EU: Commission wants action on work-life balance
On 30 May 2007, the European Commission launched a second round of consultations with European-level trade union and employers’ organisations on improving the reconciliation of work, private and family life. The commission believes that EU action in this area is advisable and is seeking the social partners’ views on the content of such an initiative. It suggests the introduction of new rights to paternity leave, adoption leave and leave to care for dependants, along with strengthened maternity protection and parental leave entitlements.
On this page:
Responses
Commission approach
Updating the regulatory framework
Conclusions and call for negotiations
Table: Options for revision of the parental leave framework agreement/Directive suggested by the European
Commission
|
Key points
|
The European Commission initiated the first stage of consultations on reconciliation of professional, private and family life (referred to below as “reconciliation”) on 12 October 2006, as part of a wider initiative on tackling demographic problems. It asked the EU-level social partners if they saw a need for further action in this area, and floated the idea of measures in areas such as: flexible working time and working arrangements; the new possibilities offered by information technologies; the availability and quality of childcare and care services for the elderly and other dependants; and leave, including paternity leave and leave to care for an elderly parent or a child or other family member with a disability.
Under art. 138 of the Treaty establishing the European Community (TEC), before submitting proposals in the social policy field, the commission consults the social partners on the possible direction of EU action. Then, if the commission considers EU action advisable, it consults a second time, on the content of the envisaged proposal. At that stage, the social partners may seek to negotiate a European-level agreement on the issue in question, which may substitute for EU legislation.
The commission received 13 replies to its first-stage consultation. Respondents included all the central “cross-industry” social partner organisations, namely: the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC); the Council of European Professional and Managerial Staff (Eurocadres); the European Confederation of Executives and Managerial Staff (CEC); BusinessEurope (formerly Unice); the European Association of Craft, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (Ueapme); and the European Centre of Enterprises with Public Participation and of Enterprises of General Economic Interest (Ceep). A number of sectoral organisations also responded, such as the European Federation of Public Service Unions (EPSU) and EuroCommerce, representing retail and wholesale employers.
According to the commission, all of the social partners that replied acknowledge the importance of reconciliation and of issues such as: accessible care facilities for children and dependants; a need for men to take up reconciliation measures; equal pay; and flexible working hours. A majority of respondents consider that further action is needed in this area but views differ as to what needs to be done and at what level. Some social partner organisations – mainly trade unions – believe that action should be taken at all levels, including the EU level, while others – mainly employers’ organisations – argue that action is required only at lower levels (national, sectoral, regional and/or company).
Unions are generally in favour of strengthening existing EU legislation in this field, including the Directives on pregnant workers/maternity leave (92/85/EEC) (on the EUR-Lex website) and parental leave (96/34/EC) (on the EUR-Lex website) – the latter implementing an agreement signed by the social partners. They also want new rights to paternity leave and leave to care for elderly people or other dependants.
Employers’ organisations, however, think that the existing EU legislation is adequate. Many of them believe that the joint “framework of actions” on gender equality agreed by the cross-industry social partners in March 2005 is the appropriate means of dealing with the issue of reconciliation. This framework calls on the signatories’ national member organisations to focus on a number of priorities, which include supporting work-life balance.
COMMISSION APPROACH
In its second-stage consultation paper (PDF format, 188K) (on the European Commission website), the commission concludes that the responses to the first-stage consultation “show that the social partners in general believe more can be done”. Further, “in general, they also agree that it is important that any improvement of reconciliation policies should be in line with the [EU’s] growth and jobs strategy, and should be conducive to employment.” Any “possible introduction of more generous leave policies should not result in a disproportionate increase in the cost of hiring workers, as SMEs [small and medium-sized enterprises] in particular would be affected by such higher labour costs”. The costs and benefits of any possible new leave should be assessed.
In considering what further actions might be taken regarding reconciliation, the commission sees a need to bear in mind that the member states have “reached different institutional balances”, with different instruments to help parents to reconcile their professional, private and family life. National “family policy mixes” are very different and it is necessary to consider the “whole spectrum of circumstances and policies” – such as labour market instruments, the availability of affordable childcare and/or “inter-generational informal support” – that facilitate reconciliation.
