L-R: Peter Clever, member of BDA executive board; René Winkin, General Manager of FEDIL; Jean-Louis Schiltz, Vice-President of FEDIL; Steffen Kampeter, General Manager of BDA;
Credit: FEDIL
FEDIL - The Voice of Luxembourg's Industry and BDA - Confederation of German Employers’ Associations issued today a joint statement on the subject of the coronavirus pandemic.
The two associations highlighted the decision of many European Union (EU) Member States to close their borders during the pandemic, thus de facto suspending the European internal market and the Schengen area. Although such a decision has since been reversed, FEDIL and BDA argued that "isolated national initiatives still too often dominate".
In this context, the associations drew attention to the need for European coordination: "Economic recovery without a functioning internal market would be an illusion. That is why each Member State must, in its own interest, seek and respect European coordination", adding that "[t]he aim must be to restore the integrity of the internal market for workers too and to remove obstacles to labour mobility in the EU".
Concerning the role of the Luxembourg and German economies in combatting the COVID-19 crisis, FEDIL and BDA described "reliable framework conditions" as "indispensable for a well-functioning internal market with free movement of workers and cross-border services".
