Sittings · Document

OPINION (COM(2023)0459 – C90316/2023 – 2023/0288(COD)) 2024-02-14

On the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on European labour market statistics on businesses, repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 530/1999 and Regulations (EC) No 450/2003 and (EC) No 453/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council

Committee on Employment and Social Affairs · Rapporteur: Milan Brglez

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AMENDMENTS

The Committee on Employment and Social Affairs calls on the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, as the committee responsible, to take the following into account:

Amendment 1

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 1

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

(1) Labour market statistics on businesses in the European Union are required for the design, implementation and evaluation of the Union policies, in particular those addressing economic, social and territorial cohesion, the European employment strategy, the European Pillar of Social Rights and the European Semester.

(1) Accurate, timely, reliable and comparable labour market statistics on businesses in the European Union are required for the design, implementation and evaluation of the Union policies, in particular those addressing economic, social and territorial cohesion, the European employment strategy, the European Pillar of Social Rights (EPSR), and the European Semester as well as those related to the implementation of the EPSR action plan and the social economy action plan. They are equally important for the Union to fulfil the tasks assigned to it under Articles 2, 3 and 4 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).

Amendment 2

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 2

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

(2) The prevention and correction of macroeconomic imbalances according to Regulation (EU) 1176/201115 and the monitoring of adequate minimum wages according to Directive (EU) 2022/2041 of the European Parliament and of the Council16 require accurate information on the evolution of hourly labour costs and wage levels across Member States.

(2) The prevention and correction of macroeconomic imbalances according to Regulation (EU) 1176/201115, the monitoring of adequate minimum wages according to Directive (EU) 2022/2041 of the European Parliament and of the Council 16 require accurate information on the evolution of hourly labour costs and wage levels, as well as on the collective bargaining coverage across Member States.

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15 Regulation (EU) No 1176/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 November 2011 on the prevention and correction of macroeconomic imbalances (OJ L 306, 23.11.2011, p. 25)

16 Directive (EU) 2022/2041 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 October 2022 on adequate minimum wages in the European Union (OJ L 275 of 25.10.2022, p. 33).

Amendment 3

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 3

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

(3) The European Central Bank uses European labour market statistics on businesses, in the context of the single monetary policy, for monitoring inflation and deflation risks arising from labour costs. Therefore, accurate, timely and comparable Union statistics on the evolution of labour costs are necessary.

(3) The European Central Bank uses European labour market statistics on businesses, in particular those on the evolution of labour costs and wage growth, in the context of the single monetary policy, for monitoring inflation and deflation risks arising from labour costs. It is important that this analysis is complemented by the monitoring of inflation and deflation risks arising from profits.

Amendment 4

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 4

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

(4) It is necessary to extend the coverage of job vacancy statistics and the timeliness of the labour cost index as both indicators are listed among the Principal European Economic Indicators (PEEIs)17, needed to monitor monetary and economic policies.

(4) It is necessary to extend the data on job vacancies and to improve timeliness of the labour cost index as both indicators are listed among the Principal European Economic Indicators (PEEIs)17, needed to monitor monetary and economic policies.

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17 Communication of the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council on eurozone statistics ‘towards improved methodologies for eurozone statistics and indicators’ – COM/2002/0661 final of 27 November 2002.

Amendment 5

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 5

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

(5) A legal basis is necessary to regulate the transmission of the annual gender pay gap for monitoring the Sustainable Development Goals under the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations (UN), in particular, goal 5 on Gender Equality.

(5) A legal basis is necessary to regulate the transmission of the annual gender pay gap, for monitoring the Sustainable Development Goals under the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations (UN), in particular, goal 5 on Gender Equality and goal 8 on Decent work and economic growth, as well as for monitoring the impact of Directive (EU) 2023/970.

Amendment 6

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 6

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

(6) The implementation of the principle of equal opportunities and equal treatment of men and women in matters of employment and occupation18 requires comparable data on wages received by men and women. Directive (EU) 2023/970 of the European Parliament and of the Council to strengthen the application of the principle of equal pay for equal work or work of equal value between men and women19 requires Member States to provide the Commission with up-to-date gender pay gap data annually and in a timely manner. This obligation should be complemented by the appropriate necessary statistical frame for compiling and transmitting gender pay gap data.

