Activities of Sandra PEREIRA related to 2020/0310(COD)
Plenary speeches (1)
Adequate minimum wages in the European Union (debate)
Amendments (52)
Amendment 83 #
Proposal for a directive
Title 1 a (new)
Title 1 a (new)
The European Parliament rejects the Commission proposal.
Amendment 124 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 5
Recital 5
(5) Guideline 5 of Council Decision 2020/1512/EU on guidelines for the employment policies of the Member States37 calls on Member States to ensure an effective involvement of social partners in wage-setting, providing for fair wages that enable a decent standard of living and allowing for an adequate responsiveness of wages to productivity developments, with a view to upward convergence. The Guideline also calls on Member States to promote social dialogue and collective bargaining on wage setting. It also calls on Member States and the social partners to ensure that all workers have adequate and fair wages by benefitting fromA general rise in wages, and especially in minimum wages, is both a necessity and a way of collrrective agreements or adequate statutory minimum wages, and taking into account their impact on competitiveness, job creation and in-work poverty. The Annual Sustainable Growth Strategy 202138 states that Member States should adopt measures to ensure fair working conditions. In addition, the Annual Sustainable Growth Strategy 202039 recalled that in the context of growing social divides, it is important to ensure that each worker earns an adequate wage. Several Country Specific Recommendations have also been issued to some Member States in the field of minimum wages. However, individual countries may be little inclined to improve their minimum wage settings because of the perception that this could negatively affect their external cost competitivenesng growing injustices and inequalities in the distribution of wealth between employers and workers, and is also fundamental for the economic and social development of the Member States. __________________ Council Decision 2020/1512/EU of 13 October 2020 on guidelines for the employment policies of the Member States (OJ L 344, 19.10.2020, p. 22–28). Commission Communication COM(2020) 575 final. Commission Communication COM(2019) 650 final.
Amendment 148 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 7 a (new)
Recital 7 a (new)
(7 a) During economic turndowns, such as the COVID-19 crisis, the role of minimum wages in protecting low-wage workers is particularly important and is essential for the purpose of supporting a sustainable and inclusive economic recovery which should lead to more quality employment after the crisis.
Amendment 158 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 8
Recital 8
(8) Women, young andpeople, low-skilled workers and, persons with disabilities have a higher probability of beingand migrant workers are minimum wage or low wage earners compared withan other groups. During economic downturns, such as the Covid-19 crisis, the role ofraising minimum wages into protecting low-wage workers becomes increasingly important and is essentialis important to support a sustainable and inclusive economic recovery. Addressing and raising minimum wage contributes to gender equality, closing the gender pay and pension gap as well as elevating women out of poverty.
Amendment 163 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 9
Recital 9
(9) The Covid-19 pandemic is having a significant impact on the services sector and small firms, which bothand the measures taken to contain it have a high share of minimum wage earners. In addition, minimum wages are also important in view of the structural trends that are reshaping labour markets and which are increasingly characterised by high shares of non-standard and precarious work. Theslighted the vulnerability of those in precarious jobs, many of whom have been made redundant. This trend must be trends have led to an increased job polarisation resulting in an increasversed by creating secure jobs with rights and ensuring sthare of low-paid and low- skilled occupations in most Member States, as well as to higher wage inequality in some of themt every permanent position involves a genuine employment relationship, with the aim of achieving full employment.
Amendment 189 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 12
Recital 12
(12) Not all workers in the Union are protected by minimum wages. In some Member States some workers, even though they are covered, receive in practice a remuneration below the statutory minimum wage due to deductions, variations and the non-respect of existing rules. In particular, such non-compliance has been found to affect notably women, young and older workers, low-skilled workers, migrant workers, single-parent workers, people with disabilities and agricultural workers. In Member States where minimum wage protection is provided only through collective agreements, the share of workers not covered is estimated to vary from 2% to 55% of all workers.
