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Better working conditions for truck drivers across the EU
New EU rules on road transport aim to end distortion of competition in the sector while providing better working conditions for drivers. Find out more.
On 8 July, MEPs will vote on the mobility package for road transport, following its adoption by the transport committee in June. The new rules have been provisionally agreed with EU ministers and were adopted by the Council on 7 April.
The package comprises three key elements: better enforcement of cabotage rules, posting of drivers and drivers’ rest times.
Though the EU already regulates all these areas, loopholes exist and difficulties in enforcement have led EU countries to implement them differently. The new rules will provide a clear and common framework for the road transport sector.
Below you will find an overview of each element of the package.
Check out what the EU does for workers’ rights and working conditions.
More rest and time at home
Under the new regulation, drivers should enjoy better rest conditions and be entitled to more time at home. For example, weekly rest of more than 45 hours can’t be taken in a vehicle, but in suitable accommodation with adequate facilities, paid for by the employer. Work should be organised to give drivers more time at home.
To help detect breaches of the rules, smart tachographs will be deployed to record border-crossings and other activities.
Tachograph
- A device that records all of a vehicle’s activities, for example distance, speed, driving times and driver rest periods
- It is already obligatory to install a digital tachograph in new goods vehicles weighing more than 3.5 tonnes
Clear rules on posting of drivers
Given the nature of road transport, stronger enforcement of sector-specific rules is needed to strike a balance between the freedom of operators to provide cross-border services and proper working conditions and social protection for drivers.
Drivers are not generally posted to another member state under service contracts for long periods of time, as is sometimes the case in other sectors, and the existing rules are applied in an uncoordinated way by different member states.
Click here for the full press release
