EU: Social policy state of play, July 2008
The first half of 2008, under the Slovenian EU presidency, saw a breakthrough in negotiations on the draft Directives on temporary agency work and on revising the working time Directive - we review the main developments.
On this
page:
Adoption
New proposals
Discussions and amended proposals
Working time
Temporary agency work
Consultations
No progress
Prospects
Table: Social policy state of
play.
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Key points
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The state-of-play table below lists all important "live" items of draft social policy legislation of general interest to our readers that are currently in the legislative pipeline. It does not include those measures that were adopted prior to our most recent table. It shows only proposals that have yet to be adopted, or that have been adopted since the previous table. Proposals that have become dormant (defined here as not having been discussed in council, or subject to any other significant movement, for more than two years) are not included.
For each proposal, the table provides the following information, as at 24 June 2008:
- the full title of the proposal;
- a reference to the issue of the Official Journal of the European Union (external website) in which the proposal (and any subsequent revised versions) or adopted text was published. Laws appear in the Legislative ("L") series, while other instruments and proposals appear in the Communications ("C") series. Where proposals have not appeared in the Official Journal, the "COM" number of the document is given, where relevant;
- where appropriate, or available, the article of the Treaty establishing the European Community on which the proposal is based; and
- where relevant, the dates of the proposal's submission to the Council of the European Union, the opinions issued on the proposal by the European parliament, the Committee of the Regions and the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), the submission of an amended proposal to the council, and any council decisions or debates, as well as the dates of the formal consultation of the social partners, where relevant. Any adopted proposals and formally signed agreements are identified with an asterisk.
ADOPTION
The only item of employment-related legislation adopted since our last round-up is a relatively minor technical measure that is not included in the table. On 23 April 2008, the EP and council adopted Directive 2008/46/EC, which amends Directive 2004/40/EC on minimum health and safety requirements regarding the exposure of workers to the risks arising from physical agents (electromagnetic fields). The amendment postpones the deadline for the transposition of the 2004 Directive from 2008 to 2012, in order to allow the Directive to be amended to deal with concerns that it may hinder the medical use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technology.
NEW PROPOSALS
No new legislative proposals with a direct impact on employment were published in the first half of 2008.
DISCUSSIONS AND AMENDED PROPOSALS
The most significant social policy event of the first half of 2008, and indeed for several years, was the achievement of political agreement in council on common positions on the draft Directives: on working conditions for temporary agency workers; and on revising the Directive concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time (originally adopted in 1993 and now consolidated in Directive 2003/88/EC). The Portuguese EU presidency in the second half of 2007 had revived these controversial proposals following a period of deadlock, by drawing up new compromise texts and linking the two draft Directives. It hoped that this linkage would permit "a simultaneous and integrated solution, thus allowing member states to find a balance between the two Directives that would be acceptable from the political point of view".
The two draft Directives were discussed at the meeting of the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs (known as EPSCO) Council on 5 December 2007. A large majority of member state governments were in favour of the joint approach and of the content of the compromise texts. However, unanimous agreement was not possible, with several countries still having concerns about aspects of both proposals. While these drafts are subject to qualified majority voting in council, and it seems that a sufficient majority existed to approve them, it was (as usual in such cases) seen as important to make every effort to find a solution that all member states could agree to, before taking the majority voting route.
The incoming Slovenian presidency further amended and "rebalanced" the drafts and, after lengthy negotiations, political agreement was reached on both at the EPSCO council on 9-10 June 2008 (although not without some dissatisfaction among several member states). Officials will now finalise the texts of the common positions, allowing their adoption without debate at a forthcoming council meeting and then their submission to the EP for a second reading.
Working time
The last unresolved point in the draft Directive revising the 2003 Directive on working time was the "opt-out" - the option for member states not to apply the Directive's maximum average weekly working time of 48 hours if a worker agrees to this individually.
The text agreed by the June EPSCO council would retain the current standard limit on weekly working time at 48 hours, including any overtime and "active on-call time", calculated on average over a reference period. At present, the standard reference period is four months, which may be extended to 12 months by collective agreement. The agreed text would allow member states to extend the reference period to 12 months by legislation, following consultation of the social partners. However, countries that make use of the 48-hour opt-out provisions would be able to set a statutory maximum reference period of only six months.
