EU Ignores Equal Treatment for Agency Workers in Failure to Pass Directive

The European Union’s Council of Ministers, on 5 December, backed away from passing an EU Directive on Agency Workers. The Directive, if passed, would have entitled agency workers to the same pay, benefits, and conditions of work as full-time staff after a six-week period.

The proposed Directive, which was first drafted in 2002, has been blocked now for three years, primarily by UK’s Labour Party government. In the 5 December meeting of the EU Employment Council, the Portuguese presidency was ready to ballot member countries under the EU’s qualified-majority voting system, but the vote did not occur due to consideration of other UK positions. Besides the UK, Germany, Ireland, and Malta were member nations opposed. France and Poland had made compromises to accept the Directive.

The Agency Workers’ Directive is sure to be brought up again in early 2008, when Slovenia takes the presidency of the EU. The UK government’s position has been bolstered by British business groups, who insist on flexible, disposable workforces in the name of competitiveness.

Generally across Europe, temporary or agency workers are paid less, receive less training, and are prone to a higher rate of workplace accidents.

Labour unions were incensed by the Brown government’s continuation of Tony Blair policies. In leading up to the vote, European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) Secretary General John Monks, a British citizen, spoke before the UK’s House of Commons on the issue. “Agency workers are getting a second-class deal. And you – our government – are defending that, the indefensible.”

Following the 5 December non-action by the EU, UK Trades Union Congress General Secretary Brendan Barber stated, “This is a bad day for rights at work across Europe, but especially in the UK. Contrary to business scare-mongering, this directive would not stop agencies providing temporary staff to employers. It would make it more difficult to undercut wages and conditions, and help slow the growth of a two-tier workforce.”