On Tuesday 26 March, the European Federation of Building and Woodworkers (EFBWW) launched its campaign with MEPs against the massive use of subcontracting in the construction sector, “a major factor in exploitation, fraud and other labour abuses, particularly in a cross-border context”, it explained on X.
“If done properly, subcontracting should not necessarily be a problem. The problems start when it is simply used to cut costs and evade legal responsibilities”, says the EFBWW, echoing a campaign led in Parliament by Danish MEP Nikolaj Villumsen (The Left).
“Often, companies use subcontracting chains to disguise employment relationships, circumvent tax and social security payments, avoid joint and several liability, and hide from controls by labour inspection bodies. These subcontractors repeatedly vanish without paying the workers their wage due after months of working”.
The EFBWW is therefore calling for stricter rules on subcontracting in public procurement, limiting the subcontracting chain (one or two subcontractors at most) and digital law enforcement tools for workers, via a ‘European Social Security Passport’ (ESSP), to enable real-time access to data during inspections.
Link to the campaign: https://aeur.eu/f/big (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)