WRITTEN QUESTION No. 3395/98 by Marco CELLAI Closure of a company in the Florence area
6. 11. 1999 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 320/47 (1999/C 320/061) WRITTEN QUESTION E-3395/98 by Marco Cellai (NI) to the Commission (17 November 1998) Subject: Closure of a company in the Florence area Cerdec, a company located in Castello (Florence), has announced redundancies affecting 101 of its 115 employees. However, this firm, which produces colours for ceramic and similar products, seems intent on actually abandoning the plant and concentrating all its production operations at its other unit in Fiorano (Modena), instead. The decision is unexpected and has not been the subject of any consultation with the trade union organisations; indeed, a few months ago the managing director had given reassurances about the future employment of the workforce. The decision by the German-owned company, which had taken over an historic firm in the manufacturing area around Florence, was ostensibly based on reasons - technology, competition, synergies, profitability - which do not actually appear to exist. In reality, as is happening with increasing frequency (see the recent case of Levi Strauss), company relocation and concentration are carried out in pursuit of the profit motive alone, which often runs counter to the existence of the requisite balance between population and land use and is socially disastrous in the long term. What steps does the Commission intend to take to ensure that this purely economic and financial logic does not prevail over social interests, in particular in the case in question? Answer given by Mr Flynn on behalf of the Commission (23 December 1998) The Commission considers that information and consultation of workers’ representatives in restructuring processes is vital. The Commission has no further detailed information about the redundancies mentioned by the Honourable Member. The collective redundancies Directive (1) requires that an employer contemplating collective redundancies must begin consultations with the workers’ representatives in good time with a view to reaching an agreement. Furthermore, the European works councils Directive (2) provides for transnational information and consulta- tion when an undertaking or group of undertakings falls in the scope of this Directive and a European works council has been established either by an agreement or by applying the subsidiary provisions of the annex. In order to complete the existing Community and national rules on information and consultation of workers and with a view to reinforcing their dissuasive effect and to refocusing them on the prevention of negative effects of corporate restructuring, the Commission recently adopted a proposal for a directive (3) establishing a general framework for informing and consulting employees in the Community. (1) Council Directive 98/59/EC, OJ L 225, 12. 8. 1998. (2) Council Directive 94/45/EC, OJ L 254, 30. 9. 1994. (3) COM(98) 612 final. (1999/C 320/062) WRITTEN QUESTION E-3411/98 by Roberta Angelilli (NI) to the Commission (17 November 1998) Subject: Urban pollution caused by motorcycles With reference to Directive 97/24/EC (1), the Italian government has issued a decree (the Ronchi decree), to the effect that mayors may authorise the use of motor vehicles if they produce negligible benzene emissions in relation to annual average values