On the proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on the mobilisation of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund for Displaced Workers following an application from Austria – EGF/2025/005 AT/KTM

PR_BUD_Funds

MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION

on the proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on the mobilisation of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund for Displaced Workers following an application from Austria – EGF/2025/005 AT/KTM

(COM(2026)0010 – C100026/2026 – 2026/0037(BUD))

– having regard to the Commission proposal to the European Parliament and the Council (COM(2026)0010 – C100026/2026),

– having regard to Regulation (EU) 2021/691 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 April 2021 on the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund for Displaced Workers (EGF) and repealing Regulation (EU) No 1309/2013 (‘EGF Regulation’),

– having regard to Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2093 of 17 December 2020 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2021-2027 as amended by Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/765 (‘MFF Regulation’), and in particular Article 8 thereof,

– having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 16 December 2020 between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the European Commission on budgetary discipline, on cooperation in budgetary matters and on sound financial management, as well as on new own resources, including a roadmap towards the introduction of new own resources, and in particular point 9 thereof,

– having regard to the European Pillar of Social Rights,

– having regard to the opinion of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs,

– having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgets (A100000/2026),

A. whereas the Union has set up legislative and budgetary instruments to provide additional support to workers who are suffering from the consequences of major structural events and changes in world trade patterns, and to assist their reintegration into the labour market; whereas this assistance is made through a financial support given to workers;

B. whereas Austria submitted application EGF/2025/005 AT/KTM for a financial contribution from the EGF following 1 488 displacements in KTM Gruppe (KTM), in the economic sector classified under the NACE Revision 2 division 30 (Manufacture of other transport equipment) in the region of Upper Austria (AT31), with 233 displacements within a reference period from 25 February 2025 to 25 June 2025, and 1 255 displacements before or after the reference period;

C. whereas the application is based on the intervention criteria of Article 4(2), point (a), of the EGF Regulation, which requires the cessation of activity of at least 200 displaced workers or self-employed persons over a reference period of four months in an enterprise in a Member State; whereas for the 1 255 displacements whose activity ceased before or after the four-month reference period a clear causal link can be established with the event that triggered the cessation of activity for the displaced workers during the reference period as required by Article 6(2) of the EGF Regulation;

D. whereas KTM filed for insolvency on 29 November 2024 and a restructuring plan has been approved on 25 February 2025;

E. whereas Austria indicated that the Upper Austria Public Employment Service and the Province of Upper Austria are providing the national pre-financing and co-funding of the measures;

F. whereas the requirements laid down in Union and national legislation concerning collective redundancies have been met;

G. whereas financial contributions from the EGF should be primarily directed at active labour market policy measures and personalised services that aim to reintegrate beneficiaries rapidly into decent and sustainable employment, while preparing them for a greener and more digital European economy;

H. whereas the EGF shall not exceed a maximum annual amount of EUR 30 million (in 2018 prices);

1. Agrees with the Commission that the conditions set out in the EGF Regulation and in particular in Article 4(2), point (a) thereof are met and that Austria is entitled to a financial contribution of EUR 1 806 624 under that Regulation, which represents 60 % of the total cost of EUR 3 011 040, comprising expenditure for personalised services of EUR 2 895 120 and expenditure for preparatory, management, information and publicity, control and reporting activities of EUR 115 920;

2. Notes that the Austrian authorities submitted the application on 15 September 2025, and that, following the receipt of additional information by Austria, the Commission finalised its assessment on 6 February 2026 and notified it to Parliament on 11 February 2026; stresses the importance of shortening the time between the submission of an application for EGF assistance and the financing decision, while fully safeguarding the rights of the European Parliament as one arm of the budgetary authority;

3. Notes that the application relates to 1 488 workers affected by the insolvency proceedings of KTM, which were the largest ever in Upper Austria; notes further that 420 displaced workers in total will be targeted beneficiaries and are expected to participate in the measures;

4. Notes that KTM was the largest motorcycle producer of the Union and the largest subsidiary of Pierer Mobility AG; regrets that the parent company decided to move production to China and India in December 2023 due to unfair competitive conditions; notes that this led to an initial dismissal of 300 jobs and that subsequent sales losses prompted KTM to implement cost reductions, including the layoffs of over 500 employees during 2024;

5. Notes that the parent company had to start a restructuring process and that, during KTM’s first production shutdown in 2025, over 750 additional employees were made redundant; notes that the investor Bajaj Auto International Holdings B.V. provided the necessary resources to ensure the continuation of KTM on 22 May 2025, avoiding KTM’s bankruptcy, and allowing production to resume in July 2025 while curbing spending;

6. Notes that KTM was once one of the most successful motorcycles brands in Europe, a significant employer and critical economic pillar of many suppliers in the district of Braunau in Upper Austria; notes that, consequently, unemployment in the district rose by 37.1 % in November 2024, compared to the same month of the previous year; notes that unemployment reached all-time high in the Braunau district in 2025;

7. Recalls that, in agreement with social partners, personalised services to be provided to the workers consist of the following measures: case management; career guidance and orientation; training and retraining; pro-active job-search; training allowances; emphasises the importance of fostering high-quality, future-oriented jobs to ensure long-term economic and social resilience;

8. Stresses that the Austrian authorities shall ensure the visibility of the Union funding and highlight its added value by providing effective and targeted information to beneficiaries, regional and local authorities, social partners, and the wider public;

9. Calls for thorough final evaluations of the measures implemented, including clear information on how the funds have been used and whether they were spent in line with the approved plans;

10. Notes that Austria started providing both personalised services to the targeted beneficiaries and incurring administrative expenditure to implement the EGF on 1 March 2025 and that the period of eligibility for a financial contribution from the EGF will therefore be from that date until 24 months and until 31 months after the date of the entry into force of the financing decision, respectively;

