Brussels, 27/05/2016 (Agence Europe) - On Friday 27 May, Commissioner Marianne Thyssen gave the get-go for the initiative to launch the European platform against undeclared work. This initiative was proposed two years ago and seeks to increase cooperation between the different national authorities involved, such as the work inspection services and social security bodies.
During the launch ceremony, Commissioner Thyssen stated "For us, it is very clear, there is no place for unfair working conditions or social dumping in the European Union". This event constitutes the very first opportunity for the platform to define its work programme. It will now be meeting up every two years.
Undeclared work is generally defined as any activity that receives legal remuneration but which is not declared to the public or tax authorities or work inspection services. According to the figures provided by Eurofound, the undeclared economy accounts for an average of 18% of GDP in the EU and ranges from less than 8% of GDP in Austria to more than 30% in Bulgaria.
The platform will be chaired by the Commission and will bring high-level representatives together from the 28 member states, as well as representatives from social partners (4 from the interprofessional level and 14 from the sectoral level), Eurofound, the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) and the ILO. It will be funded to the tune of €2.1 million a year by way of the "Progress" section in the European Union Programme for Employment and Social Innovation (EaSI).
In a joint press release, the European trade unions highlighted the importance of making the platform operational as soon as possible (ETUC, IndustriAll, EPSU, Uni Europa, ETF, EFFAT and EFBW). Esther Lynch, from the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), is encouraging the platform to prioritise the dossier of bogus self-employed workers. [Decision: http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/FR/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX : 32016D0344&from=EN]. (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)