The year ahead will bring many important changes for businesses operating in Europe, particularly legislative developments in the employment field
(PRWEB) December 27, 2004 -- 2005 is set to be a year of transition and uncertainty in the European Union (EU). At a political level, governments will be striving to gain the backing of citizens for the new EU constitution, whilst social and employment ministers will continue their struggle to put some substance into the Lisbon agenda's goal of making the EU the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world by 2010. Towards the end of 2005, negotiations on EU membership will begin with Turkey, a country that could become a powerhouse for future economic growth throughout the region.
The EU's textile industries will come under severe pressure due to the WTO's removal of trade quotas, whilst the processes of privatisation and market liberalisation (especially in the energy sector) will near completion in many new EU states such as the Czech Republic. 2005 is also the year when the EU's Emission Trading Scheme will begin, a measure that is sure to place increasing demands on companies to reduce CO2 and other atmospheric pollutants.
Luxembourg takes over the EU Presidency on January 1st 2005. This affluent, landlocked state is no longer the smallest in the EU, but future arrangements for shared presidencies will mean that this is the last time it presides over Europe on its own. One of the principal tasks for Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker will be to arrange for Bulgaria and Romania to sign up to join the EU in 2007.
Politicians and European Commission officials will need to focus on demystifying the operation of the EU for ordinary citizens and reducing the administrative burden placed upon employers by public bodies. Under the UK's presidency during the second half of 2005, we may even see a modest level of deregulation as EU measures are directed towards establishing the conditions to compete with flexible and low cost production areas in the Far East.
2005 will be crunch time for several important EU proposals, outstanding Directives, and European Court of Justice decisions in the employment field. During the next few months, for example, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) is due to issue its ruling on North-Western Health Board v Margaret McKenna (C-191/03). If the court follows the advice of its Advocate-General, employers across Europe will have to make extensive modifications to their sickness absence policies.
According to Robin Chater, Secretary-General of the Federation of European Employers (FedEE), 2005 is the year in which the EU needs to prove itself as a truly competitive economy. "The pace of change is certainly not slackening at a European level," he said today. "The recent conclusion of a social partner agreement in the European chemical sector, for example, shows how rapidly new labor relations structures can emerge to challenge employers' strategies and assumptions."
For further information on the key issues facing employers in 2005 please visit http://www.fedee.com/lookahead2005.shtml or contact Jane Gulliver. Email: info@fedee.com Tel: +44 207 520 9264.
The Federation of European Employers (FedEE) is the leading organisation for multinational employers operating across Europe. It was founded in 1989 with financial assistance from the European Commission, and operates today on an independent basis with corporate members located throughout the world. The popular FedEE website is at http://www.fedee.com
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