The Governing Board was established under Article 5 of the Council Regulation (EEC) No.1365/75 of 26 May 1975 establishing the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions which stated that the Foundation would be managed by an Administrative Board comprising representatives of governments, employers and workers of each Member State and three representatives from the European Commission. The first meeting of the Board was held in Dublin Castle, Ireland, on 6-7 May 1976, and was attended by the President of Ireland, Dr Hillery and the Minister for Labour, Mr O’Leary. The 30 Board members and their substitutes had been nominated and appointed by the Commission by 15 March 1976. At this first meeting, among other things, Michel Carpentier was elected unanimously as the first Chairperson and Wiebe de Jong was proposed and accepted as the Foundation’s first Director. Under the rules of procedure the appointment of the Chairperson and three deputy Chairpersons reflected the four categories mentioned in Article 6.1 of Regulation 1365/75, namely governments, trade unions, employers and the Commission. The Administrative Board, as it was known until June 2005 when its title was changed to Governing Board, met twice a year at the seat of the Foundation. A smaller Bureau of Board members and the Directorate was empowered to take urgent decisions to enable the Foundation to function effectively between meetings of the Governing Board. The Bureau operates on the basis of a delegated mandate from the Board which must ratify its decisions later.
Documents of the Governing Board illustrate the evolution of the Foundation over three decades of enlargement and social change in Europe.

The archives are arranged as they were used by the Board members. Documents typically include: an agenda and minutes from the previous meeting; a progress report from the Director on the activities of the Foundation; documents relating to the Foundation’s annual work programme; documents relating to the Foundation’s four-year work programme; the budget and the accounts. Decisions taken by the Bureau are also presented to the Board for ratification. Throughout the collection the development of the site at Loughlinstown House can also be seen.

English, French

By arrangement through the HAEU