The European Union

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The European Union

• European Union will not be complete without the
  creation of a Europe-wide industrial relations
  system in which trade unions and employers
  exercise joint power and responsibility (Mr.
  Padraig Flynn 1999 former European social
  affairs commissioner replaced by Vladimir Spidla,
  Czech Republic )
• There needs to be an economic dimension but
  also a social dimension

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Membership of the EU

• Why was the EU founded?
• Which countries were the founder (six) members of
  the EU?
• How many members states are there at present?
• Which countries were the most recent members
  (2004 2007)
• Who is likely to join in the future?
• What is the population of the EU compared with
  those of Japan, USA, Russia, India?

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(No Transcript)
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Relative Sizes
Population from March 2009
China 1.306 m India 1.103 m Russian Fed. 143 m
499 million
500
400
302 million
300
200
128 million
100
0
EU
USA
Japan
5
The Institutions of the EU

• The European Commission the executive body of
  the EU. Its main purpose being to propose
  measures and ensure their implementation.
• Consists of a President (Jose Manuel Barroso
  2004-2009, Portuguese), 2 Vice Presidents, 17
  Commissioners.

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Price level index
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Hours worked per week
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Life expectancy for a selection of EU countries
(2006 statistics)
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Unemployment rate
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Annual Earnings industry services (full-time
employees in enterprises with gt 10 staff)
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As from May 2004!
Increase in area
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As from May 2004!
Population change
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EU Budget Revenue 2004
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EU Budget Expenditures 2004
Total budget 115 billion 1,1 of GDP