European Restructuring Monitor (ERM)
Eurofound's ERM database on restructuring-related legal regulations provides information on regulations in the Member States of the European Union and Norway which are explicitly or implicitly linked to anticipating and managing change.
68-74 (Law no. 53/2003); 49-50 (Law no. 76/2002)
In case of collective dismissal (i.e. dismissal of at least 10 employees in companies with 21-99 workers, at least 10% of staff in companies with 100-299 workers or at least 30 employees in larger firms of at least 300 workers), employers have the obligation to forward a copy of the collective redundancy notice to the local labour inspectorate and the local employment agency on the same date it was sent to the trade union or representatives of the employees (the employment agency must be notified at least 30 days before the redundancy date).
The local labour inspectorate and the local employment agency are involved in designing measures to diminish the effects of restructuring and can modify the deadlines within which collective redundancies are planned to take place.
The notification must include all relevant information regarding the intention to proceed to collective redundancy, which includes the outcome of the consultations with the trade unions or the representatives of the employees, especially: * the reasons for the redundancy; * the total number of employees; * the number of employees to be made redundant; * the selection criteria applied to employees singled out for dismissal according to law or collective agreement provisions, in order to establish priorities on the redundancy list; * measures proposed to limit the number of redundancies; * measures to mitigate the consequences of mass redundancies; * severance to be paid according to law or the applicable collective agreement; * the date when the redundancy begins or the period of time during which dismissals take place; * the term within which the unions or the employee representatives may propose solutions to avoid mass dismissals or diminish the number of redundancies.
A copy of the notification must be sent to the trade union, on the same date. The trade union or the employee representatives may communicate their point of view to the local labour inspectorate. Within 30 days, at the request of any of the parties involved, the labour inspectorate may, with the approval of the local employment agency, resolve to shorten or to postpone the date/period of communication of the dismissal notices, provided that the said authority informs both the employer and the employee representatives of such change and of the underlying reasons.
During the procedure, the local employment agency must look for solutions to the problems triggered by the collective redundancy, and propose them in due time to the employer and the trade union or employee representatives.
The purpose of these notifications to public institutions is to enable them to provide pre-redundancy services and to ease work-to-work transitions. Active measures counteracting unemployment aim at offering support to those in search of a job. Such measures include professional orientation; training the unemployed about how to seek a job position; professional and entrepreneurial training; establishing centres for business advice and development services; and financial support in creating new work places, including public works programmes.
One of the steps a local employment agency must take is to provide pre-redundancy services (such as information, placement to vacant jobs, career change, etc). Employment Agencies provide redundancy support services, according to Government Decision no. 278/2002. The expenses for redundancy prevention measures are funded by the unemployment insurance fund and employers.
Law 127/17 June 2018 amended article 72 regarding the collective dismissal.
Eurofound (2015), Romania: Public authorities information and consultation on dismissals, Restructuring legislation database, Dublin, https://apps.eurofound.europa.eu/legislationdb/public-authorities-information-and-consultation-on-dismissals/romania
Between the end of 2022 and the first half of 2023, almost 300,000 employees working for ‘big tech’ companies were laid off across the world, making headlines for months in global media. This development has been a shock, considering the high numbers of jobs in well-known tech corporations with a reputation for offering good working conditions and well-paid positions.
The retail banking sector is fertile ground for studying the impacts of digitalisation on work and employment. Financial services are increasingly provided online, without the intermediary of customer-facing institutions. Many banks in the sector have been undergoing serial restructuring since the global financial crisis, and it is one of the few service sectors with stagnant or declining employment.
Since 2011, the Restructuring support instruments database of the EU PolicyWatch has been collecting information on measures that assist companies and workers to anticipate and manage restructuring. This article looks at measures in the database aimed at supporting employees and employers during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020–2022).
Eurofound’s European Restructuring Monitor database reveals the impact of the energy crisis on employment in the EU. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, energy prices have hit record highs. The European Commission imposed sanctions and limitations on the import of oil and gas from Russia, which has reacted by reneging on supply commitments to many Member States.
