Weber, Tina

The conclusion in July 1997 (EU9707141N [1]) of the recommendation framework agreement on the improvement of paid employment in agriculture stands at the end of a long process of negotiation between the European social partners in the sector. The partners are GEOPA- the Employers' Group of theCommittee of Agricultural Organisations in the European Union (COPA) - which represents those agricultural undertakings in Europe which employ paid staff, and the European Federation of Agricultural Workers' Unions (EFA), - one of the European industry committees of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC). [1] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/european-agriculture-social-partners-sign-first-sectoral-framework-agreement

A delegation from Eurocadres- the Council of European Professional and Managerial Staff affiliated to the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) - met with Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jacques Poos and other representatives of the Luxembourg Council Presidency on 3 September 1997 to highlight the case for urgent action on employment at the European level. The delegation emphasised that the special European Council Employment Summit [1], planned for 21-22 November 1997 must live up to its expectations and produce concrete results and initiatives. Eurocadres warned that "the creation of a single currency and the establishment of Economic and Monetary Union would be endangered, if it was done at the expense of employment." [1] http://europa.eu.int/comm/employment_social/elm/summit/en/home.htm

Luxembourg, which took over the Presidency of the European Council from the Dutch Government in July 1997, has listed the following measures and activities as among its priorities:

In its Communication on /People first - the next steps/, adopted on 23 July 1997, the European Commission argues that the social dimension of the "information society" needs to be strengthened further if the European Union is to take full advantage of the job-creation potential and improvements in the quality of life potentially offered by new information and communication technologies (ICT s). It sets out a strategy for achieving this objective at national, European and international level.

On 24 July 1997, GEOPA- the Employers' Group of the Committee of Agricultural Organisations in the European Union (COPA) - and the European Federation of Agricultural Workers' Trade Unions (EFA) - one of the European industry committees of the European Trade Union Confederation- signed the first European sectoral framework agreement of its kind in the presence of CommissionerPadraig Flynn. The initiative builds on previous "agreements" on working time concluded between the social partners in the sector in 1978, 1980 and 1981, as well as a joint declaration on employment in agriculture presented to the "European social conference" held in Paris on 30 March 1995.

On 19 June 1997, the European Commission adopted a Communication examining different strategies to encourage the use of apprenticeships in vocational training. The Communication was drafted in response to a request by the European Council meeting in Florence in June 1996. It sets out five recommendations for encouraging the use of this form of initial vocational training in the European Union.

The following issues were on the agenda of the Labour and Social Affairs Council of Ministers meeting held in Luxembourg on 27 June 1997:

On 15 July 1997, the European Commission published a White Paper on Sectors and activities excluded from the working time Directive [1]. Directive 93/104/EC on certain aspects of the organisation of working time was adopted in November 1993 based on Article 118A of the Treaty of Rome. The aims of the Directive were to ensure that workers are protected against adverse effects on their health and safety caused by excessively long working hours, or having inadequate rest or disruptive working patterns. The Directive provides for [1] http://europa.eu.int/comm/employment_social/soc-dial/labour/white/whiteen.htm

On 23 July 1997, the European Commission adopted a proposal for a Directive to transpose the social partners' framework agreement on part-time work into European law. The agreement was signed on 6 June 1997 by the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), the Union of Industrial and Employers' Confederations of Europe (UNICE) and the European Centre of Enterprises with Public Participation and of Enterprises of General Economic Interest (CEEP) (EU9706131F [1]). This is the second time that an agreement reached by the European social partners has been submitted to the Council for adoption, following the European framework agreement on parental leave (a Directive to implement which was adopted in June 1996). The aims of the new agreement are to prevent discrimination against part-time workers and to facilitate the development of part-time work at Member State level. [1] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/undefined/social-partners-reach-framework-agreement-on-part-time-work

The European Council meeting in Amsterdam on 16 and 17 June 1997 concluded the Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) with the agreement of a new draft Treaty. The conclusion of the IGC leaves the path open for launching the enlargement process, and the timetable for the single currency has equally been reaffirmed. Economic stability, growth and employment also featured prominently in talks between the governments of the 15 member states. Reinforced by the participation of members from the two new left-of-centre governments of France and the United Kingdom, the European Council agreed to give fresh momentum to keeping employment firmly at the top of the European Union's agenda.