to support short-time work schemes and workers' income during temporary layoffs in the context of the green transition.
• Urges the Commission, in the context of the forthcoming revision of the European Public Procurement Directive, to further promote collective bargaining and the use of the social clause.
• Proposes the launch of the EU Fair Transition Observatory in 2025 to track the number of jobs created or lost and the companies concerned during restructuring processes.
• Calls for the consideration of a framework directive to address challenges in subcontracting chains and labour intermediaries, including measures on joint and several liability and ensuring respect for information, consultation, and collective bargaining rights for subcontracted workers.

Expected impact

• The transition to a green, digital, and competitive European economy requires people to be sufficiently protected from potential adverse social consequences of major economic changes to maintain the European social model.
• Social dialogue, collective bargaining, and strong trade union involvement are essential for ensuring workers’ information and consultation rights during restructuring processes, contributing to a fair and just transition, competitiveness, economic growth, and the protection of jobs and workers’ collective interests.
• Restructuring processes can lead to both job losses and job gains and can take various forms, including internal restructuring, business expansion, closure, bankruptcy, merger/acquisition, offshoring/delocalisation, outsourcing, relocation, and reshoring.

Limitations

• The document is a resolution of the European Parliament and does not contain specific legal provisions that can be directly applied or enforced without further legislative action by the Commission or Council.
• The document refers to various existing directives and regulations but does not provide the full text or detailed analysis of their application in the context of restructuring.
• Specific quantitative data on the impact of restructuring on jobs or the economy is not provided within the text, beyond general statements and references to external reports.
• The document does not detail the specific mechanisms or resources that will be allocated to support the initiatives proposed, such as the European Competitiveness Fund or the EU Fair Transition Observatory.