31.8.92 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities NoC223/57
OpinionontheCommissionopiniononanequitablewage
(92/C223/17)
On19December1991theCommission decidedtoconsulttheEconomicandSocialCom­
mittee,underArticle118oftheTreatyestablishingtheEuropeanEconomicCommunity ,on
theCommissionopiniononanequitablewage.
TheSectionforSocial,Family,EducationalandCulturalAffairs,whichwasresponsiblefor
preparingtheCommittee'sworkonthesubject,adopteditsOpinionon15May1992.The
RapporteurwasMrsCassina.
Atits297thPlenarySession(meetingof26May1992),theEconomicandSocialCommittee
adoptedthefollowingOpinionbyalargemajorityvote,withtwodissentingvotesand
17abstentions .
1.Introduction 1.3.1.MemberStatesareaskedtotakeactionto:
—improvelabour-market transparencywithregardto
wages,
—ensurethattherighttoanequitablewageisrespect­
ed,bymeansofcontractualand/orlegislative
measures .
1.3.2.Foritspart,theCommissionundertakesto
takestepstoimprovethecollectionanddissemination
ofdataonwagestructures,andtodraftareporton
theprogressmade.Thefirstreportistobesubmitted
withinthreeyearsoftheadoptionoftheOpinion,and
subsequentreportswillappeareverytwoyears.
2.Generalcomments1.1.Article5oftheCommunityCharteroftheFun­
damentalSocialRightsofWorkersstipulatesthat'all
employmentshallbefairlyremunerated'.
1.2.TheCommissionsocialactionprogrammein
implementation oftheCharterstates(Point2-Employ­
mentandRemuneration ;A.Introduction )that'inmat­
tersofemploymentandremuneration ,responsibility
and,therefore,initiativeliemainlyv/iththeMember
Statesandthetwosidesofindustryaccordingto
nationalpractices,legislationandagreements.'
1.2.1.Alaterpassagestatesthat'theCommission
nonethelessconsidersthatinaCommunityof12indus­
trializedcountries,anequitablewageshouldbeguaran­
teedtooneandall',andthatittherefore'intendsto
actinclosecontactwithMemberStatesbydelivering
anOpinion.'
1.3.TheCommissionOpinion(*)callsontheMem­
berStatestoensureanequitablewagebycomplying
withthefollowingfourprinciples :
—considerationofequitablewagesasanintegralpart
ofmeasurestoachievetheCommunity'sbasic
objectives (economicandsocialcohesionandhar­
moniousdevelopmentwithintheframeworkof
economicintegration),
—pursuitofhighproductivityandhigh-quality
employment ,withparticularemphasisonappropri­
ate,sustainedinvestmentinhumanresources,
—eliminationofdiscriminatory wagepractices,
—reassessmentofattitudestotraditionallylow-paid
groups.2.1.Subjecttothecommentswhichfollow,theCom­
mitteeendorsestheCommissioninitiative;equitable
wagesareasubjectofkeyimportancefortheCom­
munity'ssocialdimension,andtheCommission's
actionshouldstimulateawide-rangingdebateonthe
matter.
2.2.Nonetheless ,theCommitteewouldliketosee
furtherstudies,harmonization ofdatacollectionsys­
tems,andinitiativesbytheCommission ,MemberStates
andsocio-economic organizations (atnationalandEC
level)toaddressthewiderissueofconvergenceof
equitablewagepolicieswithintheCommunityand
deviseappropriateclear-cutsolutions.
2.3.Ratherthanbeingthesubjectofcomplicated
theoreticaldefinitionswhichwouldinanycaseprove
inadequateorconfusing,theconceptofan'equitable
wage'callsforapragmaticapproach.Toachievethe
goalofanequitablewage,agreementmustfirstand
foremostbereachedonthespecificeconomic,social, (MDoc.SEC(91)2116final.