The text would toughen the conditions for the opt-out. The opt-out would be very clearly stated to be a derogation, which is "subject to the effective protection of workers' health and safety, and to the express, free and informed consent of the worker concerned". Its use must be subject to "appropriate safeguards to protect these conditions", and to "close monitoring". A member state's use of the opt-out would have to be expressly regulated by a collective agreement at the appropriate level, or by national law following consultation of the social partners.
There would also be a series of reinforced protective conditions for workers using the opt-out, as follows:
- A worker's agreement to opt out would be valid for no more than a year, which would be renewable.
- Workers would be protected from any detrimental treatment by their employer if they refuse to agree to opt out or withdraw their agreement to do so.
- Any agreement to opt out given at the time of the signature of the employment contract or during the first four weeks of the employment relationship would be null and void.
- Workers would be entitled to withdraw their opt-out agreement with immediate effect during the first six months after signing such an agreement, or during any probationary period and up to three months after the probation period is completed, whichever is longer. Thereafter, the employer could require the worker to give up to two months' notice of withdrawal.
- Workers who have opted out could not work more than: 60 hours a week, calculated as an average over three months, unless otherwise provided for in a collective agreement; or 65 hours a week, calculated as an average over three months, in the absence of a collective agreement and when the "inactive part of on-call time" (see below) is regarded as working time.
- Workers employed on a contract, or contracts, totalling less than 10 weeks per year for the same employer would be able to opt out from the beginning of their employment contract, or be excluded from the 60- or 65-hour weekly hours "cap".
- Employers would be obliged to keep up-to-date records of all opted-out workers, to be placed at the disposal of the competent authorities.
Three years after the entry into force of the revised Directive, member states that allow workers to opt out would have to report to the European Commission on use of the opt-out, including details on the reasons, sectors, activities and numbers of workers concerned, the effects on workers' health and safety and the views of the social partners at national level. The member states that use the statutory 12-month reference period would also have to report to the commission. The commission would then, within a year, report on both issues to the council and EP and could make appropriate proposals to reduce excessive working hours. The council would then evaluate the use of the opt-out and the extended reference period. One year later, the commission could submit a proposal to revise the Directive again, taking account of the council's evaluation.
The proposed revision of the working time Directive also seeks to take account of the rulings of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in the Simap (C-303/98) and Jaeger (C-151/02) cases. These found that on-call work or on-call duty performed by health professionals and other workers, when they are required to be physically present at their places of work, should be regarded as working time.
The text agreed by the council would introduce a distinction between "active" and "inactive" on-call time. It defines the inactive part of on-call time as the period during which the worker is obliged to be available at the workplace but is not required by the employer to "effectively carry out his activity or duties". Active on-call time at the workplace would be considered as working time and not rest time, in accordance with the ECJ rulings. However, inactive on-call time would not have to be regarded as working time unless national law or a collective agreement so provides.
Other key issues dealt with in the agreed text include the following:
- In cases where derogations are made from the Directive's provisions on daily rest breaks, weekly rest periods and length of night work, the necessary compensatory rest periods would have to be granted "within a reasonable period", to be determined by national legislation or collective agreement.
- Member states would have to: encourage the social partners at the appropriate level to conclude agreements aimed at improving the reconciliation of work and family life; ensure that employers inform workers in due time of any substantial changes in the pattern or organisation of their working time; and in accordance with national practices, encourage employers to examine requests for changes to working hours and patterns, subject to business needs, and to both employers' and workers' needs for flexibility.
Despite the political agreement at the June EPSCO council, some countries were still unhappy with aspects of the agreed text. Belgium, Cyprus, Greece, Hungary and Spain entered a joint statement in the council's minutes expressing several concerns, notably on the retention of the opt-out without a clear date for phasing it out and the possibility of derogating from the new cap on weekly hours for opted-out workers. These countries therefore do not fully support the compromise text and want to reconsider some aspects at the final adoption stage of the draft Directive. The French government also entered a statement objecting to the text's provisions on the inactive part of on-call time, declaring that it does not intend to transpose some aspects into its national law.
Temporary agency work
The draft Directive on working conditions for temporary agency workers, initially proposed by the commission in 2002, aims to establish a common EU-level legal framework to regulate temporary agency work. Notably, it seeks to guarantee equal treatment in pay and conditions for temporary agency workers when on an assignment at a user company, in relation to workers employed by the user undertaking to do the same job. Following earlier debates, two key issues remained to be resolved under the Slovenian presidency: the point of a temporary agency worker's assignment at which he or she becomes entitled to equal treatment with user company employees; and the future of existing national prohibitions and restrictions on the use of temporary agency work.
