Redundancy funds for textile workers get EP approval

The European Parliament today gave its final approval for the EU to grant Malta €700,000 grant under the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGAF). The grant was approved by the Council of Ministers on Monday.

During a vote taken at the plenary session in Brussels, a report submitted by German EPP-ED MEP Ramier Boge proposing the approval of the grant was approved by 590 votes in favour, 36 against and 10 abstentions.

All five Maltese MEPs voted in favour.

This was the last vote in a series of bureaucratic hurdles needed to release the funds originally approved by the Commission last December.

Malta had submitted its application in September 2007 following the sudden redundancy of 675 workers from two textile factories, sector, VF (Malta) Ltd and Bortex Clothing.

The funds will be used to finance a number of schemes by the Employment and Training Corporation aimed at helping the redundant workers find alternative employment.

Intervening before today's vote, Nationalist MEP Simon Busuttil called upon MEPs to approve the grant saying that this shows the real mining of solidarity in the EU.

‘All the workers involved in VF and Bortex today know what the EU really means for them. A means of solidarity when things turn tough.’