REPORTERNET.COM

The European Commission will request that labor restrictions on Bulgarians and Romanians be lifted by the last nine EU member states to have them, EU Commissioner for Employment and Social Affairs Laszlo Andor said in Brussels.

Of the 27 EU countries, nine – Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, and the UK – have decided to keep Bulgarians and Romanians out of their labor markets until the final possible date – December 31, 2013.
Under Bulgaria and Romania's EU accession agreements signed back in 2005, all other EU state had the right to deny labor market access to their citizens for a period of up to 7 years (in three phases: 2+3+2 years). A total of 16 out of the 25 other EU member states have lifted the labor restrictions for Bulgarians and Romanians during the first two phases.
"The Commission will present an overview of the implementation of the transitional measures by the Member States that will continue to impose restrictions to workers from Romania and Bulgaria until 31 December 2013. The final third phase of the transitional arrangements on free movement of workers from Bulgaria and Romania started on 1 January 2012," the EC said in a statement after Friday's sitting of the Council of EU Employment and Social Policy Ministers.
The EC notes that of 11 Member States that had still applied restrictions at the end of 2011, 2 Member States - Italy and the Czech Republic - informed the Commission that they had decided to end applying national law on labor market access and move to apply EU law on free movement of workers as of 1 January 2012.


(source: www.novinite.com)