Amendment 200 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 13
Recital 13
(13) While strong cCollective bargaining at sector or cross-industry level contributes to ensuring adequate minimum wage protection, traditional collective bargis a fundamental right, recognised by international labour standards, and has a pivotal role in cementing and improving workers’ rights, rainsing structures have been eroding during the last decades, in part due to structural shifts in the economy towards less unionised sectors and to the decline in trade union membership related to the increase of atypical and new forms of workwages and incomes, reducing and regulating working time and patterns, promoting stable employment with rights and reducing precarious work, ensuring adequate pay for overtime, and improving measures to prevent accidents at work, occupational diseases and psychosocial risks.
Amendment 246 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 17
Recital 17
(17) This Directive should apply to all workers who have an employment contract or employment relationship as defined by the law, collective agreements or practice in force in each Member State, with consideration to the criteria established by the Court of Justice of the European Union for determining the status of a worker. Provided that they fulfil those criteria, dand to self- employed persons who are economically dependent on the contracting entity. Domestic workers, on-demand workers, intermittent workers, voucher- based workers, bogus self-employed, platform workers, trainees and apprentices could fall within the scope of this Directive. Genuinely self-employed persons do not fall within the scope of this Directive since they do not fulfil those criteria. The abuse of the status of self- employed persons, as defined in national law, either at national level or in cross- border situations, is a form of falsely declared work that is frequently associated with undeclared work. Bogus self- employment occurs when a person is declared to be self-employed while fulfilling the conditions characteristic of an employment relationship, in order to avoid certain legal or fiscal obligations. Such persons should fall within the scope of this Directive. The determination of the existence of an employment relationship should be guided by the facts relating to the actual performance of the work, in particular economic dependence, and not by the parties’ description of the relationship.
Amendment 256 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 18
Recital 18
(18) Well-functioning collective bargaining on wage setting is an important means to ensure that workers are protected by adequate minimum wageneeds to be regularly updated to ensure that there is a general improvement in wages and other workers’ rights. In the Member States with statutory minimum wages, collective bargaining supports general wage developmenhould encourage a general improvement in wages and other rights, and should therefore contributes tohelp to raise minimum wages and improvinge the adequacy of minimum wageworking and living conditions of workers. In the Member States where minimum wage protection is provided exclusively by collective bargaining, their level as well as the share of protected workers are directly determined by the functioning of the collective bargaining system and collective bargaining coverage. Strong and well- functioning collective bargaining together with a high coverage of sectorial or cross- industry collective agreements strengthen the adequacy and the coverage of minimum wages.
Amendment 284 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 20
Recital 20
(20) Sound rules, procedures and practice for setting and updating statutory minimum wages are necessary to deliver adequate minimum wages, while safeguarding jobs and the competitiveness of firms including small and medium- sized enterprisewage rises and enhance the value of work and workers. They include a number of elements to preserve the adequacy of statutory minimum wages, including criteria and indicators to assess adequacy, regular and timely updates, the existence of consultative bodies and the involvement of social partners. A timely and effective involvement of the latter is another element of good governance that allows for an informed and inclusive decision-making process.
Amendment 290 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 21
Recital 21
Amendment 317 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 22
Recital 22
Amendment 332 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 23
Recital 23
(23) An effective enforcement system, including controls and field inspections, is necessary to ensure the functioning of national statutory minimum wage frameworks. In order to ensure that labour inspections can be carried out effectively, each labour inspector should be assigned to inspect no more than 10 000 workers. To strengthen the effectiveness of enforcement authorities, a close cooperation with the social partners is also needed, including to address critical challenges such as those related to sub- contracting, bogus self-employment or non-recorded overtime. Moreover, workers should have easily access to appropriate information on applicable statutory minimum wages to ensure an adequate degree of transparency and predictability as regards their working conditions. (https://ilostat.ilo.org/resources/concepts-and-definitions/description-labour-inspection/)Or. en
Amendment 346 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 25
Recital 25
(25) Reliable monitoring and data collection are key to ensure the effective protection of minimum wages. The Commission should report every year to the European Parliament and to the Council its assessment of developments in the adequacy and coverage of minimum wages on the basis of annual data and information to be provided by Member States. In addition, progress should be monitored in the framework of the process of economic and employment policy coordination at Union level. In that context, the Employment Committee should examine every year the situation in the Member States on the basis of the reports produced by the Commission and other multilateral surveillance tools such as benchmarking.