The commission considers that six “components” are necessary for an efficient approach to promoting better reconciliation:
- childcare and care facilities for other dependants;
- exchange of good practices;
- encouraging men to take up reconciliation measures;
- new ways of working;
- equal pay; and
- updating the regulatory framework.
On the first five points, the commission seeks the social partners’ views on a number of matters, as follows:
- how to increase the availability, affordability, accessibility and quality of childcare;
- how to promote and increase the availability, affordability, accessibility and quality of social services and care facilities for the elderly, people with disabilities and other dependants;
- how to enhance the dissemination at all levels of experience gained in the context of the partners’ framework of actions on gender equality, and how to reinforce the exchange of good practices on reconciliation in the EU;
- how to encourage men to use measures aimed at reconciliation, and how to change “the culture in organisations, where men may experience discrimination when they want to avail themselves of family leave”; and
- how “innovative, adaptable and flexible work arrangements could be further developed and promoted, using, as the case may be, the contribution of new technologies in this context and/or the support of e-learning policies and techniques”.
The consultation paper also announces a number of commission initiatives in this area, notably:
- a communication on the availability, quality and affordability of childcare, planned for 2008;
- initiatives on support for the elderly and older workers through the use of information and communication technologies (ICT);
- a communication on “ageing well in the information society”; and
- a communication on the gender pay gap, due in July 2007.
On “new ways of working”, the commission argues that reconciliation policy should include “the promotion, dissemination and application of innovative and adaptable work arrangements that facilitate work-life balance and take into account the different needs at different stages of life”. Such arrangements should meet the needs of workers and employers and be available on a voluntary basis. They should be considered to be part of a firm’s corporate social responsibility (CSR). The commission therefore calls on enterprises to “step up their relevant CSR activities”.
The main substance of the consultation paper is in the section on “updating the regulatory framework”.
UPDATING THE REGULATORY FRAMEWORK
In view of demographic challenges and significant changes in the European labour market, notably the increased participation of women, the commission takes the view that “to facilitate reconciliation it is necessary to set minimum entitlements for workers and that action at Community level should be considered in order to improve existing legislation in this area”. However, any legislative changes should “avoid imposing administrative, financial and legal constraints in a way that would hold back the creation and development” of SMEs and have a negative impact on job creation.
The consultation paper suggests new or revised EU-level
regulation of “new types of leave”, maternity protection and parental
leave.
New types of leave
The commission argues that there are “areas where new forms of leave could better meet the needs of workers in reconciling professional, private and family life, bearing in mind the important societal changes in recent decades, notably the increasing participation of women in employment, the need to reduce gender gaps in the labour market, the ageing population and the broader recognition of the value of a more equal sharing of private responsibilities between men and women”.
Policies aimed at facilitating reconciliation of work, private and family life should not, the commission states, be focused solely on parents with young children but should also take account of the needs of workers with elderly and other dependants, for example a family member with a disability or a terminal illness.
The commission identifies three types of leave entitlement that could help address these challenges:
- Paternity leave. This would allow for the development of a “first close bond between child and father” and should encourage men and women to take a more equal share of caring responsibilities. This leave, which would be in addition to the entitlement to parental leave under Directive 96/34/EC, would enable fathers to take a short period of leave following the birth or adoption of a child. Issues relating to the duration of such leave, payment, employment rights and so on “would have to be further considered”;
- Leave to enable workers to care for an elderly parent or a family member with a disability or a terminal illness, as a supplement to the provision of affordable professional care. This leave (similar to parental leave) should enable workers to combine the provision of care for dependent family members with paid work; and
- Adoption leave. There are several issues that “would need to be examined if it is decided to bring forward a proposal for adoption leave”, such as whether it should be an individual right for fathers and for mothers or shared between them, the duration of leave, whether or not parents should be entitled to take some of it prior to the date of adoption, and issues relating to payment and employment rights during adoption leave.
Maternity protection
The commission believes that the pregnant workers Directive (92/85/EEC) “could be improved” in three main areas: duration of maternity leave; level of payment during leave; and protection of women returning from leave.
