IR Notes

On 30 April, the European Commission published a document on First-phase consultation of European social partners on possible EU action in the area of telework and workers’ right to disconnect (see Right to disconnect et Telework), as expressly requested by the European Parliament in a resolution passed in March 2021 (see IR Notes 156). The social partners will be required to express their view on the Commission’s findings and on the seven areas it identified as being suitable topics for EU legislation, whether binding (a directive) or not (recommendations, guidelines). The Commission emphasises that the 27 Member States already regulate the field of telework, whether by law or via collective labour agreements, and that 11 States have already introduced legislation covering the right to disconnect. It believes that the time has come to harmonise this framework and to “reduce the current fragmented landscape of rules at national level”. Its plans involve: 1/ Establishing the right to disconnect, which would ensure that “workers are not obliged to engage in work-related activities outside their work schedule, with due consideration for the concepts of ‘on-call’  and ‘standby’ as used by the CJEU”. Employers would have to take “appropriate measures” to ensure that workers can exercise such a right and are not penalised if they assert it. 2/ Ensuring decent employment and working conditions for teleworkers: this means laying down “minimum requirements that cover various aspects of work carried out at a location other than the employer’s premises using mainly ICT tools”. The text proposes that the EU should “outline certain rules on the arrangements for and transparency of monitoring teleworkers’ performance” and ensure that teleworkers are provided with adequate equipment and that the net costs of working from home are compensated. 3/ Protecting teleworkers’ health and safety at work: here, the aim is to ensure that the specific health risks linked to teleworking, including psychosocial, ergonomic and physical health risks, are properly assessed in cooperation with workers’ representatives, and that appropriate measures to prevent and address these risks are introduced and communicated to workers. The aim could be achieved through revision of the workplace and display screen equipment directives. 4/ Addressing collective information and consultation rights: this could ensure that teleworkers enjoy the same collective information and consultation rights as they would if working from the employer’s premises and as comparable workers do. 5/ Providing information to workers: employers would have to provide teleworkers with information about the teleworking arrangements (procedures for requesting and implementing telework, coverage and/or reimbursement of possible costs, provision of equipment, duration and organisation of work). 6/ Promoting the role of social partners, to ensure that social dialogue and collective bargaining are effectively involved in implementing any EU action in this area. 7/ Ensuring enforcement of the legislation, in particular via access to justice and protecting employees who seek to exercise their rights. Having failed to negotiate an agreement on this subject in November 2023 (see IR Notes 219), the only avenue now open to European social partners is to use their lobbying role to influence the content of the text prepared by the next Commission.

Go-ahead given for the first sustainability reports : On 24 April, Parliament approved the new Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, based on the last-minute agreement reached with the Council (see IR Notes 226 and press release). Once it has been formally adopted by the Council, the directive will be published in the OJEU and Member States will then have two years to transpose it into their domestic law. This vote took place 11 years after the Rana Plaza textile factory in Bangladesh burnt down. That dramatic event highlighted the lack of supervision of working conditions in third countries (v. Sustainability reporting).. The new rules (excluding communication-related obligations) will progressively apply to European companies (and to non-European companies achieving the same turnover thresholds within the EU), as follows: 1/ from 2027 onwards, to companies with over 5,000 employees and a worldwide turnover higher than 1500 million euros; 2/ from 2028 onwards, to companies with over 3,000 employees and a worldwide turnover higher than 900 million euros; 3/ from 2029 onwards, to all other companies falling within the directive’s scope of application, i.e. those with over 1,000 employees and a worldwide turnover higher than 450 million euros. Companies will also have to adopt a transition plan to make their business model compatible with the global warming limit of 1.5° C set by the Paris Agreement. The directive will require firms to integrate due diligence into all of their relevant policies and risk-management systems, and to put in place a risk-based due diligence policy. This policy is to be introduced following consultation with, among others, the company’s employees, its subsidiaries, its business partners and their representatives. However, the directive does not specify the relevant level of representation, leaving EWCs room to position themselves. Stakeholders must be consulted at the following stages: 1/ when information on actual or potential negative effects is gathered; 2/ when the preventive action plan and the corrective measures plan are drawn up; 3/ when the decision is made to suspend or terminate a business relationship; 4/ when appropriate measures to remedy negative effects are adopted or when qualitative and quantitative indicators are established for monitoring purposes. The directive also allows trade unions and other workers’ representatives representing persons employed in the activity chain concerned, to file complaints in cases where companies fail to meet their obligations.

> See also: IndustriAll Europe and BusinessEurope press releases.

A ban on products made with forced labour : On 23 April, the European Parliament definitively adopted the regulation enabling the EU to prohibit the sale, import and export of goods made with forced labour (see IR Notes 192).  The text must now be formally approved by the Council before it is published in the OJEU. Member States will then have three years to transpose it into their domestic law (see press release). The regulation is designed to prevent economic operators introducing products made with forced labour into the EU market, making such products available in this market, and exporting them from it. The competent authorities in Member States and the European Commission will use several criteria to assess the likelihood that products have been made using forced labour. They will take account of “any issues arising from meaningful consultations with relevant stakeholders, such as civil society organisations and trade unions”. Within 18 months, the Commission will also publish guidelines that will be updated to take account of the information provided by trade unions.

> See also: an ILO report, published on 19 March, which emphasises that forced labour in the private economy generates 236 billion dollars’ worth of illegal profits every year (a rise of 37% since 2014); press releases published by BusinessEurope.

Platform workers : On 24 April, the European Parliament definitively adopted the text of the directive on improving working conditions in platform work, based on the compromise reached with the Council and adopted in March (see IR Notes 226 and press release). The directive obliges Member States to establish a refutable legal presumption of employment at domestic level, and introduces, for the first time in European social legislation, regulation of algorithmic management (see Briefing and At a glance, published by the European Parliament).

Violence against women : On 24 April, the European Parliament definitively adopted the directive on combating violence against women and domestic violence (see Parliament’s press release and At a Glance factsheet). This directive, which obliges Member States to adopt, within five years, national action plans to combat these various forms of violence, includes a number of measures affecting the world of work, such as an obligation to provide training for: 1/ officials who are likely to come into contact with victims; 2/ healthcare personnel in relation to genital mutilation; 3/ persons with supervisory functions in the workplace. The latter point applies to both the public and private sectors, and seeks to prevent and appropriately address instances of sexual harassment at work. However, this obligation to provide training only applies to Member States whose domestic law specifically classifies sexual harassment at work as a criminal offence. In these countries, governments will also have to ensure that victims and employers can benefit from counselling services providing information on ways to adequately address such cases of sexual harassment, including on available remedies to remove the offender from the workplace (Art. 28).

Combating the far right : Leaders of the French (CFDT, CGT and Unsa), German (DGB) and Italian (CGIL) trade union confederations, and of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), took part in a debate in Paris, entitled « Ensemble contre l’extrême droite ! » [“Together against the far right !”]. The conference provided an opportunity to compare the political situation within the three countries, which are all witnessing a rise in far-right forces. Adrienne Woltersdorf (Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung – FES) pointed out that while the threat is the same everywhere, these countries face different domestic challenges. However, Marylise Léon (CFDT) emphasised that this issue needs to be tackled urgently, given that the European Parliament elections will be taking place in June. Despite the combative position adopted by the CFDT and other French trade unions, the popularity of far-right ideals is on the rise among workers (see press release and replay).

Telecommunications : The social partners in the telecommunications sector, ETNO and UNI Europa ICTS, have published a research report entitled “Accelerating sustainability in telecoms“, produced by Visionary Analytics, within the framework of a project co-funded by the EU. The study analyses 11 emerging technologies that are expected to have a considerable impact on this industry, and their impact on social and environmental sustainability. The authors call for employees and social partners to be involved at an early stage in roll-out of the technology, and analyse the role played by social dialogue in promoting sustainability and mitigating negative impacts of the implementation of technologies (see press release).

Infertility and medically assisted reproduction : As of 28 April, employees who are undergoing infertility treatment or medically assisted reproduction will enjoy better protection against dismissal. The law of 24 March states that the employer “cannot unilaterally terminate the employment relationship after it has been informed of the situation by means of a medical certificate, until a period of two months has expired”. Moreover, absences linked to medical procedures are deemed to be linked to “family responsibilities” (see press release). As the law does not grant any specific leave for such absences, employees will have to either use their paid leave or request unpaid leave.

Programme of reforms : On 12 April, the Minister of Employment and the Social Economy, Yolanda Díaz, set forth the main outlines of this programme, before the Senate. Its flagship measures include: reducing the length of the working week to 37.5 hours; extending paternity and maternity leave to 20 weeks; regulating AI to protect employees; strengthening protection for LGBTQI+ persons in the workplace, together with the introduction of action plans within companies and measures to combat discrimination and harassment. At the same time, the Minister highlighted the need to strengthen social democracy, in particular by allowing employees and trade unions to take part in the decision-making process within companies (see press release).

A new EWC: : On 22 February, the French aerospace group Latecoere (6,000 employees) signed an agreement establishing a European Works Council, covering its 2,230 employees across six EU Member States (Germany, Belgium, Bulgaria, Spain, Czechia and France, which has nearly 1300 employees). The text grants very limited resources to the EWC: 20 hours per annum for full members to carry out their work and an additional 20 hours for the EWC secretary. The agreement is also one of the few not to provide for “training courses or a specific training budget for EWC members” or support from “experts within the framework of the information/consultation procedure”. The EWC meets once a year via videoconferencing (except for the first meeting held during its term of office) and is consulted only in exceptional circumstances affecting at least 150 employees per company, in cases involving at least two companies in two Member States. Its opinion must be delivered after the meeting, within a reasonable deadline set at the meeting. If this opinion is not submitted within a maximum of 7 days, it will be deemed to be unfavourable.

• Sale: On 26 April, the CNP assurances group announced that it had entered into exclusive negotiations with the Hellenic Bank Public Company Ltd, with a view to the sale of its insurance operations in Cyprus and Greece, which represent less than 1% of the group’s turnover. The European Works Council will be kept informed and consulted regarding this sale.

Violence and harassment : On 11 April, the Spanish company Orenes Group (3,500 employees) signed the EU Cross-Sectoral Guidelines on Violence and Harassment at Work, which were adopted in November 2023 by UNI Europa, two European employers’ organisations (AMIC and ETNO) and the Partouche group. Orenes is one of the main companies in the leisure, games and restaurant business in Spain, a number of other European countries and Latin America (see press release).

Occupational health and climate change : The ILO has published a report on the impact of climate change on occupational safety and health, which examines the risks linked to excessive heat, ultraviolet (UV) radiation, extreme weather events, workplace air pollution, vector-borne diseases and agrochemicals. The report highlights national practices and policies designed to reduce exposure to such risks, and emphasises that 70% of workers worldwide may already be exposed to climate change-related health hazards. Since 2000, the proportion of workers exposed to excessive heat has increased from 65.5% to 70.9% (see press release, summary of the report and full report).

• Mental health at work: The Belgian presidency of the EU has published a summary of the discussions at the High-Level Conference held in Brussels, on 30 and 31 January.