According to several sources consulted on Friday 16 June, the vote by the employment and social affairs (EMPL) committee on the posted workers directive, initially planned for July, will ultimately take place after the summer recess.
The decision was taken during a meeting of rapporteurs and shadow rapporteurs in Strasbourg during the plenary session on Thursday 15 June. The vote is expected to be postponed until September or October. One parliamentary source, however, informed us that the plenary vote was not expected to be postponed.
The aim is to provide more time to find as broad a consensus as possible. Postponing adoption of the general approach at the Employment and Social Policy Council (EPSCO) (see EUROPE 11809 and 11805) has provided some breathing space for Parliament, which was under strong pressure as a result of its tight timetable.
The French Permanent Representation is said to have approached co-rapporteur Elisabeth Morin-Chartier (EPP, France), according to one parliamentary source, to support this postponement but this information has not been confirmed.
S&D fears. Some members of the S&D Group have concerns about this decision and fear that this postponement could give more time to certain East European delegations to make their arguments heard. Although the draft law is not creating as many divisions within this group as it at the EPP (see EUROPE 11803), the same East-West division still exists, even though it is less pronounced. The Polish and Romanian delegations have the most serious misgivings.
Therefore, although the opinion of internal market and consumer protection (IMCO) committee had been quite critical to the position argued by the two co-rapporteurs of the text at the EMPL committee (see EUROPE 11788), Maria Grapini (S&D, Romania) is dissatisfied, but for the same reasons as the group. The MEP is generally not happy about revising the directive, opposed to the 24-month limit and against the concept of remuneration.
At the legal affairs (JURI) committee, Lidia Joanna Geringer de Oedenberg (S&D, Poland) abstained during adoption of the opinion supporting extension of the legal basis (see EUROPE 11807). This is a delicate matter for the MEP and it is possible that she will be replaced by another MEP, probably to be Sergio Cofferati (S&D, Italy), an alternate member, during the JURI committee vote on a second opinion focusing this time on the whole directive on Tuesday 20 June. The reason is that the opinion is expected to be along the lines backed by the western member states, with a reduction in the period of application of the directive from 24 to 18 months. (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)