Amendment 356 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 26
Recital 26
(26) Workers should be in a position to exercise their right of defence when their rights relating to established minimum wage protection are violateddefend their rights. In order to prevent that workers are deprived from their rights, and without prejudice to specific forms of redress and dispute resolution provided for in collective agreements, including systems of collective dispute resolution, Member States should take the necessary measures to ensure that they have access to effective and impartial dispute resolution and a right to redress, including to adequate compensation, in particular by exempting them from costs of proceedings, as well as effective protection from any form of detriment in case they decide to exercise their right of defence.
Amendment 382 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 31
Recital 31
Amendment 403 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) setting adequate levels ofraising minimum wages;
Amendment 441 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 2 – paragraph 1
Article 2 – paragraph 1
This Directive applies to workers in the Union who have an employment contract or employment relationship as defined by law, collective agreements or practice in force in each Member State, with consideration to the case-law of the Court of Justiceand to self- employed persons who are economically dependent ofn the European Unioncontracting entity.
Amendment 450 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 1
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 1
(1) ‘minimum wage’ means the minimum remuneration that an employer is required to pay to workers for the work performed during a given period, calculated on the basis of time or output;
Amendment 462 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 3
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 3
(3) ‘collective bargaining’ means all negotiations which take place between an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations, on the one hand, and one or more workers’ organisattrade unions, on the other, for determining working conditions and terms of employment; and/or regulating relations between employers and workers; and/or regulating relations between employers or their organisations and a worker organisation or worker organisattrade union or trade unions;
Amendment 470 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 4
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 4
(4) ‘collective agreement’ means all agreements in writing regarding wages, working conditions and terms of employment concluded by the social partneramong trade unions and employers’ organisations as an outcome of collective bargaining;
Amendment 493 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – introductory part
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – introductory part
1. With the aim to promote the right to collective bargaining and increase the collective bargaining coverage Member States shall take, in consultation with the social partners, at least the following measures:
Amendment 497 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) promote the building and strengthening of the capacity of the social partnerrade unions and employers’ organisations to engage in collective bargaining on wage setting and other workers’ rights at sector or cross-industry level so that workers are treated more favourably;
Amendment 504 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point b
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point b
(b) encourage constructive, meaningful and informed negotiations on wages among social partnernd other workers’ rights among trade unions and employers’ organisations with a view to updating collective agreements by improving wages and other rights;
Amendment 530 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 2
Article 4 – paragraph 2
2. Member States where collective bargaining coverage is less than 70% of the workers defined within the meaning of Article 2 shall in additionshall provide for a framework of enabling conditions for collective bargaining and updating collective agreements, either by law after consultation of the social partners or by agreement with them, and shall establish an action plan to promote collective bargaining. The action plan shall be made public and shall be notified to the European Commission and regular updating of collective agreements.
Amendment 553 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 5 – title
Article 5 – title
Amendment 586 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 5 – paragraph 2 – point b
Article 5 – paragraph 2 – point b
Amendment 590 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 5 – paragraph 2 – point c
Article 5 – paragraph 2 – point c
Amendment 602 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 5 – paragraph 2 – point d
Article 5 – paragraph 2 – point d
(d) labour productivity developmentthe development of workers’ needs.
Amendment 604 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 5 – paragraph 2 – point d a (new)
Article 5 – paragraph 2 – point d a (new)
(da) the unequal distribution of wealth between employers and workers by setting targets for a rebalancing towards workers;
Amendment 610 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 5 – paragraph 2 – point d b (new)
Article 5 – paragraph 2 – point d b (new)
(db) the principle of equal pay for equal work.
Amendment 614 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 5 – paragraph 3
Article 5 – paragraph 3
Amendment 635 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 5 – paragraph 4
Article 5 – paragraph 4
4. Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure the regular and timely updates of statutory minimum wages in order to preservcontinue their adequacyupward convergence throughout the European Union.
