Brussels, 22/12/2000 (Agence Europe) - The Transport Council reached, on the night of Thursday to Friday, a political agreement on the working time of hauliers, excluding independent hauliers from the regulation for a period of around five years. It also adopted conclusions on "the homogenous certification of drivers", mainly aimed at fighting against the social dumping of drivers from eastern countries illegally employed in the EU.
After having sought an agreement through unanimity during long negotiations broken into closed door sessions and session suspensions, the President of the Transport Council, Jean-Claude Gayssot had to resolve himself to having a compromise adopted by qualified majority, with the opposition of Ireland, Portugal and the United Kingdom. This agreement will allow to close two years of difficult talks in the Council, started after the failure of negotiations between social partners in September 1998.
The agreement foresees the harmonisation of the weekly length of work from hauliers. This duration will be limited to 48 hours, extendable to 60 hours on condition that the average of 48 hours be respects over a reference period of four months. The future Directive specifies the definitions of "working time", "availability time" and night work.
The independent hauliers, which represent around one third of the 3.5 million European hauliers, are excluded from the scope of the Directive. The Commission should present two years after the entry into force of the Directive (or in around four years) a report on the consequences of this exclusion, and on this basis the Council and Parliament will take a decision. The inclusion of independents after the transition period is thus not automatic, as would have notably wanted Belgium, Greece, Finland and the Netherlands having opposed it.
In a "vote declaration", Portugal states that "the system adopted by the present Directive, by excluding independents, casts doubt over important objective of the common transport policy. With this system, are created conditions of distortion to competition, and place considerable prejudice on road safety and this does not contribute to the promotion of quality of services. Under these circumstances Portugal votes against the Directive". Ireland also wants the inclusion of independents. On the other hand Italy, Luxembourg, Belgium, Denmark and Austria, which defended at the start the same position, finally rallied to the compromise, allowing for the adoption of the Directive. The United Kingdom voted against for reasons of principal.
The Council also rapidly broached the other elements of the "social road package" presented, in: 1) adopting conclusions that approve a standard certification of drivers, which will only concern drivers from third countries undertaking international transport for employers established in the EU. The "detailed content" of this certificate should be defined in the future. Delivered by the national authority, it "should certify that the driver fulfils the employment conditions foreseen in the legislative provisions and the regulations applicable on the territory of the Member States concerned". The Council's aim is to reach an agreement during the Council on 5 and 6 April, 2) entrust the Permanent Representatives Committee with starting the examination of the new harmonisation proposal from weekend and national holiday driving bans, in order to reach a political agreement during the April Transport Council, 3) take note of the Commission's intention to present, in January, new proposals on the training of professional drivers and the modification of regulation 3820 on resting and working times.