Some progress at November Labour and Social Affairs Council

At a meeting of the Labour and Social Affairs Council on 29 November 1999, ministers discussed a variety of employment and social security issues, including the Commission's "employment package", the Commission's new anti-discrimination proposals and a range of social security-related matters. However, no agreement was reached on the draft Directive on employee involvement in the European Company.

Labour and social affairs ministers made progress on a number of issues at their Council meeting in Brussels on 29 November 1999. The Council of Ministers agreed on the text of the draft Employment Guidelines for 2000, the draft Employment Report 1999 and the text of the draft Recommendations to Member States on the implementation of their employment policies. This package of measures (EU9909187F), which was confirmed at a joint meeting with the Economic and Financial Affairs Council (Ecofin), was then passed on to the European Council in Helsinki on 10-11 December for political approval and formal adoption at a forthcoming Council session.

The Council reached political agreement on the text of a Decision establishing the Employment Committee, which will replace the existing Employment and Labour Market Committee. TheEuropean Commission and Council Presidency underlined the importance of this Committee, which is provided for by Article 130 of the EC Treaty, part of the new Employment Title introduced by the Amsterdam Treaty (EU9707135F). The Employment Committee will focus on:

• monitoring the employment situation and employment policies in Member States and at Community level;

• promoting the exchange of information and experience;

• participating in macroeconomic dialogue; and

• formulating opinions and contributing to the proceedings of the Council.

Ministers heard a presentation of the Commission's recent proposals to combat discrimination in employment (EU9912216N). The proposals are based on Article 13 of the EC Treaty and are aimed at providing, for the first time, an integrated Community-level approach to combating discrimination on a wide range of grounds.

The Council heard a Presidency report on the state of progress regarding the draft Directive on employee involvement in the European Company (EU9911211F). The Presidency reported that a high-level meeting on the issue had taken place on 26 November 1999 as part of ongoing negotiations to reach a consensus and remove the concerns of one delegation. The Finnish Presidency stated that it remained hopeful of reaching a consensus on the issue before the close of its term of office at the end of 1999.

The state of progress on the amended proposal for a Directive on minimum safety and health requirements regarding the exposure of workers to the risks arising from physical agents (vibration) was also discussed by ministers. This proposal, originally issued in 1993, was revived in an amended form earlier in 1999. The text has been further developed and refined under the Finnish Presidency and it is hoped that a common position will be adopted under the Portuguese Presidency of the first half of 2000.

The Council also discussed a variety of social security measures. It heard a presentation from the Presidency on the progress made on the extension to third-country nationals of Regulation 1408/71 governing the application of social security schemes to employed persons, self-employed persons and members of their families moving within the Community. Ministers also took note of a Presidency report on the Commission's proposals for a fundamental review of the above Regulation, in addition to approving Council conclusions on the strengthening of cooperation for modernising and improving social protection.

Finally, ministers agreed on a Resolution on the employment and social dimension of the information society.