European Communities Recruitment Office: establishment

PURPOSE : to create a European Communities Personnel Selection Office. COMMUNITY MEASURE : Decision 2002/620/EC of the European Parliament, the Council, the Court of Justice, the Court of Auditors, the Economic and Social Committee, the Committee of the Regions and the European Ombudsman establishing a European Communities Personnel Selection Office. CONTENT : the Council adopted a Decision establishing a single European Communities Recruitment Office for the European Parliament, the Council, the Commission, the Court of Justice, the Court of Auditors, the Economic and Social Committee, the Committee of the Regions and the Ombudsman. The duties of the Recruitment Office will be to select officials and other servants to serve the European Communities, draw up aptitude lists from among candidates in open competitions, although each Institution will decide on the appointment of successful candidates, and assist the institutions, bodies, offices and agencies established by or in accordance with the Treaties with internal competitions and the selection of other servants. The Office may assist the institutions, bodies, offices and agencies established by or in accordance with the Treaties with internal competitions and the selection of other servants. In addition, the Decision also defines the rules concerning requests, complaints and appeals. ENTRY INTO FORCE : the Secretaries-General of the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission, the Registrar of the Court of Justice, the Secretaries-General of the Court of Auditors, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions and the representative of the European Ombudsman shall by mutual agreement take the measures necessary to implement this Decision. The Decision shall take effect on 26 July 2002. It should be added that the Bureau of the European Parliament made a declaration which is annexed to this Decision. The Bureau has authorised its President to sign the decision of the institutions establishing the European Communities Personnel Selection Office, and its Secretary-General to sign the two subsidiary decisions concerning its operations. It is also stated that the institutional autonomy of the European Parliament is not affected by the creation of the Office, in so far as it will remain exclusively competent for the recruitment of permanent officials, in accordance with its institutional interests, from the reserve lists drawn up by the Office. It recalls that the selection and recruitment of other categories of staff, in particular the staff of the political groups, remains the exclusive competence of the European Parliament, except in so far as it may seek the technical assistance of the Office in this respect. It also makes clear that the organisation of internal competitions, permitting the passage of officials from one category to another, remains the exclusive responsibility of the European Parliament. Lastly, it gives notice that, in the event of the Office not being able to provide reserve lists sufficient to guarantee linguistic and geographical balance, the European Parliament reserves its right autonomously to organise specific selection competitions to redress the situation.