#פּאָסטעדוואָרקערס: קאָמיסיע באגאנגען צו כּללים אַז זענען קלאָר און שיין פֿאַר אַלע טוערס

The European Commission announced today (20 July) that it will go ahead with its revision of the Posting of Workers Directive, the revisions included changes on: the remuneration of posted workers, rules on temporary agency workers, and long-term posting. The proposal sets means that posted workers will benefit from the same rules governing pay and working conditions as local workers.  

The Commission was forced to reconsider the revisions proposed in March following the use of the so-called ‘yellow card’ by 11 EU national parliaments (Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia). The countries claimed that the revision was contrary to the principle of subsidiarity where laws must not exceed the national or local right to regulate.

Employment, Social Affairs, Skills and Labour Mobility Commissioner Marianne Thyssen (פּיקטשערד) said: "The voices of national Parliaments have a strong political relevance for the Commission. We have carefully analyzed all arguments put forward by national Parliaments, but we have concluded that our proposal fully complies with the principle of subsidiarity and we will therefore maintain it.”

The Green group in the European Parliament welcomed the decision - Green social policy spokesperson Terry Reintke MEP said: "There are clearly problems with the current rules and we need to urgently address these and ensure a good deal for workers, which guarantees social protection for employees posted to work in another EU country.

“Free movement is a core principle of the EU; this must mean that workers are free to choose where to work and are guaranteed social rights and fair pay when they do so. We welcome that the Commission wants to prevent discrimination and ensure equal protection for workers posted to work in another member state.  EU rules need to prevent wage dumping: a posted worker should not be paid less than what they would be entitled to as a non-posted worker.”

The Progressive, Social and Democratic Group also welcomed the decision. Group president, Gianni Pittella MEP said: “Tackling unfair competition and discrimination in the workplace is our raison d'être. We have pushed the Commission hard to ensure that they stick to their promises and revise the posting of workers directive. We are pleased to see that they have heeded our call."

It is unclear how many workers or companies will be affected by the change in the rules. There are close to 2 million posted workers and the average duration of their posting is four months. The construction sector alone accounts for 43.7% of the total number of postings, although posting is also significant in the manufacturing industry (21.8%), education, health and social work services (13.5%) and in business services (10.3%). Posted workers account for less than 1% of those employed in Europe and many of those who are posted are also highly-qualified professionals who aren’t paid less than those on local contracts.

אַדווערטייזמאַנט

Germany, France and Belgium are the three member states that attract the highest number of posted workers, making up together about 50% of total received posted workers. In turn, Poland, Germany and France are the three largest senders of posted workers. While the agreement was widely welcomed, it does expose further East/West divides within the EU

שער דעם אַרטיקל: