Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2006-10-25-Speech-3-420"
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"en.20061025.30.3-420"2
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"Ladies and gentlemen, the purpose of the Posted Workers Directive is to reconcile the right of firms to provide cross-border services with the rights of workers who are on temporary postings. The objective is to ensure that basic freedom of movement is upheld for both workers and services, and that the social legislation aimed at protecting employees is complied with.
Moreover, under the aegis of the Commission, a group of national experts has developed principles of best practice, establishing a number of rules in the area of administrative cooperation and a single form enabling us to simplify the exchange of information between contact points. The Commission takes account, of course, of all of Parliament's opinions and the report before us is an important document for the Commission.
Ten years on from the adoption of this directive difficulties remain in applying it. First and foremost, workers and employees are insufficiently informed about their rights and obligations. A further problem is the lack of administrative cooperation between countries of origin and host countries, which in turn could be viewed as something of a lack of mutual trust. Lastly, the inspection measures imposed by some Member States have led to fears of protectionism.
The authorities in the host countries have been granted some right of inspection, although this too has its limits. These inspections must be carried out appropriately, without discrimination, and without obstructing the freedom to provide services within the framework of the internal market. In clarifying this point, the Commission deemed it appropriate to adopt the main principles on 4 April.
National bodies must provide posted workers and service providers with effective ways of obtaining information on the work conditions applying in the host country. They must also work together in a fair way. In this regard, the Commission feels it must remind the Member States of their obligations, and calls on them to implement more effective resources.
I am aware that the debate in Parliament on the posting of workers has been a complex one, and that a wide range of opinions has been expressed. This demonstrates the difficulty of striking a balance between safeguarding the protection of workers on the one hand and the freedom to provide services on the other.
I am pleased that in the report on which Parliament has voted, I found many points of convergence with the position expressed by the Commission in its 4 April communication. There are a number of points, however, to which I should like to pay special attention and on which a clear position should be adopted.
I cannot agree with the view that the Commission will try to include deleted Articles 24 and 25 of the original services directive by means of its communication. That is not the case here. In its communication, the Commission interprets the law in question, but does not introduce new laws, because communications from the Commission cannot do such a thing, not even formally, as this is a matter of legislative process. This assertion does not correspond to the reality of the Commission’s interpretation. I wish to stress again that in its communication the Commission is not establishing a new law on which to base these articles, but is interpreting current law, which includes significant rulings of the Court in Luxembourg.
The rulings of the court referred to in the Commission communication prohibit the national bodies from requiring that service providers posted in other Member States have an office or a representative in their country. According to case law, a Member State that is hosting foreign service providers may, in order to comply with the principle of solidarity, stipulate that there must be documentation available at the workplace relating directly to the work concerned, and especially work reports or documents relating to health, safety and work protection in the workplace.
In its interpretation, the Commission in no way restricts the Member States’ capacity to carry out effective inspections, and none of the aforementioned articles have that intention. It is my view that the Commission tried very hard in its interpretation to find and understand the true substance and spirit of individual court rulings. The Commission attaches great importance to the proper implementation of the directive and has broadened its scope beyond this implementation. It has already started work on a report assessing the situation a year after publishing its guidelines. To this end the Commission has sent a questionnaire out to the national bodies and the social partners. It has also created a website dealing with legal and practical issues relating to the posting of workers, on which it recently created a forum where every European citizen can offer suggestions and comments."@en1
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