NoC223/58 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities 31.8.92
culturalandenvironmental parameterstobetakeninto
considerationandthegeneralreferenceframeworkin
whichtheyaretoapply(inthecaseoftheCommission
Opinion,thisareaistheCommunity,wherethecurrent
processofintegrationismarkedbyapplicationofthe
subsidiarityprinciple).extensionoflow-payareasmayattractinvestment
temporarily,butinthelongtermitcannotguaran­
teethefirmsthatadheretoitoptimumdevelopment
ofproductivityandcompetitiveness becauseit
demotivatesworkers,intheirdualcapacityaspro­
ducersandconsumers .Forthepurposeofpromot­
ingthedevelopmentorrevivalofcertainsectors,it
isconceivablethatworkerscouldbeofferedother
guarantees (e.g.basicandadvancedtraining,job
security,workingconditions,career)which,ifprop­
erlynegotiated,couldcompensateforlessthanopti­
mumwageconditions,2.3.1.TheECisessentiallyanareaofhighpro­
ductivityandhighskills,withwagetrendsfollowing
suit.TheCommissionexplanatorymemorandum
accompanying theOpinionseekstogiveafurtherboost
tothisdevelopment .
2.3.1.1.TheCommitteestressesthatpromotionof
employment isanothergoalthatmustbeexpressly
pursuedbycreatingnewjobsandinvestinginhuman
resources .—thespecialfeaturesandpositionofsomefirms
locatedincountriesorregionsfacingdevelopment
problemsmaymakeitdifficultforthemtoraise
theirlowestwagelevels;however,suchproblems
mustnotbetackledbyderogationstotheruleson
equaltreatmentorcontractualand/orlegislative
guarantees,butratherbyspecificmeasuresmade
possiblebycohesionorsupportpoliciesofsmall
andmedium-sizedenterprises (SMEs).2.3.2.However,itisinconceivable intheshortto
mediumtermforallECworkerstoachievehighpay
levels.Eveninthelongerterm,largeareasofthelabour
marketwillbeoccupiedbylow-skilledormarginal
jobs(ingeographical ,productionorsocialterms).The
Committeepointstotheneedtoensurethatthese
categoriesofworkersalwaysreceiveanequitablewage.
2.3.2.1.Inthemediumtolongterm,thecontinued
existence(oreventheextension)oflargelow-paidareas
wouldhinderharmoniousprogresstowardsinte­
gration,seriouslydamageeconomicandsocial
cohesion,andcouldunderminetheefficiencyandcom­
petitivenessoftheCommunityeconomyasawhole.2.6.However,theCommitteewouldpointtoanoth­
eraspectofequitablewageswhichneedstobetaken
intoaccount:theprincipleofequaltreatment,andthe
needforequalpayforequalwork.Thisisparticularly
importantsinceittiesincloselywithanumberofother
problems:equalpayformenandwomen,andforEC
andnon-ECworkers;fulllabour-market integrationof
workersinbusinesses (family-runorotherwise)who
receivelittlesocialprotection;andthe'homework'
sector,whichisdevelopingwithoutpropercontrols. 2.3.2.2.Theproblemofanequitablewagecould
usefullybeaddressedfromthisangle,inordertodefine
minimumcriteriaandthresholdsforlowpay,onwhich
tobaseaprocessofupwardadjustment .
2.6.1.Equaltreatmentofmenandwomenshouldbe
aprioritycriterioninthepursuitofanequitablewage.
Despitethegeneralrecognitionoftheprincipleofequal­
ityandtherelevantlegislation,manywomenstillsuffer
wagediscrimination .Theexemplaryeffortsofthe
MemberStatesandsocialpartnerstopromoteequality
ofopportunityandequalpayforworkofequalvalue
shouldcontinueuntiltheproblemisovercome.2.4.Inthisconnection,althoughtheCommission
Opiniongivespriorityattentiontoanequitablewage
anddistinguishesthisfrom'low'pay,theOpinionalso
stressestheneedtotackletheproblemofverylow
wages(firstandforemost,thoseresultingfromdejure
ordefactodiscrimination )inordertodiscourage'low
pay'policies.
