Brussels, 08/05/2007 (Agence Europe) - After provoking an angry response from the EP Socialist group (see EUROPE 9421), the draft report by Jacek Protasiewicz (EPP-ED, Poland) on “modernising labour law to meet the challenges of the 21st century” was also the subject of considerable criticism from the trade union and regional government worlds. The report was on the agenda of the EP employment and social affairs committee in Brussels on Tuesday 8 May. The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) naturally contests the general spirit of the report. It accuses the rapporteur of “a flawed and over-simplified analysis of Europe's labour market problems”, and states the EP must “fundamentally change its report”.
ETUC also rejects statements by Mr Protasiewicz, who said: (1) “If labour law is to meet the challenges of the 21st century, it must focus to a large extent on employment security rather than protecting particular jobs, making it easier to enter or stay in the labour market both for persons beginning professional activity and those who (…) find themselves without permanent employment” (2) “Flexible and fair employment should be based on minimum basic rights ('a floor of rights') which should include: non-discrimination, workers' health and safety protection”; (3) “an over-stringent labour law framework could deter employers from taking on new workers even during times of economic growth, thereby worsening job prospects, particularly for women, workers entering the labour market and older workers wishing to continue working after retirement age”; (4) “over-stringent employment contracts are a major factor promoting employers and workers to resort to clandestine employment and therefore (…) the best way to combat this phenomenon is to make legal employment easier”.
Explaining, in a press release, why it opposes the draft report by Mr Protasiewicz, ETUC says: “reducing the protection of regular jobs, rather than promoting employment opportunities for the most vulnerable workers, will make all workers throughout Europe more insecure”. “As the EU moves closer to becoming a single market for goods and services, and a European single labour market emerges, it is more crucial than ever to set clear European rules on basic protection for workers, backed up by collective bargaining at EU and national level”, said John Monks, ETUC General Secretary. ETUC believes urgent measures must be taken to strengthen labour law and collective bargaining at both national and Community levels in order to cope with the modern world of work. Workers around Europe deserve a real prospect of quality employment opportunities and proper protection, he said.
On the other side, the Employers Platform of the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR-EP) and the European Federation of Public Service Unions (EPSU) stress in a joint press release that “labour law is merely one of the many factors in the development of successful and cohesive societies”. They call upon the European Commission in particular to “take into account the various national contexts with differences in collective agreements, labour market, institutional settings and others”. (gb)