Activities of Ole CHRISTENSEN related to 2016/2062(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
Aviation Strategy for Europe (debate) DA
Amendments (29)
Amendment 1 #
Draft opinion
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas 4.7 million jobs in the Union are generated by air transport and airportdirectly (1.9 million) and indirectly (2.8 million) generated by air transport, the manufacturing industry and airports; whereas a further 917,000 jobs elsewhere in the global economy are supported by the European aviation industry; whereas despite the fact that the aviation market in the Union has been booming in the period 2000-2013 with passenger traffic growing by 47%, the number of jobs in aviation remained stable or has even declined in some subsectors;
Amendment 4 #
Draft opinion
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas new business and employment models have emerged due to the increased internationalisation, liberalization and global competition;
Amendment 7 #
Draft opinion
Recital A b (new)
Recital A b (new)
Ab. whereas the deterioration of working conditions is ubiquitous in the aviation industry in Europe1a ; whereas some airlines offer cadets a position at deplorable conditions, or even resort to pay-to-fly schemes where the pilot actually pays the airline to fly revenue- earning flights; _________________ 1aGlobal Topic on Decent Work, International Labour Organization
Amendment 9 #
Draft opinion
Recital A c (new)
Recital A c (new)
Ac. whereas more than one pilot out of six surveyed in the Ghent study1b is facing atypical employment conditions; i.e. working through a temporary work agency, as self-employed, or on a zero- hour contract with no minimum pay guaranteed; whereas the low fare airlines are by far the largest users of atypical employment; _________________ 1bY. Jorens, D. Gillis, L. Valcke & J. De Coninck, "Atypical Forms of Employment in the Aviation Sector", European Social Dialogue, European Commission, 2015
Amendment 10 #
Draft opinion
Recital A d (new)
Recital A d (new)
Ad. whereas greater diversification in contracts can be a tool for more flexibility, it can also be misused for rule shopping to avoid social security contributions and reduce taxes for companies; whereas atypical employment is particularly widespread among young pilots, exposing them to precarious working conditions and preventing a new generation from stable access to jobs in the aviation sector; whereas some types of atypical employment have a negative impact on safety, competition, wages, health and safety and quality standards;
Amendment 11 #
Draft opinion
Recital A e (new)
Recital A e (new)
Ae. whereas the mobile and transnational nature of aviation makes it difficult to detect social abuses and circumvention of labour standards and impossible to tackle the problems solely at a national level;
Amendment 12 #
Draft opinion
Recital A f (new)
Recital A f (new)
Af. whereas the European social partners, in their Joint Declaration against EU-based Flags of Convenience in Aviation, called on the European legislators to take urgent action to prevent the development of EU-based flags of convenience in aviation, or the importing of non-EU flags of convenience in the sector;
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion
Recital A g (new)
Recital A g (new)
Ag. whereas unfair competition like unlawful state aid and non-compliance with international labour standards from carriers in the Gulf States and other third countries destroys quality jobs and growth in Europe;
Amendment 15 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Welcomes the Commission’s communication on ‘An Aviation Strategy for Europe’; stresses that action is needed to reinforce the social agenda and maintain high-quality jobs in aviation; believes that ensuring a level playing field in the sector is crucialand eliminating social dumping in the sector is crucial and should therefore be included in the aviation strategy; encourages the Commission to focus on creating a fair and sustainable future for civil aviation in Europe and internationally;
Amendment 31 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Highlights the importance of strong, independent social partners in the aviation sector, an institutionalised social dialogue at all levels and the participation of employees in company matters; underlines that the rights to form and to join a trade union are fundamental rights insists on a proper consultation process and strengthened social dialogue ahead of any EU initiative concerning the Unionaviation sector;
Amendment 35 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Welcomes attempts by the social partners to negotiate an agreement on the working conditions and social rights of employees in the European aviation sector; encourages them to negotiate collective agreements in all parts of the aviation sector in line with national laws and practices, as they are an effective instrument in combating a race to the bottom regarding social, working and employment standards and in ensuring decent remuneration for all workers;
Amendment 38 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2b. Considers the decrease in unionisation to be a potential threat to the social dialogue and to working conditions in European aviation; underlines that the rights to form and to join a trade union are fundamental rights in the Union and must be guaranteed; rejects any attempts to reduce the right to strike;
Amendment 39 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 c (new)
Paragraph 2 c (new)
2c. Draws attention to a number of instances of unfair competition in the aviation sector; recalls that unfair competition can contribute to the degradation of working conditions; calls on the responsible authorities to adequately sanction any misconduct in this regard;
Amendment 40 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 d (new)
Paragraph 2 d (new)
2d. Urges the Commission, Member States, social partners and other stakeholders to closely and continuously monitor the development of the working conditions in civil aviation; calls on Member States to increase efforts to tackle bogus self-employment and unfair competition in the aviation sector;
Amendment 41 #
2e. Believes the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) must be able to scrutinize the development of new business and employment models in civil aviation in order to ensure the safety of passengers and staff; insists that EASA involves the social partners in this task;
