Category: Archive – 2014

EU and Chinese
trusted traders will enjoy lower costs, simplified procedures and greater
predictability in their activities, thanks to a mutual recognition agreement
signed today. Under the agreement, the EU and China commit to recognising each
other's certified safe traders, thereby allowing these companies to benefit
from faster controls and reduced administration for customs clearance.

New EU rules
making it easier for companies to recover claims across borders have been
adopted today by EU Ministers. Member States in the General Affairs Council signed
off on the agreement recently reached with the European Parliament to establish
a European Account Preservation Order (MEMO/14/101) – a Regulation that will be directly applicable in the Member States
(except in the UK and Denmark which have an opt-out in this area).

The European
Account Preservation Order is essentially a European procedure that will help
businesses recover millions in cross-border debts, allowing creditors to preserve
the amount owed in a debtor's bank account. The proposal had been made by the
European Commission in July 2011 (IP/11/923). 

"Every Euro counts: Small and medium-sized enterprises are the backbone
of European economies, making up 99% of businesses in the EU. Around 1 million
of them face problems with cross-border debts. In economically challenging
times companies need quick solutions to recover outstanding debts. This is
exactly what the European Account Preservation Order is about," said
Johannes Hahn, EU Commissioner responsible for Justice during Vice-President
Viviane Reding's electoral leave. "Today's
adoption is good news for Europe's SMEs and the economy. Thanks to these new rules,
small businesses will no longer be forced to pursue expensive and confusing
lawsuits in foreign countries."

While the EU's
internal market allows businesses to enter in cross-border trade and boost
their earnings, today around 1 million small businesses face problems with
cross-border debts. Up to €600 million a year in debt is unnecessarily written
off because businesses find it too daunting to pursue expensive, confusing
lawsuits in foreign countries. The European Account Preservation Order will help
recovering debt across borders  by preventing debtors from moving their
assets to another country while procedures to obtain and enforce a judgment on
the merits are ongoing. It would thus improve the prospects of successfully
recovering cross-border debt.

Next steps: After its
publication in the Official Journal – the EU's Statute book ­, expected in June
2014, the Regulation will be directly applicable in the Member States (except
in the UK and Denmark).

Background

The new European Account Preservation Order will allow creditors to
preserve funds in bank accounts under the same conditions in all Member States
of the EU (except the UK and Denmark where the new EU rules will not apply).
Importantly, there will be no change to the national systems for preserving
funds. The creditors will be able to choose this European procedure to recover
claims abroad in other EU countries. The new procedure is an interim protection
procedure. To actually get hold of the money, the creditor will always have to
obtain a final judgment on the case in accordance with national law or by using
one of the simplified European procedures, such as the European Small Claims
Procedure.

The European
Account Preservation Order will be available to the creditor as an alternative
to procedures existing under national law. It will be of a protective nature,
meaning it will only block the debtor's account but not allow money to be paid
out to the creditor. The procedure will only apply to cross-border cases. It
provides common rules relating to jurisdiction, conditions and procedure for
issuing an order; a disclosure order relating to bank accounts; how it should
be enforced by national courts and authorities; and remedies for the debtor and
other elements of defendant protection.

The European
Parliament's Legal Affairs Committee (JURI) voted to back the Commission's
proposal (MEMO/13/481) in May 2013. Ministers discussed the proposal at the Justice Council
meeting on 6 June 2013 and reached a general approach on 6 December 2013 (SPEECH/13/1029). The European Parliament issued its support for the proposal in a
plenary vote in April 2014 (see MEMO/14/308).

A Campaign
organised by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) What is Stress and how can it affect the Workplace? Stress
cannot be ignored. It is the second most frequently reported work-related health
problem in Europe and is believed to be the cause of more than half of all lost
working days.

Even
though in some instances stress is caused by something outside the working
environment there are various causes that contribute to work related stress. It
could be the result of bad work practices, competition from other businesses,
restructuring, tough targets or client expectations. Stress can leave a
negative impact on everyone meaning both individually as a person and also for
the business performance itself. Stress generally results when the demands of
the job exceed a worker's capacity to fulfil the task at hand.

How does it affect the employees?

Workers
that are affected by stress find it very difficult to concentrate and make
decisions. Stress is the main factor of many of the mistakes that happen and
occur at the workplace due to anxiousness. Stress is also a major contributor
to absences from work. Prolonged stress might also lead to health problems in
the future In some cases, workers may be unwell but still coming to work – this
is known as presenteeism. It occurs when workers come to work but function
below their full capacity.

