Brussels, 08/07/2016 (Agence Europe) - A big question mark on employment and social affairs for the new presidency of the Council of the EU. In its work programme published on 30 June, Slovakia is waiting to know how the European Commission will respond to the eleven national parliaments that have kicked off the yellow card procedure on secondment of workers.
In its priorities, Bratislava therefore mentions proposals on health and safety at work and legislation on accessibility. The first amends Directive 2004/37 on carcinogens and mutagens to set 13 upper limits (EUROPE 11551). The second introduces common requirements to allow the disabled to have easier access to key products and services (EUROPE 11572). Unsurprisingly, the work programme avoids mention of the anti-discrimination directive, blocked at the Council for more than six years, or the directive on quotas for women on boards of management. Since the start of the negotiations, Slovakia (backed by the Netherlands) opposes the women's quota proposal that would make quoted companies introduce transparent recruitment procedures in order to achieve 40% of women on their board of managers.
The Slovakian Presidency prefers to keep an eye of the Commission, which has the main keys to the question because it has to respond to a reasoned opinion from 11 national parliaments on the targeted revision plans for the directive on the secondment of workers. The aim of the directive is to sharply reduce the difference in pay for local and seconded workers. It introduces the idea of equal pay for equal work in the same place and reduces the length of time a worker can be seconded to 24 months. The Commission is expected to unveil before the summer break draft legislation to coordinate social security systems (amending Regulation 883/2004). This was first announced for the end of 2015 as part of a professional mobility package, but then postponed while awaiting the result of the British referendum. In the light of the results, the Commission is expected to continue with the launch of the legislation and adopt an amended position in order to clarify the differences between the legal setup for workers and the unemployed when they change country within the EU. It is expected to propose to include long-term care and extend to six months (from the current three) the period during which an unemployed EU citizen can leave his country for another member state and take their unemployment benefit with them (EUROPE 11430). Finally, in the fourth quarter of 2016, the Commission will publish its long awaited proposal for balancing private and professional life, a perilous exercise because the legislation aims to get round obstacles encountered in the past on the question of working time and maternity leave.
At this stage, the Slovakian Presidency has announced three series of conclusions: on efficiency and the Youth Guarantee, on women and poverty, and on integration of the Roma, following assessment of the December 2013 recommendation in this connection.
Agenda:
14 July: informal meeting of employment and social affairs ministers. The European social rights pillar, social security and challenges in the world of work (digitisation of society and migration, in particular) will be discussed.
13 October in Luxembourg: Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Rights Council (EPSCO). The Presidency will try to obtain a general approach to health and safety at work.
8 December in Brussels: EPSCO Council. The Presidency will try to achieve a general approach to legislation on accessibility and secondment. It has already announced that it will be publishing a progress report on the anti-discrimination directive. (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)