WRITTEN QUESTION E-2654/02 by Frank Vanhecke (NI) to the Commission. Employment policy of the Belgian Government.
Date: 2002-09-20
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Belgium, anti-discriminatory measure, business policy, competitiveness, employment policy, equal treatment, foreign national, integration of migrants

6.3.2003

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 52 E/195

(2003/C 52 E/216)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2654/02

by Frank Vanhecke (NI) to the Commission

(20 September 2002)

Subject: Employment policy of the Belgian Government

The Belgian Federal Minister of Social Affairs, Johan Vande Lanotte, has stated in various interviews that he
wishes to make it compulsory for employers in Belgium to give employment to immigrants of non-
European origin in order to promote their integration into society. In other words, he wishes to introduce
quotas which will be binding on industry. Employers will no longer be free to recruit staff on grounds
purely of competence, commitment, flexibility, etc., but will be required to cooperate in implementing a
positive discrimination policy.

1. What view does the Commission take of such ministerial proposals? Does the Commission or does it
not support the idea of an employment policy based on positive discrimination?

2.
Does not the Commission consider that such proposals constitute a serious threat to the free market
economy and to employers’ right to decide their business’s policy autonomously, without government
interference?

Does not the Commission consider that a policy of binding quotas is most likely to stigmatise the

3.
people it is intended to assist and thus do anything but promote their assimilation?

4.
Does not the Commission consider that binding quotas in one Member State of the Union could be a
serious threat to the competitiveness of businesses in relation to those in Member States where no such
government interference exists?

Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(25 October 2002)

The Commission understands that the suggestions to which the Honourable Member refers are not formal
Government proposals. It would therefore be inappropriate to comment on the details. The Commission
understands, however, that the suggestions were made in the context of a debate about the need for action
to combat discrimination against people of non-European origin and to promote their integration into the
labour market and into society more widely.

The Commission underlines that it has long promoted action to combat racism and xenophobia and is in
favour of the integration of migrants. It welcomes initiatives taken by Member States for the purpose of
such integration and believes that measures to promote equality in the labour market and to overcome
disadvantage based on discrimination can benefit both employers and employees. The Commission recalls
that Guideline 7 of the Employment Guidelines for Member States’ Employment Policies in 2002 (Council
Decision 2002/177/EC of 18 February 2002 (1)) requires Member States to implement appropriate
measures to meet the needs of the disabled, ethnic minorities and migrant workers as regards their
integration into the labour market and to set national targets where appropriate for this purpose. The
Commission does not believe that such measures are likely to be a threat to the competitiveness of
businesses which apply them.

The Commission also recalls Council Directive 2000/43/EC of 29 June 2000 implementing the principle
of equal treatment between persons irrespective of racial or ethnic origin (2), which has to be transposed
into national law by 19 July 2003. The Directive prohibits discrimination based on racial and ethnic origin
in, inter alia, employment. It also allows Member States to maintain or adopt specific measures to prevent
or compensate for disadvantages linked to racial or ethnic origin.

In any case, independent of the proposals to which the Honourable Member refers, employment policies
including any positive action measures implemented for the purpose of
decided by Member States,
promoting the integration of disadvantaged groups, must comply with all other
requirements of
Community law, including the rules on the application of the principle of equal treatment and on the

C 52 E/196

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

6.3.2003

implementation of the ‘Community preference’ established by Council Regulation (EEC) No 1612/68 of
15 October 1968 on freedom of movement for workers within the Community (3), as recalled in Council
Resolution of 20 June 1994 on limitations on admission of third-country nationals to the territory of the
Member States for employment (4).

(1) OJ L 60, 1.3.2002.
(2) OJ L 180, 19.7.2000.
(3) OJ L 257, 19.10.1968.
(4) OJ C 274, 19.9.1996.

(2003/C 52 E/217)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2670/02

by Alexandros Alavanos (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(24 September 2002)

Subject: Human rights and ‘loaned’ workers

Article 15, paragraph 1 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union states that ‘everyone
has the right to engage in work and to pursue a freely chosen or accepted occupation.’ Furthermore, in a
decision of 4 July 2002 on temporary employment and the loaning of workers, the National (Greek)
Committee on Human Rights determined that ‘the commercial activity of temporary employment agencies
is contrary to the fundamental human rights set out in Article 23 and, possibly, also Article 4 of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This form of employment is a gross violation of the loaned
workers’ personal dignity and contrary to Articles 2(1) and 22 of the Greek Constitution concerning the
protection of personal dignity and work.

However, the guarantees provided by the relevant articles of Law 2956/2001 concerning the labour,
insurance and trade union rights of loaned workers are in practice unenforceable owing partly to the
failings of official monitoring mechanisms but mainly because of the nature of the form of employment
which does not enable loaned workers to claim their legal rights as they are totally dependent on their
immediate employer.

In the light of the situation described above, what measures will the Commission take to protect workers?

Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(23 October 2002)

Since the beginning of the 1980s, temporary work has come to play an important part in the functioning
of the labour market in Europe, as companies have sought greater flexibility in job management.

In view of the growth of this new type of employment relationship, the Commission has taken various
steps since the beginning of the ’80s to regulate these practices. The first Directive was adopted in 1991:
Council Directive 91/383/EEC of 25 June 1991 supplementing the measures to encourage improvements
in the safety and health at work of workers with a fixed-duration employment relationship or a temporary
employment relationship (1). The second important step was taken on 20 March 2002, when the
Commission adopted a proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and the Council on working
conditions for temporary workers (2).

This text was designed primarily to improve the quality of temporary work by providing for a mechanism
to increase the safety and protection of temporary workers. The essential clause in the text aimed to ensure
that temporary workers had the same working and employment conditions as workers doing the same