EMPLOYMENT : EXECUTIVE URGED TO RESPOND TO STEEL CRISIS.

The European Commission plans to respond to the crisis hitting the steel industry by organising a high-level round table in February and publishing an action plan in June 2013, announced the spokesman for Enterprise Commissioner Antonio Tajani, on 25 January. The move came after ArcelorMittal announced that it was cutting 1,300 jobs in Belgium. Employment Commissioner Laszlo Andor pointed out that ArcelorMittal was required to comply with various national and EU rules, including Directives 2002/14/EC establishing a general framework for informing and consulting employees, 98/59/EC on collective redundancies and 2006/109/EC on the European works councils.

"The Commission is concerned about the social consequences that may result from the shutdown of ArcelorMittal's cold-processing facilities. [ ] But it does not have the power to interfere with specific corporate decisions that lead to closures," said the Commission. At the same time, some 300 ArcelorMittal employees were demonstrating in...