2.5.TheCommitteeendorsesthisapproachandnot­
esthat:
—abusinessstrategyaimingprimarilytocompress
productioncoststhroughtheretentionand/or2.7.TheCommissionbasesitsOpiniononTreaty
Article118.TheCommitteeendorsesthisdecision,but

31.8.92 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities NoC223/59
feelsthatreferencecouldalsousefullybemadeto
thesecondparagraphofArticle117,soastogivethe
Commissioninitiativeafirmerfootingandbroadenits
potentialsignificance .2.10.Moreover,thereferencesintheCommission
Opiniontotheroleofthesocialpartnersandofwage
negotiationsonlyconcernthenationallevel.Sincethe
socialpartnersrightlydemandindependence innego­
tiations,theCommissioncouldhavesupportedthe
developmentof'socialdialogue'atEClevel,to
encompass,amongothersubjectsunderdiscussionand
inthelightoftheprospectsopenedupbythenew
Treaty,definitionofthecriteriatobeborneinmind
whenfixinganequitablewage.Thesecriteriashould
thenbetakenintoconsiderationinnationalwagenego­
tiationsandcouldpossiblybeenshrinedwhererelevant
innationallegislationparticularlyasregardsareference
wage.2.8.TheCommissionOpiniononlypartlymeetsits
declaredobjectives.Inparticular,itdoesnotappear
sufficientto'assure'(asstatedinPoint2oftheOpinion)
anequitablewageforallworkersintheCommunity .
Amorebindinginstrumentwouldperhapshavebeen
prematureandinanycasewasnotprovidedforinthe
socialactionprogramme .Evenso,itisnottobe
excludedthatCommunityactionshouldinthelonger
termfocusnotonthesubstanceofwagepoliciesbut
ontheframingofanumberofaccompanying measures
andtheindicationofgeneralcriteriatoencouragecon­
vergenceofwagepoliciesintheMemberStates.2.10.1.Giventhatthesocialpartnersareoneofthe
mainvehiclesofsubsidiarity(afactwhichwasfurther
underlinedinthenewTreaty),theCommitteewould
welcomeanearlymoveinthisdirection.
2.9.TheCommissionforcefullystatestheneedto
ensureanequitablewageintheMemberStates,butthe
measureswhichitputsforwardofferonlyapartial
response .2.11.TheCommitteenotestheurgentneedto
relaunchmovestomaketheEClabourmarketmore
transparentandtoprovideaframeworkforforward
planning,soasgenuinelytointerconnectMember
States'labourmarkets(withtheknock-oneffects—
onwages,employmentandproductivity—thatthis
interconnection couldproduce).
2.9.1.Itisclearthatwagesetting(andthesettingof
minimumpaylevels,wherenotlaiddownbylaw)is
firstandforemostamatterforthesocialpartners.
However,inpracticeMemberStatesconductpaypoli­
cieswhichcorrespond—toagreaterorlesserdegree
—withtheirrespectiveeconomicpolicyguidelines.3.Specificcomments
2.9.2.Theconstraintswhichconvergencepolicy
undertheEconomicandMonetaryUnion(EMU)
imposesonnationalmacroeconomic andmonetary
economicpolicieswillhaveanincreasingeffecton
nationalpaypolicies.3.1.TheCommitteesuggeststhatPoint2ofthe
Opinionspecifythatthepursuitofanequitablewage
policyshouldalsotakeaccountofmacroeconomic con­
straints,particularlyinflation:anequitablewagepolicy
isanessentialcomponentofapolicytoredistribute
wealthmorefairly,andcanthereforehelptoencourage
convergenceofmacroeconomic policies.Thiswould
limittheadversesocialeffectswhichwouldotherwise
beboundtorequirecostlyaccompanying measures. 2.9.2.1.Inthiscontext,thesettingofareference
wagemustnotonlytakeaccountofmacroeconomic
andmonetaryconstraints;itmustalsoconsidersuch
factorsasthedifferentwagelevels(andparticularly,
theaveragethereof)andtheoverallprofitabilityand
productivityofthesectorandsystem(andnotonlyof
theindividualbusinessesinvolved).TheCommission
Opinionmakesnoreferencetothis.3.2.Theconsiderations listedinthefirstparagraph
ofPoint3shouldincludesexandnationality .
