Commission proposes €6.9 million from Globalisation Fund for former workers of the car manufacturer Opel in Germany

The FINANCIAL — The European Commission has proposed to provide Germany with € 6.9 million from the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF) to help 2,692 former workers of Adam Opel AG and one of its suppliers to find new jobs.

EU Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs, Skills and Labour Mobility Marianne Thyssen commented: “The impact of the global economic and financial crisis on demand for cars, especially in some segments, still exerts its consequences on employment in the motor industry”. She added “Many workers are experiencing hardship and EU solidarity to helping them to manage these difficult transitions is therefore important. The almost seven million we have proposed would help these redundant workers from the car manufacturing industry to adapt their skills and facilitate their transition to a new job”.

Germany applied for support from the EGF following the dismissal of 2,881 workers by Adam Opel AG and one of its suppliers. These job losses were the result of the shutdown of the Opel production plant in Bochum, triggered by the drop in demand over the period of 2007 to 2013, as a consequence of the global economic and financial crisis, according to the European Commission.

The measures co-financed by the EGF would help 2,692 redundant workers to find new jobs by providing them with career guidance and peer groups, vocational training, business start-up advisory services, job scouting, mentoring and advisory services after reemployment and training allowances.

The total estimated cost of the package is €11.5 million, of which the EGF would provide €6.9. The proposal now goes to the European Parliament and the EU’s Council of Ministers for approval.