EC welcomes Council adoption of Directive to improve enforcement of workers' rights
15 Apr 2014 11:46 AM
The European Commission
has welcomed the adoption by the EU's Council of Ministers of a new
Directive to ensure the better application at national level of EU
citizens' right to work in another Member State. Member States now
have two years to implement the Directive at national
level.
László Andor,
Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion,
said: "I warmly welcome today's approval of the Directive,
less than one year since the Commission presented the proposal. This is good
news for all those who want to work or are already working in another Member
State. Whether people wish to work in another EU country is a matter of
personal choice but these new rules ensure that everyone is more aware of the
rights that mobile workers have. In this way, we can help to facilitate
mobility within the EU labour market."
The Directive, proposed on 26th
April 2013 (IP/13/372), aims to remove existing obstacles to
the free movement of workers, such as the lack of awareness of EU rules among
public and private employers and the difficulties faced by mobile citizens to
get information and assistance in the host Member States. To overcome these
barriers and prevent discrimination, the Directive will require Member States
to ensure:
-
one or more bodies at national
level will provide support and legal assistance to EU migrant workers with the
enforcement of their rights
-
effective legal protection of
rights (including for example protection from victimisation for EU migrant
workers who seek to enforce their rights) and
-
easily accessible information in
more than one EU language on the rights enjoyed by EU migrant workers and
jobseekers.
These rules will benefit mobile
workers but also employers, who will be better informed when hiring people from
another EU country.
Independently of this new
legislation, the Commission, as guardian of the Treaty, will continue to pursue
infringement procedures where necessary against Member States in cases where
national law is not in line with the their obligations under EU
law.
Background
The right of EU citizens to work
in another Member State is laid down in Article 45 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European
Union (TFEU) and includes the right not to be discriminated against on
grounds of nationality as regards access to employment, pay and other working
conditions. Regulation (EU) No 492/2011 details the rights
derived from free movement of workers and defines specific areas where
discrimination on grounds of nationality is prohibited, in particular as
regards:
-
access to
employment
-
working
conditions
-
social and tax
advantages
-
access to
training
-
membership of trade
unions
-
housing
-
access to education for
children.
Currently 3.3% of the EU labour
force, or 8 million people, live and work in another Member State. An
additional 1.2 million people live in one EU country but work in another. But
people working or wanting to work in another country often lack information
about their rights in the host Member State and can have difficulties accessing
a job or ensuring they have the same working conditions or social advantages as
national workers. In addition, employers (both public and private) and public
authorities often have poor knowledge of the rights that mobile workers have.
The assistance given at national level to EU mobile workers to help them
enforce their rights is highly variable.
Common discriminatory practices
include:
-
different recruitment
conditions
-
nationality conditions for
accessing certain posts
-
different working conditions in
practice (such as pay, career prospects and grade)
-
problems with access to social
benefits which are subject to conditions more easily met by nationals than by
EU citizens (e.g. residence conditions)
-
professional qualifications and
experience acquired in other Member States not taken into account or taken into
account in a different way.
The free movement of workers is
not only an essential element of the EU's Single Market, but an asset to
all EU countries. Mobility can help to address high levels of unemployment in
some Member States and skill and labour shortages in others. This is why the
Commission is also working to further improve the efficiency of the
pan-European job search network EURES, so more vacancies are available to more
candidates all through the EU (IP/14/26 and MEMO/14/23).
Studies have
consistently shown that mobile labour force brings benefits to host countries.
Mobile workers complement the national labour force by filling shortages, they
are more likely to be in employment and, since they tend to be of working age
and therefore younger in average than the host population, they are less likely
to receive benefits, being generally net contributors to the public purse. By
sending home part of their income, mobile workers also provide significant
support to domestic demand, investment and entrepreneurship in their countries
of origin.
For more
information
Free movement of workers:
Commission improves the application of worker's rights – frequently
asked questions - MEMO/14/187
News item on DG Employment
website
László Andor's
website
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