Independent Marian Harkin MEP today, November 11th,  welcomed the approval of EU aid for the 850 former SR Technics workers made redundant in 2009.

Speaking from Brussels, where the European Parliament today gave the green light to release €7,445,863 from the EU’s Globalisation Adjustment Fund to the workers, Harkin said: "the EU is often maligned - sometimes fairly but often unfairly - for the things it gets wrong. I believe we should also celebrate the things the EU gets right, such as the globalisation fund, which provides vital aid to European workers who have lost their job, usually due to the relocation of large companies".

The Ireland Northwest MEP, who plays a leading role representing Irish workers on the Globalisation Fund Working Group in the European Parliament, expressed her satisfaction that "this money will now be made available for former SR employees to retrain, upskill and hopefully make a swift and confident return to the Irish labour market".

Background: The EU Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF) was established to provide additional support for workers made redundant as a result of major structural changes in world trade patterns due to globalisation or the financial crisis and to assist them with their reintegration into the labour market. The fund’s annual ceiling is €500 million.