Posting of workers: final vote on equal pay and working conditions

Workers posted temporarily to another EU country must get equal pay for equal work in the same place, under revised rules voted by Parliament on Tuesday, 29 May. The revised rules, approved by 456 votes to 147, with 49 abstentions, aim to ensure better protection for posted workers and fair competition for companies. Under the agreed text, all of the host country’s remuneration rules must apply to posted workers. In addition to legal provisions, member states may apply large, representative regional or sectoral collective agreements. So far, this has been done only in the construction sector.

A posted worker is an employee who is sent by his or her employer to perform a service in another EU member state on a temporary basis. In 2016, there were 2.3 million posted workers in the EU. Posting increased by 69% between 2010 and 2016.

Improving workers’ conditions

Travel, board and accommodation costs will have to be paid by the employer and not deducted from workers’ salaries. Employers will also have to ensure that the accommodation conditions for posted workers are decent, and in line with national rules.

In the event of a fraudulent posting, e.g. by a letterbox company, member states should cooperate to ensure that posted workers are protected, at least, by the conditions of the Posting of Workers Directive.

Duration of posting

The duration of the posting has been set at a maximum of 12 months, with a possible extension of 6 months. Thereafter, the worker will still be able to stay on and work in the member state to which he or she is posted, but beyond this, working conditions will be subject to the host country’s labour rules.

International road transport

The new elements of the revised directive will apply to the transport sector once the sector-specific legislation, included in the Mobility Package, enters into force. Until then, the 1996 version of the directive remains applicable.

New rules to apply within two years. Member states will have two years to transpose the rules into their national laws, and must put them into effect by the end of this period. Click here to access the text (European Parliament legislative resolution of 29 May 2018 on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 96/71/EC of The European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 1996 concerning the posting of workers in the framework of the provision of services). And remember that if you are thinking about set up a company in Spain, or if you have workers in Spain, don´t hesitate to contact our team of experts.