Facts:

Statistics:

Work-related
stress is the second most frequently reported work-related health problem in
Europe – after musculoskeletal disorders. Around half of workers consider it to
be common in their workplace. 50-60% of all lost working days can be attributed
to work-related stress. In a recent European poll conducted by EU-OSHA the most
common causes of work-related stress cited were job reorganisation or job
insecurity (72% of respondents), working long hours or excessive workload (66%)
and being bullied or harassed at work (59%). The same poll showed that around 4
in 10 workers think that stress is not handled well in their workplace.
Typically, stress-related absences tend to be longer than those arising from
other causes.

According to
EUROSTAT data, over a period of nine years, 28% of European workers reported
exposure to psychosocial risks that affected their mental well-being. The good
news is that psychosocial risks can be prevented and managed regardless of
business size or type.

What's in it for the employer?

Although the
employer has a legal obligation to manage such risks at work the argument goes
beyond mere compliance and abiding by the law. It is in the best interest of
the business to manage stress effectively. It is proven that managing stress
and psychosocial risks contribute greatly to effective improvements of key
business performance such as work quality, goal setting and attainment. It will
also affect the operations of the business when it comes to lowering costs and
reducing staff turnover.

If the
organisations is factoring in stress related drawbacks, workers can operate at
full capacity. Proper and effective management in relation to psychosocial
risks and stress will reap great benefits in the long run. Businesses will find
that recruiting staff is generally easier, as job seekers come to value the
positive environment and culture in such companies. The investment in time and
resources in managing stress will pay for itself in the form of a healthier
workforce and workplace environment and in the long- term sustainability and
improved social responsibility of the business.

What should we do?

The campaign
initiated by the EU OHSA emphasises that psychosocial risks can be assessed and
managed in the same systematic way as other occupational safety and health
risks. The standard risk assessment model and a participative approach are the
ideal way of identifying the risks and tackling the issue. First, identify the
hazards and those potentially at risk. Managers and workers need to be aware of
psychosocial risks and the early warning signs of work-related stress. Second,
evaluate and prioritise the risks. Decide which risks are of highest concern
and focus on working on these first. Third, plan preventive action. A plan
needs to be put in place to prevent psychosocial risks from occurring. If risks
are not avoidable, think about how they can be minimised. Fourth, implement the
plan. You should specify the measures to be taken, the resources required, the
people involved and the time frame. Finally, monitor and review on an ongoing
basis. You should be prepared to amend the plan in response to the results of
monitoring. Remember that people can react differently to the same set of
circumstances. Your psychosocial risk assessment should take account of workers'
abilities and needs (e.g. those related to gender, age or experience).

Article by Gayle Lynn Callus who is currently
reading a Bachelors Degree in European Studies.

New Opportunities for
Maltese Businesses – The US Embassy
in Malta, in collaboration with the American Chamber of Commerce in Malta
(AmCham Malta),  will be organising a
seminar on  22nd May at Malta Enterprise
in G'Mangia, entitled "Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership – New
Opportunities for Maltese Businesses".

The
Seminar will be discussing the potential opportunities that the planned TTIP
initiative between the US and the EU will offer Maltese businesses from a
variety of expert perspectives. 

You are
cordially invited to attend.  Mr Peter
Chase Vice-President Europe of the American Chamber of Commerce (aka US Chamber
of Commerce) will be addressing the Seminar.

Further
information and confirmations are available on tel: 2561 4120 or

On Friday 23^rd May 2014, Xarabank will be holding a fundraiser
in aid of poor people around the world, including children dying of starvation
and sickness.

Therefore your organization is invited to help these people
by either donating 500 euro to sponsor a
community well. This well will provide clean drinking water and water to
irrigate agriculture.

Or/and

Donate a "bike" designed for people, whom lost their limbs due to illnesses.
These bikes cost 200 euro, they make people mobile again and give them a chance
to be more independent and productive.

You are invited to present your donation on Xarabank
either by coming live during the program or by sending the donation to:

Mission Fund, Eureka Court,Block A, Flat 6, Mosta MST 1018

and upon receipt, your
organization will be mentioned and your logo will be shown (to be supplied)
during the program.

A receipt will be given for all donations.

The program will be held on the 23^rd May 2014, Live on Television Malta (TVM) at 20:45pm. Kindly let us
know as soon as possible if you are interested in participating.

Should you need any further information kindly contact
Russell Sammut on 21249200 /

GRTU President
Paul Abela has this week expressed GRTU's wishes to see Business First operate
renewed energy to help SMEs and also expressed GRTU's support and guaranteed
involvement to see it function to our satisfaction.

Mr Abela also ensured that
GRTU and Business First will be collaborating closely to reach out within the
available schemes to members and hold regular information sessions on this
regard. Business First is offering a number of new services aimed at helping
businesses and boosting their potential to succeed. In keeping with the
commitment to deliver a large number of services  for businesses under one roof, the
one-stop-shop facility is being strengthened with the presence of officers from
the Inland Revenue Department at Business First.

