Council Decision of 17 October 1983 on the tasks of the European Social Fund (83/516/EEC)

• Published date: 22 October 1983
• Subject Matter: Fondo Social Europeo (FSE)
• Official Gazette Publication: Official Journal of the European Communities, L 289, 22 October 1983

1983D0516 — EN — 01.01.1986 — 001.001

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This document is meant purely as a documentation tool and the institutions do not assume any liability for its contents

►B COUNCIL DECISION of 17 October 1983 on the tasks of the European Social Fund (83/516/EEC) (OJ L 289, 22.10.1983, p.38)

Amended by:

		Official Journal
		No	page	date
►M1	Council Decision of 20 December 1985	L 370	40	31.12.1985

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▼B

COUNCIL DECISION

of 17 October 1983

on the tasks of the European Social Fund

(83/516/EEC)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, and in particular Article 126 thereof,

Having regard to the draft submitted by the Commission ( 1 ),

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament ( 2 ),

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee ( 3 ),

Whereas Council Decision 71/66/EEC of 1 February 1971 on the reform of the European Social Fund ( 4 ), as amended by Decision 77/801/EEC ( 5 ), has, pursuant to an opinion of the Commission based on Article 126 of the Treaty, been the subject of a review, as provided for in Article 11 of that Decision; whereas it would be appropriate to replace it by a new Council Decision establishing rules for the Fund;

Whereas the task of the Fund is to participate in particular in the financing of vocational training, the promotion of employment and geographical mobility;

Whereas the Fund must become a more active instrument to promote employment policies; whereas to achieve this the range of people eligible for assistance should be enlarged so as to extend in particular the possibility of assistance to those working as trainers, vocational guidance or placement experts, and development agents;

Whereas the Fund must make a special effort to develop employment, particularly in small and medium-sized undertakings, with a view to modernizing management or production or applying new technologies;

Whereas the Fund, as an instrument of employment policy must, taking due account of the principle of Community solidarity, contribute as effectively and as consistently as possible to the solution of the most serious problems and in particular the fight against unemployment, including structural underemployment and the promotion of employment among the groups most affected;

Whereas, in this connection and without prejudice to the assistance which the categories of persons who are particularly vulnerable on the labour market (in particular women, the handicapped and migrants) must continue to receive, a significant part of the Fund resources must be allocated to measures in favour of youth employment, in particular those who have few employment opportunities or who have been unemployed over a long period;

Whereas it is desirable, in the light of experience, that procedures for granting Fund assistance should be rendered more flexible and simplified in particular by fixing flat rate amounts;

Whereas the Commission shall be responsible for drawing up the guidelines for the management of the Fund so as to ensure a more effective concentration on operations in accordance with Community priorities and with related action programmes in the area of employment or vocational training;

Whereas this Decision should be reviewed within a fixed period,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

1. The Fund shall assist in the implementation of policies designed to equip the workforce with the skills required for stable employment and to generate employment opportunities. It shall in particular contribute to the socio-vocational insertion and integration of young people and disadvantaged workers, to the adaptation of the workforce to labour-market developments and to technological change and to the reduction of regional imbalances in the labour market.

2. The Fund shall participate in the financing of operations concerning:

(a) vocational training and guidance;

(b) recruitment and wage subsidies;

(c) resettlement and socio-vocational integration in connection with geographical mobility;

(d) services and technical advice concerned with job creation.

Article 2

1. Fund assistance shall be given for operations carried out both by bodies governed by public law and bodies governed by private law.

2. The relevant Member States shall guarantee the successful completion of the operations. However, this provision shall not apply to operations for which Fund assistance covers all eligible expenditure.

Article 3

1. Fund assistance may be granted for operations carried out within the framework of Member States' labour-market policies. These operations shall include in particular those intended to improve employment opportunities for young people, notably by means of vocational training measures after completion of full-time compulsory schooling.

2. Fund assistance may also be granted for specific operations carried out with a view to:

— encouraging the implementation of innovatory projects, as a general rule within the framework of a programme of action adopted by the Council, or

— examining the effectiveness of projects for which Fund assistance is granted and facilitating an exchange of experience.

Article 4

1. Fund assistance may be granted in the first place, in order to promote employment for young people under the age of 25, in particular those whose chances of employment are especially poor, in particular because of a lack of vocational training or inadequate training and those who are long-term unemployed.

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