Compensation from the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF) for redundant Ilektroniki Athinon (Athens Electronics Company) employees
Ilektroniki Athinon S.A. recently announced that it had been declared bankrupt by decision No 267/13.4.2016 of Athens Court of the First Instance.
This decision came after the business plan it had agreed on with banks, suppliers and shareholders in April 2015 fell through mainly due to the imposition of capital controls on Greek banks and also because its two major competitors in the technological consumer products sector belong to multinational groups and therefore do not face liquidity problems.
As a result of the bankruptcy of Ilektroniki Athinon S.A., 450 company employees have been made redundant as well as hundreds of other workers in the company’s suppliers which have also been harmed by this bankruptcy decision. The prospects of them receiving compensation are uncertain.
Since the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF) was established to provide additional support for workers affected by the consequences of major structural changes or of the global financial and economic crisis, will the Commission say whether, in response to a request from the Greek Government, it intends forthwith to set in motion an EGF contribution to compensate the over 500 workers made redundant by Ilektroniki Athinon S.A. and its suppliers due to that company’s declaration of bankruptcy?
| Answer given by Ms Thyssen on behalf of the Commission | ||||||||
| The Commission would refer the Honourable Member to its reply given to Written Question P-003079/2016(1) in which it addressed the issue of the redundancies at Ilektroniki Athinon S.A. and the existing possibilities with regard to support from the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF).
In its reply, the Commission confirmed that Greece has the possibility to apply for support from the EGF provided that the workers’ redundancies can be linked to trade related globalisation or to the global financial and economic crisis. The Commission would refer the Honourable Member to the EGF Regulation(2) for more details on the rules of this Fund for the 2014 to 2020 period. The Honourable Member may wish to communicate with the EGF Contact Persons for Greece, should he wish to know whether an application is being planned in support of the workers made redundant by Ilektroniki Athinon S.A. The relevant contact details can be found on the EGF website under ‘How to Apply’(3). The Commission cannot give any guarantee at this stage that a potential application from the Greek EGF authorities will meet all the requirements and that support will be granted by the European Parliament and the Council. The number of redundant workers is only one of the various criteria of eligibility for such support.
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