Through
their expertise, the officers will better equip Business First – which also
hosts a MEPA officer on a weekly basis – and will ensure that an improved
service is provided to clients. The re-evaluation of the services at Business
First has also led to the setting up of an outreach programme comprising a
number of initiatives.

The
approach in this case is twofold, namely the organisation of information
sessions for enterprises in collaboration with various stakeholders, as well as
the scheduling of company visits to bring the services offered at Business
First and Malta Enterprise closer to businesses. Currently, plans are being
concluded on a structured programme of company visits. 

The
Minister for the Economy, Investment and Small Business, Dr. Chris Cardona said
that this initiative will further widen and strengthen the range of services
that Business First offers, which will continue to enhance its reputation as a
one-stop-shop for start-ups and businesses. Minister Cardona said that Business
First will continue working with constituted bodies and other entities so that
further cooperation is established. "This will lead to more services being
offered by Business First, to the benefit of their clients," said Minister
Cardona.

In
addition to the new services at Business First, Malta Enterprise has also
developed revised versions of the Micro Guarantee and Micro Invest schemes to
assist micro and small enterprises. 

The
Micro Guarantee scheme aims to accelerate business growth by facilitating
access to finance for smaller undertakings, which often have limited availability
of funds and consequently may find it difficult to carry out new investments
and take up business opportunities. 

Through
the Micro Guarantee scheme, eligible undertakings will be given a guarantee of
up to 65% or 80% depending on the activity.  The Guarantee can cover loans
between €2,500 and €100,000 obtained from commercial banks.  The Guarantee
which may be used to finance projects leading to business enhancement, growth
and development.

The
Micro Invest scheme will continue to encourage undertakings to invest in their
business, to innovate, expand, and to develop their operations. Undertakings,
which may include self-employed persons, will be supported through a tax credit
representing a percentage of the eligible expenditure and wages of newly
recruited employees.

Malta Enterprise may approve a tax credit on an annual basis equivalent
to 45% of eligible expenditure, which includes costs incurred between January
1, 2014 and December 31, 2020.  An additional bonus of 20% applies to
undertakings operating from Gozo, which may thus benefit from a tax credit of
65%.

GRTU has today hosted the launch of the YES Money Card by
Insignia Cards Ltd Malta and Lighthouse Group, with the endorsement of the
Honourable Dr Christian Cardona, Minister for the Economy, Investment and Small
Business.

GRTU President Paul Abela
also endorsed the initiative as a very innovative and practical way of payment.

YES Net is a payment system
tailored for the Maltese market that brings extensive benefits to both
consumers and retailers alike. The YES Net programme is based on the YES Money
Card and a network of Merchants who accept payment by this Card.

The YES Money Card creates
synergy between traders and consumers. It is an easy way for consumers to get
access to, and use, credit. This new credit card, available to the Maltese
public, is totally fee-free (with no introductory or yearly charges) and allows
consumers to make purchases today and repay them in fixed monthly installments
over a period of up to 36 months, with highly competitive interest rates.

Card applications are
completed online at www.yesmoney.com.mt, without having
to open a bank account or deposit any money. Approval is given within 30
seconds, and the YES Money Card will be delivered to one's home or workplace in
the subsequent days.

Apart from being free,
giving consumers the ability to "buy now and pay later' and the ease of
application and delivery, the YES Money Card gives a 56-day interest-free
period and lines of credit up to €5,000. As an additional benefit, for every
Euro spent on the card, the consumer earns one YES Coin. YES Coins can later be
redeemed for a variety of rewards.

GRTU welcomes increased
competition in this sector and innovative ways to boost payment methods such as
this initiative. Minister Cardona also commended the initiative and thanked the
companies involved as well as the GRTU for providing its constant support.

The following
sectors of the business delegation have been identified according to the
specific interests of European and Israeli industries:

Further details
about this Mission for Growth are available on:

http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/initiatives/mission-growth/missions-for-growth/daniel-calleja/middle-east/israel/index_en.htm

If you are
interested in participating in this Mission for Growth, please contact your
local Enterprise Europe Network partner before 6 June 2014.

Building on the
success of previous Missions for Growth to Latin American countries, Commission
Vice-President Tajani will lead a Mission for Growth to Panama, Argentina and
Paraguay on 11-14 June 2014.

The aim
will be to promote industrial collaboration – especially in light of the recent
conclusion of an agreement that will allow the completion of the Panama Canal.

The main
focus of the business delegation will be put on the following areas:

After the visit
to Panama, the Vice-President will visit Buenos Aires on 13 June 2014, to
discuss possibilities for closer industrial cooperation between Argentina and
the EU with politicians and business people.

Key issues to be addressed in this
context include

Further details
about this Mission for Growth are available
at:http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/initiatives/mission-growth/missions-for-growth/antonio-tajani/america/panama-argentina/index_en.htm