ABSTRACT
The European Globalization Adjustment Fund (EGF) was originally instituted as an EU-level trade adjustment fund aimed at funding re-employment initiatives for workers who were made redundant as a result of major shifts in world trade patterns. This chapter reconstructs the institutional evolution of the EGF from its establishment in 2006 until its 2021 reform. The EGF’s institutional development constitutes an interesting case of innovation of the social dimension of integration project not only because of its resilience in the face of mounting political opposition and policy limitations, but also because of its progressive widening despite them: after its most recent reform for the 2021–2027 period, EGF interventions are no longer exclusively linked to globalization, but cover multiple types of industrial restructuring. This transforms the EGF into a permanent supranational emergency tool to mitigate the negative effects of several of the challenges faced by contemporary labour markets. The chapter sheds light on the drivers of the EGF institutional trajectory, focusing in particular on the strategic role played by the European Commission in articulating support for the fund within and outside the EU’s governance architecture.
