15 Amendments of Theodoros ZAGORAKIS related to 2017/0102(COD)
Amendment 180 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 9
Recital 9
(9) Voluntary activities constitute a rich experience in a non-formal and informal learning context which enhances young people's personal, socio-educational and professional development, active citizenship and employability. Voluntary activitieseering placements should be mainly carried out by public authorities, non-profit organisations, foundations and social enterprises and they should not have an adverse effect on potential or existing paid employment, nor should they be seen as a substitute for it. In order to ensure continuity with respect to the volunteering activities that are supported at Union level, the volunteering activities under the European Voluntary Service that fall within the geographical scope of the European Solidarity Corps should be supported by the latter in the form of cross- border volunteering placements. The other volunteering activities under the European Voluntary Service that do not fall under the geographical scope of the European Solidarity Corps should continue to be supported under the Programme established by Regulation (EU) No 1288/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing 'Erasmus+': the Union programme for education, training, youth and sport20 . With respect to the interpretation of related legislation at Union level, both the cross-border volunteering placements under the European Solidarity Corps and the volunteering activities that continue to be supported under Regulation (EU) No 1288/2013 should be considered equivalent to those carried out under the European Voluntary Service. __________________ 20 Regulation (EU) No 1288/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 establishing 'Erasmus+': the Union programme for education, training, youth and sport and repealing Decisions No 1719/2006/EC, No 1720/2006/EC and No 1298/2008/EC, OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 50.
Amendment 193 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 11
Recital 11
(11) Young people’s spirit of initiative is an important asset for society and for the labour market. The European Solidarity Corps should contribute to fostering this aspect by offering young people the opportunity to devise and implement their own projects aimed at addressing specific challenges to the benefit of their local communities. Those projects should be an opportunity to try out ideas and support young people to be themselves drivers of solidarity actions. They could also serve as a springboard for further engagement in solidarity activities and could be a first step towards encouraging European Solidarity Corps participants to engage in self-employment or setting up associations, NGOeither as volunteers or as employees in associations, NGOs, youth organisations or other bodies active in the solidarity, non-profit and youth sectors and set up their own associations.
Amendment 203 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 13
Recital 13
(13) Particular attention should be paid to ensuring the quality of the placements and other opportunities offered under the European Solidarity Corps, in particular by offering online and offline training, language support, insurance, administrative and post- placement support to participants as well as the validation of the knowledge, skills and competences acquired through their European Solidarity Corps experience. This support should be created and provided in collaboration with youth organisations and other civil society organisations in order to tap into their expertise on the field. Post-placement support should also prioritise the continuous civic engagement of the participants in their community, guiding them towards local organisations or projects to engage with after the placement.
Amendment 227 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 17
Recital 17
(17) A European Solidarity Corps Portal should continuously be developed in order to ensure easy access to the European Solidarity Corps and to provide a one-stop shop for both interested individuals and organiszations as regards, inter alia, registration, identification and matching of profiles and opportunities, networking and virtual exchanges, online training, language and pre and post-placement support, and direct feedback and evaluation mechanisms as well as other useful functionalities, which may arise in the future. The European Solidarity Corps Portal and its use should be explained in detail in the programme guide.
Amendment 272 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 26
Recital 26
(26) An entity willing to apply for funding to offer placements under the European Solidarity Corps should have first received a quality label as a precondition. This requirement should not apply to natural persons seeking financial support on behalf of an informal group of European Solidarity Corps participants for their solidarity projects and should be accompanied by simplified application procedures.
Amendment 343 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 4 a (new)
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 4 a (new)
(4a) "sending organisation" means an entity that plays a fundamental role in encouraging, promoting and facilitating accessibility to and partnerships in the volunteering sector such as trade unions, youth organisations, Churches and religious associations or communities, NGOs or other actors from civil society;
Amendment 404 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 1
Article 3 – paragraph 1
The objective of the European Solidarity Corps is to enhancepromote and enhance European solidarity and volunteering as a virtue; it shall strengthen the engagement of young people and organisations in accessible and high quality solidarity and voluntary activities as a means to contribute to strengthening cohesion and solidarity in Europe, promoting active citizenship of young people and supporting communities and responding to societal challenges.
Amendment 416 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) to provide young people, with the support of participating organisations, with easily accessible opportunities for engagement in solidarity and voluntary activities while improving their skills and competences for personal, educational, social, civic and professional development, as well as their employability and facilitating transition into the labour market, including by supporting the mobility of young volunteers, trainees and workers;
Amendment 425 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point b
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point b
(b) to ensure that the solidarity and voluntary activities that are offered to the European Solidarity Corps participants contribute to addressing concrete, unmet societal needs and strengthening communities, are of high quality and properly validated.
Amendment 427 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point b a (new)
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point b a (new)
(ba) to support the development, support and maintenance of an EU Agenda for Volunteering aimed at guaranteeing the recognition and respect of the rights of volunteers and volunteer- involving organisations and the reduction of administrative and legal barriers to volunteering and volunteer-involving organisations across Europe, in addition to fostering, promoting and supporting a wider culture of Solidarity and Volunteering in Europe.
Amendment 455 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) solidarity placements in the form of full-time, part-time and free-time volunteering, traineeships or jobs, including individual cross-border and in- country placements as well as volunteering teams’ placements;
Amendment 474 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) measures aimed at ensuring the quality and accessibility of solidarity placements, including offline and online training, language support, financial and administrative support for participants and participatsending and receiving organisations, insurance, pre and post-placement support as well as the development of a certificate that identifies and documents the knowledge,learning outcomes as regards skills and competences acquired during the placement;
Amendment 544 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 12 – paragraph 2
Article 12 – paragraph 2
2. When implementing this Regulation, the Commission and the participating countries shall ensure that particular efforts are made to promote social inclusion, in particular for the participation of disadvantaged young people and necessary support mechanisms and specific funding rules for inclusion shall be put in place.
Amendment 554 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 13 – paragraph 1
Article 13 – paragraph 1
1. The European Solidarity Corps shall be open to the participation of public or private entities, or international organisations in the capacity of receiving and sending organisations, provided that they have received a European Solidarity Corps quality label.
Amendment 559 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 13 – paragraph 1 a (new)
Article 13 – paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. The receiving organisation shall ensure safe and decent living conditions for the volunteer throughout the entire activity related period. It shall provide adequate personal, linguistic and task- related support, including the identification of a mentor for each volunteer.