11. Notes that the Austrian authorities provided assurance that the principles of equality of treatment and non-discrimination will be respected in the access to the proposed actions and their implementation, and that any double financing will be prevented;

12. Reiterates that assistance from the EGF must not replace actions that are the responsibility of companies, by virtue of national law or collective agreements;

13. Approves the decision annexed to this resolution;

14. Instructs its President to sign the decision with the President of the Council and arrange for its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union;

15. Instructs its President to forward this resolution, including its annex, to the Council and the Commission.

ANNEX: DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL

on the mobilisation of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund for Displaced Workers following an application from Austria – EGF/2025/005 AT/KTM

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Regulation (EU) 2021/691 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 April 2021 on the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund for Displaced Workers (EGF) and repealing Regulation (EU) No 1309/2013, and in particular Article 15(1), first subparagraph, thereof,

Having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 16 December 2020 between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the European Commission on budgetary discipline, on cooperation in budgetary matters and on sound financial management, as well as on new own resources, including a roadmap towards the introduction of new own resources, and in particular point 9 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,

Whereas:

(1) The European Globalisation Adjustment Fund for Displaced Workers (EGF) aims to demonstrate solidarity and promote decent and sustainable employment in the Union by providing support for workers made redundant and self-employed persons whose activity has ceased in the case of major restructuring events and assisting them in returning to decent and sustainable employment as soon as possible.

(2) The EGF is not to exceed a maximum annual amount of EUR 30 million (in 2018 prices), as laid down in Article 8 of Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2093 amended by Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/765, and Article 16 of Regulation (EU) 2021/691.

(3) On 15 September 2025, Austria submitted an application to mobilise the EGF in accordance with Article 8(1) of Regulation (EU) 2021/691, in respect of workers’ displacements in KTM (KTM Gruppe) in Austria. It was supplemented by additional information provided in accordance with Article 8(5) of Regulation (EU) 2021/691. That application is considered to comply with the conditions for providing a financial contribution from the EGF as laid down in Article 13 of Regulation (EU) 2021/691, on the basis of the assessment made by the Commission in the Proposal for a mobilisation decision of the European Parliament and of the Council.

(4) The EGF should, therefore, be mobilised in order to provide a financial contribution of EUR 1 806 624 in respect of the application submitted by Austria.

(5) In order to minimise the time taken to mobilise the EGF, this decision should apply from the date of its adoption,

HAVE ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

For the general budget of the Union for the financial year 2026, the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund for Displaced Workers shall be mobilised to provide the amount of EUR 1 806 624 in commitment and payment appropriations.

Article 2

This Decision shall enter into force on the day of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union. It shall apply from [the date of its adoption]*.

Done at Brussels,

For the European Parliament For the Council

The President The President

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

I. Background

The European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF) was created to provide additional assistance to workers suffering from the consequences of major structural changes in world trade patterns.

In accordance with point 9 of the Interinstitutional Agreement of 16 December 2020, the Commission is required, following the positive assessment of an application, to submit a proposal to mobilise the Fund to the budgetary authority and to complement it with a corresponding request for transfer to the relevant budget lines.

II. Austria’s application and the Commission's proposal

On 15 September 2025 Austria submitted an application EGF/2025/005 AT/KTM for a financial contribution from the EGF, following 1 488 redundancies at KTM. This is the fifth such application of 2025, and the third to be examined under the 2026 budget.

Following the assessment of this application, the Commission has concluded, in accordance with all applicable provisions of the EGF Regulation, that the conditions for awarding a financial contribution from the EGF are met.

On 6 February 2026, the Commission adopted a proposal for a decision on the mobilisation of the EGF in favour of Austria for tailored measures to support the reintegration in the labour market of 420 targeted beneficiaries, i.e. workers from KTM made redundant. In total, EUR 1 806 624 will be mobilised from the EGF for KTM, representing 60% of the total costs of the proposed actions.

The Commission deemed the Austrian application admissible under the intervention criteria of Article 4(2) (a) of the EGF Regulation, which requires the cessation of activity of at least 200 displaced workers or self-employed persons over a reference period of four months, in an enterprise in a Member State, including workers displaced in suppliers and downstream.

EGF co-funding has been requested for the following five types of actions, to be provided to redundant workers:

(a) Case management: This measure aims at offering highly individualised support by accompanying participants in the implementation of their individual action plan and documenting and assessing their individual training pathways.

(b) Career guidance - career orientation: This measure precedes the individual action plan and serves primarily to clarify career prospects based on participants’ interests, strengths and weaknesses. To set up an action plan, individual training objectives are identified, and training possibilities discussed. This is based on a thorough research of labour market trends and prospective job opportunities.

(c) Training and retraining: In drawing up the action plan, particular attention will be paid to improving vocational skills. Therefore, participants can follow training and retraining courses in line with labour market needs, enabling participants to find a new and sustainable job as quickly as possible.

(d) Pro-active job-search: This measure includes assistance with preparing convincing applications, developing search strategies and individual and job-related application strategies, promoting initiative and motivation, dealing with rejection, strengthening resilience, etc.

(e) Training allowance – training-related subsidy: A training allowance will be granted to each participant in the programme to cover the additional training-related expenses related to participation in the training measures.

III. Procedure

In order to mobilise the Fund, the Commission has submitted to the Budgetary Authority a request to transfer a global amount of EUR 1 806 624 from the EGF reserve (budget line 30 04 02; commitment appropriations) to the EGF (budget line 16 02 02; commitment appropriations).

According to an internal agreement within the Parliament, the Employment and Social Affairs Committee and the Committee on Regional Development should be associated to the process, in order to provide constructive support and contribute to the assessment of the applications from the Fund.