ACTORS' viewpoint
EXPERT'S viewpoint
Posting of workers:
Improving collaboration between social partners
and public authorities in Europe
Improving collaboration between social partners
and public authorities in Europe
Underlying our approach…
A first draft
The labour departments of Belgium, Spain, France, Luxembourg, Poland and Portugal embarked on a shared training scheme for their officials, led by INTEFP and ASTREES from December 2010 to December 2011, which aimed to go hand in hand with the developments necessary for putting in place or strengthening this cooperation.
A European "target group" of labour inspectors attended a shared training scheme, based on case-studies and spells of "immersion" in the different countries involved.
A European "target group" of labour inspectors attended a shared training scheme, based on case-studies and spells of "immersion" in the different countries involved.
This scheme enabled a better understanding of the different practical approaches and constraint-based systems of the partner labour administrations and the creation of working habits while developing a shared transnational resource centre on the posting of workers, in the form of
the website EURODETACHEMENT.
the website EURODETACHEMENT.
It has also made it clear that, given the complexity of the situations that occur, public authorities cannot act on their own and social partners have a major role in regulating posting situations.
Which is continuing and expanding
The current project is based on the momentum that is running, and reinforces and develops it by broadening its scope in two ways: firstly by increasing the potential for collaboration between government authorities and social partners, and secondly by deepening cooperation at regional level.
The initiative has extended the partnerships to Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Lithuania and Romania. Furthermore, action is built in a close partnership with the European federations of the construction and agriculture sectors (FIEC, EFBWW, EFFAT, GEOPA COPA) and 20 professional and trade union organisations of the Member States concerned.
(see the directory of the project).
The initiative has extended the partnerships to Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Lithuania and Romania. Furthermore, action is built in a close partnership with the European federations of the construction and agriculture sectors (FIEC, EFBWW, EFFAT, GEOPA COPA) and 20 professional and trade union organisations of the Member States concerned.
(see the directory of the project).
The aim of the project was to improve collaboration between social public authorities and social partners in order to enhance the impact of their actions.
A tool for action
Designed as a directly operational tool, the synthesis is built upon d a mutual exchange of practice between 98 participants on the field of posting of workers.
These practices include:
"sensitizing, informing, supporting", "monitoring, controlling", "anticipating, preventing", "acting at the transnational level". A special chapter is dedicated to "the role of the social partners".
For each field, an "analysis" part aims to formalize the result of these crossing points of views, collect and formalize, as a puzzle, knowledge and expertise held by each stakeholder (linked to his territory and his function).
Key issues, action-levers and "key actors" have been identified by the various participants.
These practices include:
"sensitizing, informing, supporting", "monitoring, controlling", "anticipating, preventing", "acting at the transnational level". A special chapter is dedicated to "the role of the social partners".
For each field, an "analysis" part aims to formalize the result of these crossing points of views, collect and formalize, as a puzzle, knowledge and expertise held by each stakeholder (linked to his territory and his function).
Key issues, action-levers and "key actors" have been identified by the various participants.
”Action sheets” have been achieved by the participants themselves, on the basis of their experiences and to support analysis, with the support of the project team.
In order to facilitate a“network effect” and exchanges, action sheets incorporate contact information on the organizations involved.
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In order to facilitate a“network effect” and exchanges, action sheets incorporate contact information on the organizations involved.
Project outline
Scope
The project aims to:
- impact the collective ability of organisations to develop their collaboration by involving targeted stakeholders at the highest level of the organisations and administrations concerned, at both European and Member State level;
- put in place directly operational support structures and methods designed with and for public officials and social partners.
To achieve these objectives, a sectoral approach is adopted, focusing on the construction and agriculture sectors.
Purpose
To improve collaboration between social partners and government authorities in Member States in order to:
- strengthen worker protection,
- struggle against unfair competition and social dumping.
Aims
- To improve access to information on working and employment conditions for companies and employees.
- To consolidate the shared analysis of the productive organisations underlying the provision of transnational services and their impact on the working and employment conditions of workers posted within the agriculture and construction sectors.
- To improve transnational collaboration on the part of social partners and government authorities.
Target Audience
120 people:
- social partners at national and local level engaged in dealing with these problems within the agriculture and construction sectors;
- officials in government authorities involved in administrative cooperation practices and/or in collaboration exercises and initiatives with the social partners.
The project’s presumptions
- Involvement at both European level (European trade union and employer organisations of the two sectors concerned) and national level (national government authorities, national and local representatives of trade union and employer organisations), so as to have an impact on the "stakeholder system".
- Joint "host country/posting country" work, enabling increased discussion between the places of establishment of companies and the places the work is carried out.
- A completely new transnational discussion forum for government authorities and social partners, with sectoral working-groups in three geographical zones, set on the basis of economic activity and the flow of workers, in order to encourage and reinforce stakeholder networks:
Zone 1 :
agriculture sector in France, Portugal, Poland, Romania
Zone 2 :
construction sector in Belgium, France, Luxembourg, Poland, Romania
Zone 3 :
construction sector in Finland, Lithuania, Denmark, Poland, Estonia
- A working method based on analysis of stakeholders» practices, drawing on real-life cases.
Expected Outcomes
Increased competence on the part of the project»s participants and their organisations through:
- An impetus that strengthens networks of stakeholders involved with the problems of posting;
- An improvement in access to information on working and employment conditions for companies and employees (public authorities» websites, also via the “learn” tab on the EURODETACHEMENT website);
- Highlighting of stakeholders» needs, promoting the pinpointing of difficulties encountered, levers for action, and operational avenues for improving transnational cooperation and collaboration.
- Deliverables, through the production of:
- survey preliminary to the transnational working-groups;
- summaries from the transnational working-groups, incorporating;
- recommendations for accessing information;
- and support enabling backup for stakeholders on the ground;
- enhancement and wider distribution via the EURODETACHEMENT resource centre.
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