(6) The implementation, monitoring and assessment of the principle of equal opportunities and equal treatment of men and women in matters of employment and occupation18 requires comparable data on wages received by men and women. Directive (EU) 2023/970 of the European Parliament and of the Council to strengthen the application of the principle of equal pay for equal work or work of equal value between men and women19 requires Member States to provide the Commission with up-to-date gender pay gap data annually and in a timely manner. This obligation should be complemented by the appropriate necessary statistical frame for compiling and transmitting gender pay gap data.

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18 Directive 2006/54/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 July 2006 on the implementation of the principle of equal opportunities and equal treatment of men and women in matters of employment and occupation (OJ L 204 of 26.07.2006, p. 23)

19 Directive (EU) 2023/970 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 May 2023 to strengthen the application of the principle of equal pay for equal work or work of equal value between men and women through pay transparency and enforcement mechanisms (OJ L 132 of 17.05.2023, p. 21).

Amendment 7

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 6 a (new)

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

(6 a) The gender pension gap is the relative difference between average gross pensions earned by women and men. The gap has its roots in different professional careers; those of women are characterised by lower pay, shorter and interrupted careers, and a lower volume of hours worked. As a result, women are at greater risk of poverty in later life than men. The data collected in the context of the labour market statistics on businesses regarding the structure of earnings, the gender pay gap and the structure of labour costs can also contribute to a better understanding of the gender pension gap in the Member States.

Amendment 8

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 9

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

(9) To limit the burden on enterprises, in particular on SMEs, the national statistical authorities should consider administrative and innovative sources, the main aim of which is not the provision of statistics, as a substitute for or a complement to statistical surveys, subject to the quality requirements for official statistics. The latest technological and digital developments can contribute to this objective.

(9) The collection of data should not create any unnecessary administrative burden for enterprises. To limit the burden on enterprises, in particular on social enterprises, SMEs and micro-enterprises, the national statistical authorities should consider administrative and innovative sources, the main aim of which is not the provision of statistics, as a substitute for or a complement to statistical surveys, subject to the quality requirements for official statistics. The latest technological and digital developments can contribute to this objective.

Amendment 9

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 10 a (new)

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

(10 a) Where the activities to be carried out under this Regulation involve the processing of personal data, such processing should comply with the relevant Union legislation on personal data protection, namely Regulation (EU) 2018/17251 and Regulation (EU) 2016/6792. In accordance with the data minimisation principle set out in those Regulations, data provided under this Regulation should be aggregated to such a degree that individuals cannot be identified;

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1 1 Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data by the Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 and Decision No 1247/2002/EC.

2 Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation).

Amendment 10

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 10 b (new)

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

(10 b) Processing of personal data for the statistical purposes, which is considered to be in the public interest, should be subject to appropriate safeguards in accordance with Article 89 of Regulation (EU) 2016/6791 and Article 13 of Regulation (EU) 2018/17252. Particular attention should be paid to compliance with the principle of anonymization of personal data.

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1 Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation).

2 Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data by the Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 and Decision No 1247/2002/EC.

Amendment 11

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 11 a (new)

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

(11 a) The use of web scraping techniques to collect data from websites in an unstructured way should comply with the data protection principle of accuracy.

Amendment 12

Proposal for a regulation

Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 2 a (new)

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

(2 a) ‘social enterprise’ means a private law entity that provides goods and services for the market in an entrepreneurial way and in accordance with the principles and features of the social economy, having social or environmental objectives as the reason for its commercial activity. Social enterprises can be set up in a variety of legal forms1a

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1a Council recommendation on developing social economy framework conditions of 9 November 2023.

