Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/1999-11-04-Speech-4-048"
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"en.19991104.4.4-048"2
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"Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, I would also like to thank Mr Menrad. His report provides a helpful basis which, it also has to be said, has been very greatly improved upon by our shadow rapporteur Anna Van Lancker.
As for the Liberals who have spoken, I would like to tell them that their theory that Europe does not need an employment policy comes five years too late. European employment policy has already undeniably demonstrated its value. Various analyses have shown that the Member States have taken many sensible initiatives, that they are taking workers’ initial and further training more seriously than before and that new jobs have been created by means of this employment policy, and above all, Mr Brie, in the services sector. Our committee does not want to see new jobs in services with pay below the poverty level, as in America – we want quality employment in services also closely linked with production.
It is possible to criticise the policy adopted up to now, especially the measures taken by Member States. We are not being persistent enough in fighting the exclusion of older workers, and it is evident that in all Member States, even in Sweden, women do not participate to the same extent in working life.
It seems to me that despite the Employment Pact, despite the social dialogue, employers – businesses – are totally ignoring this issue. There is an urgent need for them to become involved, and financially too! It is not acceptable for the financing of employment policy to be a matter solely for the Member States and solely for the European Union.
Furthermore, both sides of industry must of course be involved in the process of renewing and modernising employment in the Member States. Involving employees and keeping them informed is a prerequisite for this. The Commission needs to play a more active role here, because there is still a great deal to be done in this area, as we saw in last week’s debate on Michelin.
It is essential for the European Parliament to be involved in the guidelines, that much we agree upon. It is, however, also essential, as Anna Van Lancker has already said, to have specific, measurable benchmarks for the guidelines. That is why we are tabling these amendments. I have to say that I totally fail to comprehend why our Conservative friends do not want to support measurable benchmarks for the Member States, for example increasing the employment rate or achieving a specific reduction in long-term unemployment over five years. You will even be helping the Socialist and Social-Democrat heads of government in a way that could scarcely have been expected!
Finally, I would like to mention – since our Conservative friend has already told us this – that the euro is probably also a successful example of employment policy. All Member States have worked to comply with the stability criteria, as have those countries that wish to join the European Union. We also need these specific criteria for employment policy."@en1
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