At an extraordinary meeting of working group 2, known as the "workers' group", which was held in Vienna on Tuesday 9 October 2018, the European trade unionists and members of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) went on the attack against the Austrian Presidency of the Council of the EU.
"The Austrian Presidency is a disappointment to all workers", Rudy De Leeuw, President of the European Trade Unions Confederation (ETUC), told EUROPE on the sidelines of the meeting. He was referring in particular to the Presidency's decision to cancel the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumers Council (EPSCO) that was due to be held on 11 October (see other article).
The Austrian Presidency's controversial decision should be seen in the context of the national political situation, the Belgian said. In July, the Austrian government pushed through a law extending maximum working hours to 12 hours per day and 60 hours per week without first consulting the unions. "What a government does at home will invariably have repercussions at European level", he commented.
Taking the floor, Oliver Röpke, President of the Brussels office of the Austrian Trade Unions Confederation (ÖGB) and member of the workers' group at the EESC, was similarly upfront about his anger at the decision, "a first in the history of the EU".
"Yes, we cancelled [the meeting], because some dossiers are simply not in the stage for the Council", the Austrian Presidency explained, when approached by EUROPE for comment. "We are a working Presidency and keep on working hard in the trilogues. That's where we can make the most progress right now", the Austrians went on to explain.
European Labour Authority
Not won over by these arguments, Laure Batut, a French member of the workers' group, told EUROPE of her frustration at the delay in the European Labour Authority that will result from the cancellation of the EPSCO meeting. "This sends out an unfortunate signal to workers", she said.
De Leeuw also lamented this delay. The president also expressed concerns at the risk that the Authority will end up being an agency. "An Authority could make it possible to develop controls on national agencies and therefore ultimately more effectively to ensure that social legislation is applied in the member states", he stressed.
Making the pillar of social rights effective
The European pillar of social rights – another subject placed in abeyance by the Austrian decision – was central to discussions at the meeting of the EESC and was also raised by De Leeuw. "Our forcing at the Gothenburg summit allowed us to build this pillar, but we now need legal initiatives and directives to make the social rights effective", he explained.
The debate during the meeting focused around social protection in the sector of digital platforms (along the lines of Uber) as, despite the promises of the Presidency, which made social protection in the digital platforms sector one of its priorities (see EUROPE 12053), the trade unionists have yet to be consulted by the Austrians. (Original version in French by Mathieu Solal)