Amendment 13

Proposal for a regulation

Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 5

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

(5) ‘employee’ means any person irrespective of his/her nationality, residency or how long he/she has worked in the Member State who has a direct employment contract with an enterprise (whether the agreement is formal or informal) and receive remuneration, irrespective of the type of work performed, the number of hours worked (full-time or part-time) and the duration of the contract (fixed or indefinite, including seasonal); the remuneration of an employee can take the form of wages and salaries, including bonuses, pay for piecework and shift work, allowances, fees, commission and remuneration in kind;

(5) ‘employee’ means any person irrespective of his/her nationality, residency or how long he/she has worked in the Member State who has a direct employment relationship with an enterprise, established by a formal contract or an informal agreement, and receive remuneration, irrespective of the type of work performed, the number of hours worked (full-time or part-time) and the duration of the contract (fixed or indefinite, including seasonal); the remuneration of an employee can take the form of wages and salaries, including bonuses, pay for piecework and shift work, allowances, fees, commission and remuneration in kind;

Amendment 14

Proposal for a regulation

Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 6

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

(6) ‘employer’ means an enterprise or a local unit that has a direct employment contract with an employee (whether the agreement is formal or informal);

(6) ‘employer’ means an enterprise or a local unit that has a direct employment relationship with an employee, established by a formal contract or an informal agreement;

Amendment 15

Proposal for a regulation

Article 3 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1 a (new)

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

The processing of data referred to in Article 3(1)(c) is without prejudice to Directive 2002/581. The use of web scraping techniques shall be limited to non-personal data.

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1 Directive 2002/58/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 July 2002 concerning the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy in the electronic communications sector (Directive on privacy and electronic communications).

Amendment 16

Proposal for a regulation

Article 3 – paragraph 3 a (new)

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

3 a. Any processing of personal data, shall comply with the relevant Union legislation on personal data protection, including Regulation (EU)2016/6791, respecting data subjects fundamental rights in line with Regulation (EC) No 223/20092.

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2 Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2009 on European statistics and repealing Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1101/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the transmission of data subject to statistical confidentiality to the Statistical Office of the European Communities, Council Regulation (EC) No 322/97 on Community Statistics, and Council Decision 89/382/EEC, Euratom establishing a Committee on the Statistical Programmes of the European Communities.

Amendment 17

Proposal for a regulation

Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point a – indent 2a (new)

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

– (iii) collective bargaining coverage;

Amendment 18

Proposal for a regulation

Article 6 – paragraph 5 a (new)

Text proposed by the Commission

Amendment

5 a. For all topics in the Annex, the Member States shall collect and provide separate data on social enterprises.

Amendment 19

Proposal for a regulation

Annex I

Text proposed by the Commission

ANNEX I

Domains, topics and detailed topics; periodicity of the data provision, reference periods and deadline for data transmission per topic

Domain

Topic

Detailed topic

Periodicity

Reference period

Data transmission deadline (1) (2)

First Reference Period

Earnings

Structure of Earnings

Earnings Total annual and monthly earnings and all their components, as well as hourly earnings paid to each employee sampled.

Every four years

Calendar year

T+16 months

2026

Employer’s characteristics Economic, legal, geographical and employment information on the local unit to which each sampled employee is attached, and on its enterprise.

Employee’s characteristics Individual demographic, educational, contractual and occupational information on each employee sampled.

Working periods Information on paid working periods, for each employee sampled.

Technical items of the survey Sampling and data collection information for each employee sampled and his/her employer (e.g., weights).

Gender Pay Gap

Hourly earnings Hourly earnings of male and female employees by main

Every year

Calendar year

T+13 months

2026

characteristics of the employer and of the employee and corresponding relative differences between hourly earnings of male and female employees.

Employees Number of male and female employees by characteristics of the employer and of the employee.

Labour costs

Structure of labour costs

Labour costs Total costs borne by the employer for employing labour and components of these costs.

Every four years

Calendar year

T+18 months

2028

Hours worked Hours actually worked by main types of employees.

Hours paid Hours paid by main types of employees.

Employees Number of employees by main types.

Local units Information on local units in the sample.

Labour cost index

Quarterly index of labour costs per hour worked Quarterly index of labour costs per hour worked, by type of costs; unadjusted and adjusted time series.

