European Unions Not Afraid of Wave of Cheap Labor From East

Published: 20 March 2001 y., Tuesday
The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) is not afraid that the so-called cheap laborers from the EU's future new member countries will flood the European labor market, ETUC General Secretary Emilio Gabaglio, on a visit to Slovakia, has told CTK. Social differences will be successfully coped with in the extended EU, Gabaglio, who attended a two-day international conference on social dialogue in Bratislava, said on Saturday. By no means is it necessary to dramatize the problem. A realistic approach should be taken to it, he said. Gabaglio pointed out that European unions based their stands on EU studies, according to which there is no threat of the EU being hit by a huge wave of new laborers from Eastern Europe. Gabaglio said this also applied to Slovakia where, in some regions, more than a quarter of residents are unemployed. The ETUC must support Slovakia's effort to develop its labor market and improve social conditions, he said. It is impossible to deny the right to free movement of labor to a candidate country, as it is one of the EU's basic rights. If dramatic developments occurred in some sectors, European trade unions have pragmatic tools to control the problem, Gabaglio said, giving special programs and the introduction of quotas as examples. Gabaglio said he was convinced that panic fears of a growth in unemployment had been spread by far-right parties in order to boost their election gains, not by trade unions. He expressed his satisfaction with the course of the Bratislava conference attended by some 200 representatives of trade unions, employers and state administrations from 25 European countries. He said social dialogue enjoyed good conditions in Europe, with occasional pressures of some of the three sides involved being successfully coped with. Slovakia is among the "second wave" EU candidate countries but wants to catch up with its three post-communist neighbors (the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland), which are fast-track candidates for EU entry. No official date of enlargement has been announced as yet.
Šaltinis: europeaninternet.com/
Copying, publishing, announcing any information from the News.lt portal without written permission of News.lt editorial office is prohibited.

Facebook Comments

New comment


Captcha

Associated articles

The most popular articles

Joint Statement on Greece by EU Commissioner Olli Rehn and IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn

Mr. Olli Rehn, European Union Commissioner, and Mr. Dominique Strauss-Kahn, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), issued the following joint statement on Greece. more »

World Bank Supports Urban Development in Bhutan

The World Bank today approved a $12 million IDA credit to Bhutan, designed to improve infrastructure services in parts of the capital city of Thimphu where no formal services are currently available. more »

Reform of the Common Fisheries Policy high on the agenda at events in Spain

Fisheries ministers and stakeholders alike will be discussing the future shape of the EU's Common Fisheries Policy at two major events in Spain over the next days. On 2 and 3 May, in La Coruña, the Commission and the Spanish Presidency are organising a large stakeholder conference on the reform of the Common Fisheries Policy. more »

IMF’s Regional Outlook Shows Asia Leading Global Recovery

Asia is leading the global recovery and the region’s contribution to global growth will continue to exceed that of other regions in the next two years, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said today in its latest Regional Economic Outlook (REO) for Asia and the Pacific. more »

EBRD supports development of green energy in Poland

The EBRD is supporting the modernization of the electricity distribution network and the development of renewable energy sources in Poland with a PLN 800 million loan (equivalent to approximately €205 million) to the Energa energy group in order to help the company strengthen its power grid. more »

Baltic Development Forum 2010

At the beginning of the summer this year, Vilnius will become the capital of the Baltic Sea region. On 1-2 June 2010, the city will host the Baltic Sea States Summit and the Baltic Development Forum (BDF) Summit. more »

Visit Lithuania by a Hot Air Balloon at the World EXPO 2010 in Shanghai

Visitors of the World Expo 2010, which will open in the Chinese city of Shanghai on May 1st under the slogan “Better City, Better Life” and will last for 184 days until the end of October, are kindly invited to get into a hot air balloon at the Lithuanian Pavilion. more »

SEB Bank Group Lithuania Result

According to preliminary data, unaudited net loss sustained over the first quarter of the year 2010 by SEB Bank is LTL 59,4 million (EUR 17,2 million) and that by SEB Bank Group is LTL 80,3 million (EUR 23,3 million). more »

Globalisation fund unemployment aid - a good tool, but far too slow

European Globalisation Adjustment fund (EGF) aid must be delivered faster and more simply to unemployed workers hit by the financial crisis or globalisation, concluded the Budgets and Employment committees after evaluating the fund on Wednesday. more »