The Czech Presidency’s proposal for a general approach of the Council of the EU on the directive on digital platform workers did not receive a majority among Member States on 23 November, with the Presidency expected to resubmit it to Member States on 30 November.
This was the first test at ambassadorial level for this text, which was presented by the European Commission last December. The Presidency wanted to test the chances of success for a general approach on 8 December at the ‘Employment’ Council.
But things have not changed much since the last working group that took place on 15 November, says a source. No majority could be found.
A new text, which was presented on 18 November for this first discussion by the ambassadors, did not shift any positions. Germany and Italy, in particular, have not yet stated their position. These ‘big’ countries could, however, singlehandedly swing the text in one direction or another. It is with this unknown factor that the Czech Presidency of the EU Council must now move forward, with the aim of providing a new text by 30 November.
According to a source, the member countries were divided into three main groups on Wednesday: those who want to return to the European Commission’s initial proposal on the criteria for triggering the legal presumption of salaried status, which corresponds to the eight countries that complained in October about the direction of the work taken by Prague; those who will accept the current text, which provides for a system of three (or even four) criteria out of seven; and those who want to tighten up the conditions for triggering the presumption.
None of these countries would have found it impossible to reach an agreement by 8 December, according to the source.
The latest compromise text submitted by the Czech Presidency of the EU Council, as seen by EUROPE, did not make any changes to Article 4 regarding the material conditions of the legal presumption. The Presidency had redefined the criteria for determining the degree of subordination that platforms can exercise over a worker and increased the number of criteria from 5 to 7. As a result, the number of criteria to be met to trigger the presumption has been increased from 2 to 3, it explains in the text. But the compromise also provides that the platform is not considered to have met a criterion if it is only acting to comply with a legal obligation, including an obligation arising from collective agreements.
The final text had added an element that might please the northern EU countries, in particular that the autonomy of social partners that should be respected: “It should therefore be possible for the social partners to consider that in specific sectors or situations, different provisions are more appropriate, for the pursuit of the purpose of this Directive, than certain minimum standards set out in [Chapters III and IV of] this Directive. Member States should therefore be able to allow the social partners to maintain, negotiate, conclude and enforce collective agreements which differ from certain provisions contained in this Directive, provided that the overall level of protection of workers is not lowered”.
European Parliament on a battle footing for 30 November
The European Parliament’s rapporteur Elisabetta Gualmini (S&D, Italian) is doing her utmost to secure a majority for her draft report ahead of a vote in the Employment Committee on 30 November.
The latest negotiations relate to the definition of criteria for the subordination of workers, the (non-)suspensive effect of a decision to contest a reclassification or the automatic character of the presumption with automatic reclassification of workers, with assurances to be given to the EPP group, among others, regarding these different points. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)