The Directive requires member states to ensure that workers are entitled to a continuous period of maternity leave of at least 14 weeks. Many member states already provide for maternity leave in excess of 14 weeks and the commission argues that an increase in the duration of leave “could therefore be considered”. Any proposal to increase the length of leave would take into account “the existing, but varied, provisions” in the member states. At present, the duration of maternity leave varies from 14 weeks in a small number of countries to 28 weeks in others (including the Czech Republic and Slovenia), while in certain circumstances it is possible to take 52 weeks’ maternity leave, only some of which is paid, in the UK.
The Directive provides that a worker on maternity leave is entitled to a payment or an allowance that guarantees an income at least equivalent to that which the worker concerned would receive in the event of a break in her activities on grounds connected with her state of health, subject to any ceiling laid down under national legislation. In addition, entitlement to pay or an allowance may be subject to eligibility criteria, although these cannot require a period of previous employment in excess of 12 months. The consultation paper does not make any concrete suggestions on maternity pay, stating only that “a number of options could be considered”, which “will be subject to further analysis [...] to measure their potential positive impact”.
Directive 2002/73/EC (on the EUR-Lex website), which amended
Directive 76/207/EEC on the implementation of the principle of equal treatment
for men and women, provides that a woman on maternity leave is entitled, after
the end of her leave, to return to her job or an equivalent post on terms and
conditions that are no less favourable to her and to benefit from any
improvements in working conditions to which she would be entitled during her
absence. For legal clarity, this provision could be integrated into the pregnant
workers Directive, the commission states. This would not change the existing
level of protection, but merely transfer the existing provision in Directive
76/207/EEC in order to “clarify and make more effective the provisions relating
to the protection of women on maternity leave”.
Parental leave
The social partners’ framework agreement on parental leave, implemented by Directive 96/34/EC was signed in 1995, and the commission believes that “improvements to Community provisions” in this area could now be considered, and that the “social partners can play a fundamental role in considering whether the parental leave legislation is still up to date”. The consultation paper identifies six areas where parental leave provisions “could be improved”. These are set out in the table below and relate to:
- the transferability between parents of parental leave entitlement;
- employment rights and protection from discrimination for those on parental leave;
- the duration of leave;
- flexibility in taking leave;
- the age of the child concerned; and
- payment during leave.
CONCLUSIONS AND CALL FOR NEGOTIATIONS
Citing evaluations of the various approaches to reconciliation outlined in the consultation paper, the commission states that priority should be given to better sharing of family responsibilities between men and women and the care of dependent people in today’s “ageing society”. Therefore, among the issues raised, incentives for fathers to take parental leave, the payment of parental leave, paternity leave, and possibilities for leave to care for the elderly and other dependent family members “seem to be priorities”.
The commission asks for the opinions of the social partners on the first five “components” of its proposed reconciliation policy (see above). On the more concrete regulatory suggestions, it “strongly encourages” the social partners to initiate a negotiating process on the basis of the proposals in the consultation paper on new types of leave and on maternity protection. Such negotiations, in accordance with arts. 138(4) and 139 of the TEC, could lead to a European-level agreement, which could then be implemented either at the request of the social partners, by means of a council Directive proposed by the commission, or by the social partners’ own national member organisations. If the partners do not decide to negotiate, the commission requests them to forward an opinion or, where appropriate, a recommendation on the objectives and content of the envisaged proposals on new types of leave and maternity protection (in accordance with art. 138(3) of the TEC).
With regard to the consultation paper’s suggestions on parental leave, the commission encourages the social partners to assess the provisions of their framework agreement on the subject “with a view to its review”, and to report on progress by March 2008. More generally, the commission invites the partners to continue their ongoing work to promote work–life balance in the context of their 2005 framework of actions on gender equality.
The consultation paper concludes: “The social partners have a crucial role to play in ensuring that reconciliation policies are effective, notably in the area of parental leave, and the Commission strongly urges them to take up negotiations under art. 139 including looking at the possibility of adapting the framework agreement.”
Announcing the second-stage consultation, Vladimír Špidla, the EU commissioner for employment, social affairs and equal opportunities, said: “Statistics show that the employment rate gap between women with children and those without is as high as 14.2%. At the same time, companies with experience in parental leave report very few men availing of leave. This shows that too many men and women in the EU still have to make difficult choices between family life and a successful career. I believe we need to create the right conditions for people to do both and we cannot achieve this without the full support of the social partners.”
