Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Council Resolution on Re-Organisation of Working Time.
"The Council of the European Communities.
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community,
Having regard to the draft Resolution submitted by the Commission, Whereas demographic trends, the probability that economic growth will be moderate, the problems of adjustment resulting in particular from the rise in oil prices, the structural problems of the labour market and the progressive introduction of new technologies will exacerbate employment problems in the 1980's;
Whereas the overall strategy aimed at increasing growth potential, competitiveness and innovation, improving the employment situation and responding to the emergence of new social needs in non-inflationary conditions must be continued and whereas measures to re-organise working time might be integrated in this overall strategy as ancillary measures in support of policies which might help to improve the employment situation;
Whereas the measures to re-organise working time must be conceived with a view to improving living and working conditions and whereas they must contribute to improved protection of work and encourage worker participation in social and economic progress;
Whereas the costs, if any, of these measures must be controlled; whereas adequate consideration must be given to the manner of covering these costs and whereas, in the context of negotiations between the social partners, regard should be had to the possibility of distributing the overall increase in productivity between re-organisation of working time and wage increases;
Whereas this policy must be combined with measures aimed at encouraging worker mobility and training and at facilitating the investment or changes required, notably in undertakings, in order to encourage new recruitment or avoid redundancies;
Whereas measures of this kind call for participation by workers and their representatives;
Whereas these measures are a matter for collective agreements or for national legislation, but whereas their overall coherence, particularly as regards compatibility between the attitudes of the social partners, should be sought by all parties concerned also within the framework of dialogue and consultation at Community level;
In view of the Commission's oral report on the contacts made between and with the social partners on the re-organisation of working time following the meetings of the Council on 15 May 1979 and of the Standing Committee on Employment on 22 May and 9 October 1979;
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic Policy Committee of 26 October 1979.
Stresses that any measures to reorganise working time should be assessed in the light of numerous factors and primarily of its effects on the production capacity of undertakings, productivity changes and wage compensation, and that the possibilities of decentralisation, differentiation for sectors and areas of activity and phased implementation should be taken into account in search for the measures to be taken and that there should be scope for the review of the measures taken;
Requests the Commission to carry further the contacts it has made which are essential for the implementation of the measures referred to in this resolution.
In the light of the exchanges of views which have taken place in recent months and the preliminary work carried out by the Commission, the Council, on the basis of its conclusions of 15 May 1979, approves the following guidelines: