US embassy cable - 03BRUSSELS5469

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BRUSSELS 005469 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR DRL/IL; LABOR FOR ILAB AND ODEP; FOR LABOR 
REPORTING OFFICERS AND LABOR ATTACHES 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ELAB, EUN, USEU BRUSSELS 
SUBJECT: USEU LABOR/SOCIAL AFFAIRS HIGHLIGHTS 
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2003 
 
REF: BRUSSELS 5457 (NOTAL) 
 
1. (U) This is first cable in new series designed to provide 
labor reporting officers and attaches with a review of recent 
key EU actions in the areas of labor affairs and social 
policy as well as a look-ahead of what to expect in coming 
months. This report will highlight areas of US/EU 
dialogue/cooperation on labor affairs as well as labor 
related issues that we currently are tracking. USEU will 
continue to provide a separate monthly report on EU 
unemployment statistics (reftel). 
 
US/EU Seminar on Disabled in the Workplace 
------------------------------------------ 
 
2. (U) US Department of Labor Assistant Secretary Dr. Roy 
Grizzard (Office of Disability Policy) headed an USG/private 
sector delegation here November 17-19 attending an US/EU 
Seminar on Access of People with Disabilities to Employment. 
Conference highlights included mutual recognition that both 
sides of the Atlantic face a very high unemployment rate - 
about 70%- among their disabled -- and that the EU has no 
equivalent of an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). EU 
NGO participants were especially interested in developing ADA 
protections for EU workplaces.  To our pleasant surprise, 
there were no expressions of an alleged European superiority 
over the US on the treatment of the handicapped; in fact, 
most Europeans agreed that there was much that Europe could 
learn from the US. Adding urgency to EU concern is the high 
rate of disabled workers (25 percent) among the forthcoming 
ten new EU members; among the current 15 members, 15 percent 
of their workforce is disabled. 
 
EU Commissioner trip to the US: hits and misses 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
3.  (SBU) EU Commissioner for Labor and Social Affairs Anna 
Diamantopoulou traveled to NY and Boston November 20-24. She 
stunned some of her staff when she decided to cancel the 
Washington leg of her trip allegedly because of difficulties 
in getting appointments on the Hill.  According to one of her 
closest advisors, the highlight of her trip was meeting with 
UNSYG Kofi Annan where the central topic of their 
conversation was what the EU is doing in the area of 
Corporate Social Responsibility.  In Boston, she argued at a 
Kennedy School speech that Europe can learn from the US and 
that the transatlantic relationship is too important to let 
it break up. Of particular note is that during most of her 
speech, she sounded more like the Commissioner for foreign 
relations than a Commissioner for Labor and Social Affairs - 
but it is open secret in Brussels that the Diamantopoulou is 
very interested in pursuing a political career back in Greece 
once her term on the Commission expires next October 31. 
 
EU Commissioner to G-8 Labor Ministerial 
---------------------------------------- 
 
4. (SBU) Secretary of Labor Chao has agreed to a request from 
Diamantopoulou for a bilateral meeting (December 15) at the 
G-8 labor ministerial in Stuttgart later this month. 
According to the Commissioner's deputy chief of staff, the 
Commissioner will be interested in talking about labor 
standards, corporate social responsibility, and the impact of 
enlargement on the EU work force. 
 
Labor Experts Gloom on Meeting Lisbon Goals 
------------------------------------------- 
 
5. (U) For the last half year, former Dutch PM Wim Kok has 
chaired a committee of labor market experts on how EU member 
states are meeting the three Lisbon employment goals of 70 
percent labor force utilization; 60 percent utilization of 
female workers and 50 percent utilization of older workers 
(defined as 55-64). In their report released November 26, the 
experts note that the EU is meeting none of these goals - 
unlike the US.  The reports cited inflexible labor market 
policies as a particular problem and argued that Europe 
should not respond just to the current slowdown, but also 
needs to more effectively address the structural challenge of 
globalization and the rapid aging of its population.  USEU 
Labor Counselor participated in a November 27 panel 
discussion on the report (sponsored by the European Voice) in 
Brussels called "2010: a Work Odyssey: Shaping the European 
Employment Market."  The discussion was somewhat gloomy 
because of fear that with enlargement, the EU is more likely 
to go even further backwards in meeting their Lisbon 
employment goals. 
 
US/EU Labor and Social Affairs Task Force 
----------------------------------------- 
 
6. (U) On November 18, USEU attended the first-ever DVC of 
the US/EU working group on employment and labor related 
issues (between USDOL and DG-Employment). Main purpose of the 
meeting was to lay out a joint work plan for 2005 and confirm 
2004 work plan. Future projects include joint seminars on 
Information and Communication Technology outsourcing, 
immigration and labor market integration, and a possible 
joint conference/seminar on anti-discrimination in 2005. Also 
discussed were follow-up projects from the disability seminar 
(above) and an earlier joint US/EU occupational safety and 
health seminar in Greece. 
 
US Department of Labor visitor 
------------------------------ 
 
7.  (SBU) USDOL/ILAB European Area Advisor Bill Brumfield 
visited Brussels 11/20-21.  We met with EC, Union of 
Industrial and Employers' Confederations of Europe (UNICE), 
European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) and International 
Confederation of Free Trade Union (ICFTU) officials.  We had 
a key meeting with Tom Jenkins, the newly arrived 
international affairs advisor to ETUC secretary general John 
Monks.  Under Monks, the ETUC is much more receptive to 
working with the ICFTU and us than the previous standoffish 
leadership. Our ICFTU interlocutor previewed ICFTU interest 
in hearing more about how the US will handle the labor 
aspects of its forthcoming G-8 presidency. 
 
What we're tracking 
------------------- 
 
8. (SBU) ICFTU plans/projects for Iraq labor unions, EU 
assessment of its "2003: the European Year of People with 
Disabilities," Irish EU Presidency Plans for Labor and Social 
Issues; Commission concerns on the impact of the enlargement 
on the EU labor market; potential impact of EU 
Intergovernmental Convention (IGC)/Constitution process on 
labor and social issues. 
Foster