The partners had six weeks (ie until mid-July 2007) to give their responses. Depending on “the outcome of this second stage consultation, of negotiations between the social partners, and of a detailed impact assessment” the commission will then consider “bringing forward proposals to complement the existing legislation in the area of reconciliation”.
The proposals outlined by the commission are numerous and far-reaching and, if adopted, would mean significant new rights for working parents, and those with care responsibilities for dependent relatives, in many EU member states. It remains to be seen if the social partners are prepared to negotiate a European-level agreement on some or all of the proposals – the differing views expressed by employers and unions in the first-stage consultation certainly suggest that this may prove difficult. If the partners do not negotiate, the commission seems intent on proposing legislation, which would then have to be approved by the European parliament and council.
This article was written by Mark Carley, editor, European Employment Review.
|
Options for revision of the parental leave framework agreement/Directive suggested by the European Commission |
||
|
Current provision |
Reasons for possible change |
Options for change |
|
The right to parental leave should, in principle, be non-transferable (clause 2.2 of the agreement). |
Evidence indicates that women continue to be the main carers for children and thus have greater difficulties in reconciling work and family life, and that the majority of fathers do not use their parental leave entitlement. The commission argues that it would “therefore appear desirable” to introduce incentives to encourage men to take parental leave. |
Four options could be considered:
|
|
At the end of parental leave, workers have the right to return to the same job or, if that is not possible, to an equivalent or similar job. Rights acquired, or in the process of being acquired, on the date that the parental leave starts must be maintained as they stand until the end of the leave. At the end of the leave, these rights, including any changes arising from national law, collective agreements or practice, apply. All matters relating to social security are for determination by the member states (clauses 2.5, 2.6 and 2.8). |
By contrast to the agreement, Directive 92/85/EEC provides that during maternity leave, the rights connected with the worker’s employment contract, other than the right to remuneration, must be ensured. Directive 76/207/EEC as amended by Directive 2002/73/EC provides that a woman on maternity leave is entitled after the end of her leave to return to her job or an equivalent post on terms and conditions that are no less favourable to her and to benefit from any improvements in working conditions to which she would be entitled during her absence. |
One or more of the following “improvements” could be considered:
|
|
Men and women have an individual right to three months’ parental leave (clause 2.1). |
Many member states already provide for longer parental leave. |
An increase in the duration of leave could be considered. However, it is “essential to ensure that the length and modalities of parental leave do not create incentives to drop out of the labour market for very long periods”. The option of providing for a longer period of leave for parents of a child with a disability could also be considered. |
|
The conditions of access and detailed rules for applying parental leave are matters for member states and/or the social partners. Member states and/or management and labour may, in particular, decide whether parental leave is granted on a full-time or part-time basis, in a piecemeal way or in the form of a time-credit system (clause 2.3). |
Provisions on flexibility in how parental leave is taken could make it easier for parents to use their leave entitlement and enable them to take parental leave in a way that best reconciles their work and childcare needs. The availability of leave on a piecemeal or part-time basis might be a compromise between not taking parental leave at all and a long period of full-time leave. This “intermediate solution” could encourage men to use their leave. It would also allow a better sharing of care duties between the parents and it could be less damaging to the career prospects of either parent if the leave is shared between them. |
The following types of flexibility in taking parental leave could be considered:
|
|
Parental leave is to enable parents to take care of a child until a given age of up to eight years, to be defined by member states and/or management and labour (clause 2.1). |
An increase in the maximum age of a child determining parents’ entitlement to parental leave could be considered. |
Three options could be examined:
|
|
No provisions on payment in respect of parental leave. |
Parental leave attracts some form of payment in 16 member states, although with limitations in some cases – eg means tests, payment for only part of the leave or for only one parent. There are wide national variations in the take up of family-related leave, which is more common in countries where such leave is paid at a high proportion of previous income. The level of payment is also important to encourage fathers, who tend to earn more than mothers, to take parental leave. |
Relating the payment for parental leave to the worker’s salary “would appear to be a good incentive for men’s take-up of leave”. |
European Employment Review 402 (EER 402) contents