A compromise was reached on both of these points at the June EPSCO meeting, as part of the horse-trading over the revision of the working time Directive. Notably, the UK reportedly dropped its opposition to the temporary agency work Directive in exchange for the retention (if in a more restricted form) of the working time Directive's opt-out provisions. According to the Slovenian presidency, the core of the compromise is "a balance between ensuring the protection of temporary agency workers and, at the same time, allowing sufficient flexibility in labour markets which indeed have very different traditions of concluding agreements between the social partners".
The agreed text provides that the basic working and employment conditions of temporary agency workers should, for the whole duration of their assignment at a user undertaking, be at least those that would apply if they had been recruited directly by that undertaking to occupy the same job. However, member states could give the social partners, at the appropriate level, the option of maintaining or concluding collective agreements that, "while respecting the overall protection of temporary agency workers", could establish arrangements concerning the working and employment conditions of temporary agency workers that differ from the principle of equal treatment.
Further, there is a special provision for member states (such as the UK) that have no system for declaring collective agreements universally applicable or extending their provisions to all similar undertakings in a certain sector or geographical area. As long as an "adequate level of protection" is provided for temporary agency workers, these countries could, after consulting the social partners at national level and on the basis of an agreement concluded by the partners, establish arrangements concerning basic working and employment conditions that derogate from the equal treatment principle. Such arrangements could include a qualifying period for equal treatment. The arrangements must be in conformity with EU legislation and be "sufficiently precise and accessible" to allow the sectors and firms concerned to identify and comply with their obligations.
Member states would have to take appropriate measures to prevent misuse of these possibilities to differ from the equal treatment principle, and in particular the use of successive assignments designed to circumvent the Directive's provisions.
The basic principle is that agency workers must receive equal treatment from the first day of an assignment. Crucially though, individual countries may, on the basis of an agreement between national-level trade union and employers' organisations, delay the implementation of equal treatment until an assignment has continued for a certain period. In May 2008, the UK government brokered an agreement between the TUC and CBI that equal treatment should apply only after 12 weeks of an assignment. This helped it to lift its opposition to the draft Directive.
In relation to the second unresolved issue, the June council agreed that existing prohibitions and restrictions on temporary agency work should be reviewed in order to ascertain that they are justified.
Restrictions that should be reviewed include:
- limits on the sectors or occupations that may use temporary agency workers (eg restrictions on their use for dangerous work);
- maximum durations for agency work assignments; and
- measures restricting the use of temporary agency work to certain situations (such as situations of peak or unexpected workload).
Such restrictions would have to be justified on grounds such as the protection of temporary agency workers, health and safety requirements, or the need to ensure that the labour market functions properly.
CONSULTATIONS
Under art. 138 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, before submitting proposals in the social policy field, the European Commission consults the EU-level social partners on the possible direction of community action. Then, if the commission considers community 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 has initiated one first-stage consultation since our previous round-up, on the possible revision of Directive 86/613/EEC regarding the application of the principle of equal treatment between men and women engaged in an activity in a self-employed capacity. This Directive, adopted in October 1986, provides for equal treatment between self-employed male and female workers. The commission asked the EU-level social partners in March 2008 for their views on amending and strengthening some of the Directive's provisions. They had until late April to respond, and the commission has not yet indicated its next move.
There was also one second-stage consultation in the first half of 2008, on revision of the EWCs Directive (94/45/EC). The background to this consultation was rather tangled. In April 2004, the commission launched a first-stage consultation on a review of the Directive, asking the social partners for their views on measures to enhance the effectiveness of EWCs, including possible revision of the Directive. The partners responded by concluding a joint text on "lessons learned" from EWCs in March 2005. Then, in April 2005, the commission consulted on the theme again, this time combined with the issue of "socially intelligent" corporate restructuring. It asked the social partners to engage in further work on the EWCs issue and agree on best-practice guidelines. In response, the partners agreed only to promote and assess their 2005 joint text.
In its work programme for 2008, the commission announced that it would propose a draft Directive revising the EWCs Directive. It then consulted the social partners on the issue once again in February 2008, stating that this was the formal second-stage consultation, the 2005 exercise having been only a follow-up of the 2004 first-stage consultation.
The February consultation document set out proposals for amendments to the Directive, aimed at:
- ensuring the effectiveness of employees' transnational information and consultation rights;
- resolving problems encountered in the practical application of the Directive;
- addressing legal uncertainties; and
- ensuring the coherence of the various items of EU legislation on employee information and consultation.
The commission invited the social partners to negotiate an agreement on revision of the Directive, based on its proposals.
In April, the central EU-level employers' organisations - BusinessEurope (private sector), Ueapme (small and medium-sized enterprises) and Ceep (public sector) - informed the commission of their willingness to open negotiations on EWCs. The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) consulted its member organisations and held discussions with the commission and BusinessEurope. On 11 April, it announced that it would not open negotiations on the revision of the Directive. The ETUC stated that it had been unable to agree with BusinessEurope on a concluding date for the talks, or to reach a "robust understanding" on "substantial amendments" to the Directive, in line with those set out in the commission's consultation document. In this context, it concluded that negotiations were not practical, not least because there would be insufficient time for the matter to be concluded in the lifetime of the current commission and European parliament. The commission will now propose an amending Directive (see Prospects section below).
Turning to consultations that occurred before 2008, there has been some movement in two cases. Following two rounds of consultations (in 2006 and 2007) on the "active inclusion of people furthest from the labour market", in March 2008 the EU-level social partners announced that they would negotiate a European agreement aimed at "facilitating access to and progression in the labour market for disadvantaged groups through a series of preventive and curative measures, including lifelong learning". If an agreement is reached, it will be "autonomous" - that is, it will be implemented by the signatories themselves rather than by an EU Directive. The move forms a follow-up to the social partners' October 2007 "joint analysis of European labour markets" and had already been flagged up in their 2006-08 work programme.
Two rounds of consultations have been held (in 2006 and 2007) on improving the reconciliation of work, private and family life. In the second, the commission suggested:
- the introduction of entitlements to paternity leave, adoption leave and leave to care for an elderly or sick family member;
- a strengthening of the provisions of the pregnant workers Directive (92/85/EEC); and
- a strengthening of the social partners' 1995 EU-level agreement on parental leave (implemented by Directive 96/34/EC) in areas including the duration of leave, flexibility in taking leave and payment during leave.
The commission encouraged the social partners to negotiate an EU-level agreement on its proposals relating to new forms of leave and maternity protection, and to assess their parental leave agreement with a view to reviewing it.
In March 2008, the social partners announced that they will "undertake joint action to better achieve the aims" of their agreement on parental leave. This forms part of wider work they are undertaking on the reconciliation of work and family life, also touching on other forms of leave for family reasons, working arrangements and care infrastructure. However, there is not yet any commitment to negotiate on the theme.
Two rounds of consultations were completed on "socially intelligent" corporate restructuring (2004 and 2005), without any further action. However, the commission is planning a further consultation on the issue in July 2008. Following the completion of two stages of consultation (in 2004 and 2007) on improving workers' protection against musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), with no indication from the social partners that they are willing to negotiate, the commission is planning to legislate in 2008.
Following a first stage in 2007, consultations have not yet moved on to the second stage with regard to cross-border transfers of undertakings.
A number of recent social partner consultations are not listed in the table, due to their technical or narrow scope. A first-stage consultation on protecting healthcare workers from blood-borne infections due to needlestick injuries, launched in 2006, has not yet moved to the second stage. This is also true of a first-stage consultation in 2007 on whether or not the current exclusion of maritime workers from some areas of EU employment law is justified. Two stages of consultations have been held (in 2004 and 2007) on EU action to protect workers from the risks related to exposure to carcinogens, mutagens and "substances toxic for reproduction" at work, and the commission is yet to announce its intentions.
NO PROGRESS
Following progress towards political agreement on a common position in the second half of 2007, little headway was made under the Slovenian presidency on the draft Directive on the portability of supplementary pension rights. The proposal deals with the acquisition and preservation of rights and enhanced information for workers, and the main sticking point in council is the maximum permissible duration of the "vesting period" (the period of active membership of an employment-related pension scheme required in order to trigger entitlement to a supplementary pension). The proposal was not discussed at the June 2008 EPSCO council, with the presidency merely informing ministers about the state of play of negotiations.
Three draft Directives on labour migration to the EU from other countries were proposed in 2007, dealing with: a uniform application procedure for migrants wanting to work and live in the EU, and a common set of rights for legally resident immigrant workers; the admission and residence of highly qualified immigrant workers; and sanctions against employers of "illegally staying third-country nationals". All three drafts still await formal debate in the council and EP.
As part of a legislative simplification initiative, the commission is seeking to codify and consolidate in single instruments a number of Directives and their subsequent amendments, although with "no changes of substance". The proposals for codification include the Directives on:
- protection of employees in the event of the insolvency of their employer (80/987/EEC);
- protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to asbestos at work (83/477/EEC); and
- minimum safety and health requirements for the use of work equipment by workers at work (89/655/EEC).
As they lack substantive content, these draft Directives are not included in our state-of-play table, but it may be noted that since the EP gave all three a first reading without amendment in June 2007, the council has not yet approved them. The proposal to codify the work equipment Directive has recently been amended by the commission.
PROSPECTS
The breakthrough in council discussions on the draft Directives on temporary agency work and revision of the working time Directive was the most significant EU employment legislation development in the first half of 2008. However, both proposals are subject to the co-decision procedure and the EP will have an important say in their final content. The common positions hammered out with such difficulty by the member states' governments are now sure to face a stormy ride in the EP. On working time especially, MEPs are likely to make concerted efforts to strengthen what many see as an unacceptably weak text agreed by the council.
Aside from the continuing debate on these two draft Directives, the second half of 2008 will see considerable activity in EU social policy. In July, the European Commission is due to publish a "social package" or "renewed social agenda", bringing together a number of measures aimed at stressing the social dimension of the EU and responding to a perception, heightened by recent ECJ judgments - for example in the Laval and Rüffert cases - that economic considerations are taking priority over workers' rights. As well as proposals on issues such as cross-border healthcare and discrimination, the package will include: the draft Directive amending the EWCs Directive; further consultation of the social partners on restructuring; and proposals developing the commission's idea of creating an "optional European framework for transnational collective bargaining".
The French government took over the EU presidency at the beginning of July and is strongly pushing for a renewed social dimension. It wants movement on: the draft Directive on supplementary pension rights; revision of the Directives on EWCs, equal treatment for self-employed women and men, pregnant workers and parental leave; and new provisions on paternity and adoption leave. The commission has already promised recommendations in most of these areas during 2008, and is also committed to proposing:
- two further Directives on labour migration from outside the EU, covering seasonal workers and "intra-corporate transferees"/remunerated trainees;
- a Directive amending the 2001 Directive on transfers of undertakings (following a second round of social partner consultations);
- a Directive consolidating in a single instrument existing provisions on the protection of workers from the risks of MSDs at work; and
- a Regulation establishing a European Private Company (EPC) Statute, whereby small and medium-sized companies could operate more easily on an EU-wide basis. The proposal is likely to include provisions on employee involvement in this new form of company.
Other initiatives that have been in the pipeline for some time and may see the light of day before the end of the year include the outcome of a European Commission analysis of current EU legislation affecting gender pay equality. Finally, the commission is due to propose a Directive to implement a May 2008 agreement between the EU-level social partner organisations in the maritime shipping industry - the European Transport Workers' Federation (ETF) and the European Community Shipowners' Association (ECSA) - that will incorporate certain provisions of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) maritime labour convention in EU law.
This article was written by Mark Carley, editor, European Employment Review.
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Table: Social policy state of
play In this
table: | ||
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Subject |
Legal base |
Current position |
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Proposal for a Directive of the European parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2003/88/EC concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time. COM(2004) 0607; amended proposal COM(2005) 0246. |
Art. 137(2). Co-decision procedure. |
First commission consultation on implementation and possible review of 1993 working time Directive ran from 5 January to 31 March 2004. Second consultation launched on 19 May. Social partners decided not to negotiate an agreement and commission issued draft Directive on 22 September, focusing on opt-out from maximum 48-hour week, reference periods, compensatory rest and on-call working. Discussed in EPSCO council on 4 October and 6-7 December. Committee of the Regions Opinion on 14 April 2005. EESC Opinion on 11-12 May. EP first reading on 11 May, recommending revision and eventual repeal of opt-out. Commission issued amended proposal on 31 May. Successive presidency compromise texts discussed by EPSCO council on 2-3 June, 8-9 December, 1-2 June 2006 and 7 November, without agreement. Portuguese presidency drafted new compromise text, which was discussed in council on 5 December 2007, with considerable consensus but not unanimous agreement. Slovenian presidency further revised text and EPSCO council reached political agreement on a common position on 9-10 June 2008. |
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Proposal for a Directive of the European parliament and the Council on working conditions for temporary workers. Official Journal C203/1 of 27 August 2002; amended proposal COM(2002) 0701. |
Art. 137(2). Co-decision procedure. |
Commission launched first stage of social partner consultation on atypical work on 27 September 1995 (EER 262 p.3) and second stage ran from 18 April to 14 June 1996. Social partner talks resulted in agreements on part-time and fixed-term work. Talks on temporary agency work started in 2000 (EER 317 p.3), stalled in March 2001 (EER 327 p.3), were revived in April (EER 328 p.2) but failed definitively in May (EER 329 p.3). Commission issued draft Directive on 20 March 2002. EESC Opinion on 19 September. EP first reading on 20-21 November. Commission issued revised text on 28 November. Discussed without agreement at EPSCO councils on 2-3 December, 3 June 2003 and 4 October 2004. Portuguese presidency drafted new compromise text, which was discussed in council on 5 December 2007, with considerable consensus but not unanimous agreement. Slovenian presidency further revised text and EPSCO council reached political agreement on a common position on 9-10 June 2008. |
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Subject |
Legal base |
Current position |
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Consultation of the EU-level social partners on reconciliation of professional, private and family life. SEC(2006) 1245 (first consultation). |
Art. 138. |
Commission launched first stage of consultation on 12 October 2006, seeking social partners' views on the possible direction of future Community action (EER 394 p.16). Commission launched second social partner consultation on content of action on 30 May 2007, focusing on: new rights to paternity leave, adoption leave and leave to care for family members; strengthening the 1992 pregnant workers Directive (92/85/EEC); and strengthening the social partners' 1995 EU-level agreement on parental leave. On 11 July, the social partners told the commission that they would evaluate their parental leave agreement, along with other arrangements supporting parents and work-life balance. In March 2008, the partners announced that they will "undertake joint action to better achieve the aims" of the parental leave agreement. The commission is planning to propose a Directive amending the pregnant workers Directive in 2008. |
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Consultation of the EU-level social partners on review of Directive 86/613/EEC on the application of the principle of equal treatment between men and women engaged in an activity in a self-employed capacity. |
Art. 138. |
Commission launched first stage of consultation on 6 March 2008, asking social partners for their views on amending and strengthening the Directive on equal treatment for male and female self-employed people. |
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Subject |
Legal base |
Current position |
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Consultation of the EU-level social partners on restructuring and employment. COM(2005) 120 final (second consultation). |
Art. 138. |
Commission launched first stage of consultation on "socially intelligent restructuring" on 15 January 2002, asking social partners for their views on managing change and restructuring and to identify and develop good practice. Social partners held seminars in 2002 and 2003 and concluded joint text in October 2003. Second stage of consultation launched on 5 April 2005 - combined with that on EWCs (see below) - asking social partners to engage in further work on this issue and agree on best-practice guidelines. Responses were given in autumn 2005, with differences of opinion between social partners, but they agreed to promote and assess their 2003 joint text. The commission is planning further consultations on the issue in July 2008. |
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Consultation of the EU-level social partners on cross-border transfers of undertakings, businesses or parts of undertakings or businesses. |
Art. 138. |
Commission launched first stage of consultation on 20 June 2007, asking the social partners for their views on possible action, such as amending Directive 2001/23/EC on business transfers, in order to deal with the issue of cross-border transfers involving a change in the place of work. Following a second-stage consultation, the commission is planning to propose a Directive amending Directive 2001/23/EC in 2008. |
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Consultation of the EU-level social partners on the active inclusion of the people furthest from the labour market. COM(2007) 620 final (second consultation). |
Art. 138. |
