The European Globalisation Adjustment Fund for Displaced Workers (EGF) is a special EU instrument to express EU solidarity with European workers or the self-employed that were displaced due to restructuring, and to help them find new jobs. The EGF contributes to the creation of a more dynamic and competitive European economy by improving the skills and employability of displaced people, to help them find better work. The EGF helps low-skilled and disadvantaged jobseekers deal with new challenges on the labour market.
As a general rule, the EGF can be activated when a single company (including its suppliers and downstream producers) lays off over 200 workers, by SMEs in various sectors in the same region or in a particular sector in one or more neighbouring regions.
The EGF has an annual budget of €210 million for 2021-2027. It can fund from 60% to 85% of the cost of projects designed to help workers made redundant find another job or set up their own businesses. National or regional authorities implement and manage EGF cases. Each project runs for two years.