Amendment 645 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 5 – paragraph 4 a (new)
Article 5 – paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. No measures in this Directive shall be construed or interpreted as imposing or promoting directly or with the indirect effect of a decrease the level of statutory minimum wages, or as preventing Member States from increasing the level of minimum wages.
Amendment 659 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 5 – paragraph 5
Article 5 – paragraph 5
5. Member States shallmay establish consultative bodies to advise the competent authorities on issues related to statutory minimum wages.
Amendment 670 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 6 – paragraph 1
Article 6 – paragraph 1
1. Member States may allow different rates of statutory minimum wage for specific groups of workers. Member States shall keep these variations to a minimum, and ensure that any variation is non- discriminatory, proportionate, limited in time if relevant, and objectively and reasonably justifiedA framework of minimum conditions applicable to minimum wages shall be established. Additional measures allowing the application of variations and deductions, aside from social contributions, shall not bye a legitimate aimdopted.
Amendment 682 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 6 – paragraph 2
Article 6 – paragraph 2
Amendment 706 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) the selection and application of criteria and indicative reference values referred to in Article 5(1), (2) and (32) for the determinationraising of statutory minimum wage levels;
Amendment 715 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point c
Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point c
Amendment 738 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point 1
Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point 1
(1) strengthen the controls and field inspections conducted regularly by labour inspectorates or the bodies responsible for the enforcement of statutory minimum wages. The controls and inspections shall be effective, dissuasive, proportionate and non-discriminatory. Member States ensure adequate resources for labour inspectorates;
Amendment 744 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point 2
Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point 2
(2) develop guidance for national enforcement authorities to proactively target and pursue non-compliant businesses;
Amendment 762 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 9 – paragraph 1
Article 9 – paragraph 1
In accordance with Directive 2014/24/EU, Directive 2014/25/EU and Directive 2014/23/EU, Member States shall not award contracts to companies that do not respect labour rights and shall take appropriate measures to ensure that in the performance of public procurement or concession contracts economic operators comply with the wagecollective agreements and the wages and other rights set out by collective agreements for the relevant sector and geographical area and with the statutory minimum wages where they exist.
Amendment 778 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 10 – paragraph 1
Article 10 – paragraph 1
1. Member States shall task their competent authorities with developing effective data collection tools to monitor the coverage and adequacyraising of minimum wages.
Amendment 781 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 10 – paragraph 2 – introductory part
Article 10 – paragraph 2 – introductory part
2. Member States shall reportupdate and publish the following data to the Commission on an annual basis, before 1 October of each year:
Amendment 787 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 10 – paragraph 2 – point a – point ii
Article 10 – paragraph 2 – point a – point ii
Amendment 793 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 10 – paragraph 2 – point a – point iii
Article 10 – paragraph 2 – point a – point iii
Amendment 799 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 10 – paragraph 2 – point a – point iv a (new)
Article 10 – paragraph 2 – point a – point iv a (new)
(iva) the rate of coverage of amended, updated or republished, and expired collective agreements.
Amendment 825 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 10 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 3
Article 10 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 3
Amendment 837 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 10 – paragraph 4
Article 10 – paragraph 4
Amendment 843 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 10 – paragraph 5
Article 10 – paragraph 5
Amendment 865 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 11 – paragraph 1
Article 11 – paragraph 1
1. Member States shall ensure that, without prejudice to specific forms of redress and dispute resolution provided for, where applicable, in collective agreements, workers, including those whose employment relationship has ended, have access to effective and impartial dispute resolution and a right to redress, including adequate compensation, in particular by exempting them from costs of proceedings, in the case of infringements of their rights relating to statutory minimum wages or minimum wage protection provided by collective agreements.
Amendment 877 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 11 – paragraph 2
Article 11 – paragraph 2
2. Member States shall take the measures necessary to protect workers, including those who are workers’ representatives, from any adverse treatment by the employer and from any adverse consequences resulting from a complaint lodged with the employer or resulting from any proceedings initiated with the aim of enforcing compliance with the rights relating to statutory minimum wages or minimum wage protection provided by collectiveestablished by law or agreements.