Commission launched first stage of consultation on 8 February 2006, asking the social partners for their views on possible EU-level action to promote more effective integration of people excluded from the labour market. Second stage of consultation launched on 17 October 2007, proposing EU-wide common rules on active inclusion. In March 2008, social partners announced negotiations over a European agreement on facilitating access to and progression in the labour market for disadvantaged groups. |
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Subject |
Legal base |
Current position |
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Consultation of the EU-level social partners on the revision of the European Works Councils Directive. COM(2008) 660 (second consultation). |
Art. 138. |
Commission launched first stage of consultation on 20 April 2004, asking social partners for their views on measures to enhance effectiveness of EWCs, including possible revision of Directive 94/45/EC. Social partners organised seminars looking at best practice in September-October and concluded joint text on "lessons learned" in March 2005. Second stage of consultation launched on 5 April - combined with that on restructuring (see above) - asking the social partners to engage in further work on this issue and agree on best-practice guidelines (with only passing reference to revising Directive). Responses given in autumn 2005, with differences of opinion between social partners, but they agreed to promote and assess their 2005 joint text. The commission consulted again on 20 February 2008, this time on specific proposals for revision of the Directive. Employers’ bodies were in favour of opening negotiations over an agreement on revision, but ETUC refused talks in April. Commission due to propose amending Directive in July 2008. |
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Subject |
Legal base |
Current position |
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Consultation of the EU-level social partners on musculoskeletal disorders at work. |
Art. 138. |
Commission launched first consultation of social partners on 12 November 2004, seeking views on whether further initiatives are needed. Social partners in agriculture sector reached agreement on reduction of workers’ exposure to risk of musculoskeletal disorders on 21 November 2005, partly in response to consultation. Second consultation was launched on 14 March 2007 and ended in late April. The commission is planning to propose in 2008 a single Directive incorporating existing provisions on musculoskeletal disorders at work (currently in Directives 90/269/EEC and 90/270/EEC). |
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Subject |
Legal base |
Current position |
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Proposal for a Directive of the European parliament and of the Council on improving the portability of supplementary pension rights. COM(2005) 0507; amended proposal COM(2007) 603 final. |
Arts. 42 and 94. Co-decision procedure. |
Commission launched first stage of social partner consultations on 12 June 2002 as part of efforts to reduce obstacles to free movement of workers within EU. Second stage launched on 15 September 2003. Social partners' views diverged on need for negotiations and commission therefore issued draft Directive on 20 October 2005. EESC Opinion on 20-21 April 2006. Discussed at EPSCO council on 1-2 June 2006 and 30 November-1 December. At council on 30-31 May 2007, no agreement on a "general approach" could be reached and it was decided to await the EP first reading and a subsequent amended commission proposal. EP gave first reading on 20 June. Commission issued amended proposal on 9 October, dropping provisions on transferability of pension rights. Political agreement on common position discussed in EPSCO council on 5 December, with agreement on all issues except vesting periods. EPSCO council on 9-10 June 2008 informed that negotiations were continuing. |
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Subject |
Legal base |
Current position |
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Proposal for a Directive of the European parliament and of the Council providing for sanctions against employers of illegally staying third-country nationals. COM(2007) 249 final. |
Art. 63(3)(b). Co-decision procedure. |
Commission issued draft Directive on 16 May 2007. It aims to ensure that all member states introduce similar penalties for employers of illegal immigrants and enforce them effectively, with the goal of preventing the employment of such workers and discouraging illegal immigration into the EU. Discussed in justice and home affairs council on 12 June and 5 December, with agreement that work on the proposal should be taken forward. |
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Proposal for a Council Directive on a single application procedure for a single permit for third-country nationals to reside and work in the territory of a member state and on a common set of rights for third-country workers legally residing in a member state. COM(2007) 638 final. |
Art. 63(3)(a). Consultation procedure. |
Commission issued draft Directive on 23 October 2007. It aims to: simplify and streamline procedures for all non-EU workers wanting to live and work in the EU by providing a "one-stop-shop" system; and grant all third-country workers residing legally in the member states a common set of employment-related rights, comparable with those of EU nationals. Discussed in justice and home affairs council on 5 December, with agreement that work on the proposal should be taken forward. |
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Proposal for a Council Directive on the conditions of entry and residence of third-country nationals for the purposes of highly qualified employment. COM(2007) 637 final. |
Art. 63(3)(a) and (4). Consultation procedure. |
Commission issued draft Directive on 23 October 2007. It proposes a "fast-track" procedure for the admission of highly qualified non-EU workers, based on common criteria, with successful applicants awarded a special residence and work permit, known as the "EU blue card". Discussed in justice and home affairs council on 5 December, with agreement that work on the proposal should be taken forward. EPSCO council informed on 9-10 June 2008 that discussions were continuing. |
European Employment Review 414 (EER 414) contents