3.2.1.MemberStatesshouldbeexpresslycalled
upontosupplementthemeasuresdescribedinthepen­
ultimateparagraphwithspecificmeasurestocombat
undeclaredwork.2.9.3.Thisisparticularlyseriousgiventhatthecon­
ceptofanequitablewagemusttakeaccountofthe
effectonthewageofsuchfactorsastaxationand
equivalentcharges,inflationanditseffectsascalculated
instandardofpurchasingpower,interestrates,andthe
levelandqualityofthesocialservicesprovidedbythe
Stateand/oritsmachinery .3.2.2.Therolethatnationalemploymentservices
shouldplayinmakingthelabourmarketmoretrans­
parentatEClevelshouldalsobestressed.

NoC223/60 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities 31.8.92
3.3.TheEuropean-level exchangesmentionedin
Point4shouldnotonlycoverpaypractices,butalso
thosegoverningindustrialrelationsandworkerpartici­
pationinsofarastheseareinterlinkedwithpay.3.4.AlsoinPoint4,theCommissioncouldunder­
taketopromotegreater'socialdialogue'betweenall
therelevantsocialpartnersatCommunitylevel,in
ordertodecidethebasiccriteriatobeusedforsetting
anequitablewageasdescribedinPoint2.10above.
DoneatBrussels,26May1992.
TheChairman
oftheEconomicandSocialCommittee
MichaelGEUENICH
OpinionontheproposalforaCouncilDirectiveamendingDirective89/392/EEConthe
Approximation oftheLawsoftheMemberStatesrelatingtoMachinery
(92/C223/18)
On4February1992theCouncildecidedtoconsulttheEconomicandSocialCommittee,
underArticle100AoftheTreatyestablishingtheEuropeanEconomicCommunity ,onthe
abovementioned proposal.
TheSectionforIndustry,Commerce,CraftsandServices,whichwasresponsibleforpreparing
theCommittee'sworkonthesubject,adopteditsOpinionon6May1992.TheRapporteur
wasMrPerrin-Pelletier .
Atits297thPlenarySession(meetingof26May1992),theEconomicandSocialCommittee
adoptedthefollowingOpinionunanimously .
1.GeneralComments MemberStates'technicallegislationatahighlevelof
safety,withaviewtocompletingtheSingleMarket.
TheCommission'sDirectorate-General forSocial
Affairsiscurrentlypreparingadraftamendmentto
Directive89/655/EEC(3)of30November1989onthe
useofworkequipment (basedonArticle118Aofthe
Treaty).Thisamendmentwillsupplementtheoriginal
textconcerningrulesfortheuseofmobileandlifting
apparatus,includingliftingofpersons.1.1.ThedraftDirectiveisthesecondamendmentto
Directive89/392/EEC(!)onmachinery.Thepurposeof
thefirstamendment,dated20June1991(2),wasto
includerisksduetomobilityandliftingwithinthe
scopeofthe1989Directive.Thislatestamendmentlays
downessentialsafetyrequirementsspecifictomachin­
eryforliftingpersons.Thistime,theCommissionhas
revisedanumberofArticlesintheoriginalDirective
inordertotakeaccountofexperienceacquiredsince
itspublicationin1989.
1.1.1.ThedraftDirectivehasbeendraftedonthe
basisofahighlevelofsafetyandinsuchawayasnot
tolowerexistingsafetylevelsintheMemberStates,as
requiredbyArticle100A(3)oftheTreaty.1.2.1.Itwouldhavebeenpreferablefortheforth­
comingamendmentofDirective89/655/EECbasedon
Article118Atohavebeenpresentedatthesametime
astheproposalunderconsideration here,soasto
establishaclearerlinkbetweentextsrelatingtodesign
anduse.ThefutureDirectivetobedrawnupbythe
1.2.This'newapproach'draftDirectiveisbasedon
Article100AoftheTreaty.Itspurposeistoharmonize
(1)OJNoL183,29.6.1989.
(2)OJNoL198,22.7.1991. (3)OJNoL393,30.12.1989.