Amendment 43 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Insists that direct employment must remain the usual formfull time, open-ended contracts and direct employment must remain the standard model of employment in aviation; recommends a limitation of temployment in aviation in order to ensure safetyorary contracts for example by requiring that a specific, high proportion of workers of airlines with an EU Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC) must be directly employed, in order to ensure safety, social standards and organisational stability; calls on the Commission to come forward with an impact assessment of such a proposal;
Amendment 59 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Calls on the Commission to come forward with legislative initiatives to prevent flags of convenience, rule shopping and unfair competition in aviation, including a ban on zero-hours contracts and pay-to-fly schemes in European commercial aviation;
Amendment 61 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Calls for a clarification of the ‘home base’ criterion in order to ensure that it determines applicable social, employment and taxation legislation for all aircraft operations of carriers holding an EU Air Operator Certificate (AOC), both in the internal market and in international operations; stresses that the definition of home base must be identical or similar to what is commonly termed work place in other labour legislation; takes the view that if a person actually works for an airline, this company must be regarded as an employer in relation to applicable law on social security, irrespective of whether the person is self- employed, subcontractor, temporary staff member or contract worker; believes that no employee should be in doubt on where they are entitled to social security;
Amendment 65 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. SDemands that all aircrew from third countries fully comply with EU/EASA licensing requirements in order to be allowed to operate EU-registered aircrafts; stresses the need to prevent social dumping and possible illegal use of foreign workeraircrew from third countries on board EU- registered planes; calls in this context on the Commission to extend the application of the Single Permit Directive (2011/98 EU) to mobile workers in civil aviation; recalls that crew from third countries have the same rights in terms of labour protection and working conditions as EU based crew;
Amendment 78 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Calls for a clarification of the concept of 'economic entity' to extend the benefits of Directive 2001/23 to ground handling workers in case of call for tender or partial loss of activities;
Amendment 84 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Insists that any agreements in the field of EU External Aviation Policy must include respect for human rights and fundamental ILO conventions, social protection and effective means of enforcement;
Amendment 85 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7a. Regrets that requirements on third-country airlines operating to and from airports in the Union today are non- enforceable or even non-existent; insists that unfair competition from third- country airlines, due to e.g. direct and indirect state aid, subsidies or exploitation of workers, is effectively addressed and that existing tools to counter unfair competition are thoroughly evaluated and where necessary updated; firmly believes that as long as fair competition clauses, including respect of workers' rights, are not applied in air transport agreements with third countries, the rights to operate in the Union should be limited;
Amendment 89 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Calls on the Member States to invest in education and training in all parts of the aviation value chain, as the success of European aviation is highly dependent on skilled workers and innovation; calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure sufficient public and private investments in research and development in the aviation sector; highlights in this context the role of other parts of the aviation value chain such as manufacturing of aircraft, engines and their components, service provision, ground handling, air traffic management, which are of high importance for employment and growth; firmly believes that the role of these sectors must be further addressed in the aviation strategy;
Amendment 101 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8a. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to establish a certification system for educational centres that provide training for cabin crew in order to enhance safety and security;
Amendment 102 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 b (new)
Paragraph 8 b (new)
8b. Supports the efforts to create a single air space management regime for the EU; is convinced that involvement of employees in the further modernisation of the air traffic management organisations and its implementation will improve this process;
Amendment 104 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8 c (new)
Paragraph 8 c (new)
8c. Reminds the Commission that the Single European Sky (SES) liberalisation process and in particular the performance scheme for the Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSP) should not be carried out to the detriment of the working conditions of the highly skilled operational personnel, nor lead to cuts on investments in new technology and education of new personnel; encourages the Commission to consider how to avoid this development, since it does not serve the goal of a better, more effective and more productive air traffic service in Europe;
Amendment 106 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Calls on the Member States to guarantee all workers in the aviation sector decent working conditions, including health and safety at work., regardless of the size and type of company which employs them, the place of employment or the underlying contract; stresses the need for uniform rules on occupational health and safety in the aviation sector; supports the idea of making all aircraft with an EU Air Operator’s Certificate subject to regular oversight regarding occupational health and safety;
Amendment 114 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 9 a (new)
Paragraph 9 a (new)
9a. Calls on the Commission to put in place enhanced mechanisms to prevent social abuses and circumvention of labour standards including facilitating whistle blowing, open reporting and cooperation between Member States' labour inspectorates;
Amendment 118 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 9 b (new)
Paragraph 9 b (new)
9b. Urges the Commission and Member States to ensure better implementation and enforcement of the existing Union legislation in the aviation sector.