Every quarter

Calendar quarter

- Early estimates: T+45 days Final data: T+65 days

First quarter of year 2026

Quarterly index of total labour costs Unadjusted and adjusted time series.

Quarterly index of hours worked Unadjusted and adjusted time series.

Annual labour costs

Every year

Calendar

End of the

Annual labour costs levels (weights) by type of costs.

year

first quarter of year T+1 + 65 days

Labour demand

Job vacancies

Vacant posts Information on vacant posts recorded; unadjusted and adjusted time series.

Every quarter

Calendar quarter

- Early estimates: T+45 days Final data: T+70 days

First quarter of year 2026

Occupied posts Information on occupied posts recorded; unadjusted and adjusted time series.

(1) After the end of the reference period “T”.

(2) When the above-mentioned deadlines fall on a Saturday or a Sunday, the effective deadline shall be the following Monday before 12:00 am (CET).

Amendment

ANNEX I

Domains, topics and detailed topics; periodicity of the data provision, reference periods and deadline for data transmission per topic

Domain

Topic(3)

Detailed topic

Periodicity

Reference period

Data transmission deadline (1) (2)

First Reference Period

Earnings

Structure of Earnings

Earnings Total annual and monthly earnings and all their components, as well as hourly earnings paid to each employee sampled.

Every four years

Calendar year

T+16 months

2026

Employer’s characteristics Economic, legal, geographical and employment information on the local unit to which each sampled employee is attached, and on its enterprise.

Employee’s characteristics Individual demographic, educational, contractual and occupational information on each employee sampled.

Working periods Information on paid working periods, for each employee sampled.

Technical items of the survey Sampling and data collection information for each employee sampled and his/her employer (e.g., weights).

Gender Pay Gap

Hourly earnings Hourly earnings of male and female employees by main

Every year

Calendar year

T+13 months

2026

characteristics of the employer and of the employee and corresponding relative differences between hourly earnings of male and female employees.

Employees Number of male and female employees by characteristics of the employer and of the employee.

Collective bargaining coverage

Number of employees covered by collective agreements

Every year

Calendar year

T+13 months

2026

Labour costs

Structure of labour costs

Labour costs Total costs borne by the employer for employing labour and components of these costs.

Every four years

Calendar year

T+18 months

2028

Hours worked Hours actually worked by main types of employees.

Hours paid Hours paid by main types of employees.

Employees Number of employees by main types.

Local units Information on local units in the sample.

Labour cost index

Quarterly index of labour costs per hour worked Quarterly index of labour costs per hour worked, by type of costs; unadjusted and adjusted time series.

Every quarter

Calendar quarter

- Early estimates: T+45 days Final data: T+65 days

First quarter of year 2026

Quarterly index of total labour costs Unadjusted and adjusted time series.

Quarterly index of hours worked Unadjusted and adjusted time series.

Annual labour costs

Every year

Calendar

End of the

Annual labour costs levels (weights) by type of costs.

year

first quarter of year T+1 + 65 days

Labour demand

Job vacancies

Vacant posts Information on vacant posts recorded; unadjusted and adjusted time series.

Every quarter

Calendar quarter

- Early estimates: T+45 days Final data: T+70 days

First quarter of year 2026

Occupied posts Information on occupied posts recorded; unadjusted and adjusted time series.

(1) After the end of the reference period “T”.

(2) When the above-mentioned deadlines fall on a Saturday or a Sunday, the effective deadline shall be the following Monday before 12:00 am (CET).

(3) All topics shall be disaggregated by social enterprises.

ANNEX: ENTITIES OR PERSONS FROM WHOM THE RAPPORTEUR HAS RECEIVED INPUT

The rapporteur has received input from the following entities or persons in the preparation of the opinion:

Entity and/or person

Statistical office of the Republic of Slovenia (Statistični urad Republike Slovenije)

Association of Free Trade Unions of Slovenia (Zveza svobodnih sindikatov Slovenije)

European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC)

The list above is drawn up under the exclusive responsibility of the rapporteur.

PROCEDURE – COMMITTEE ASKED FOR OPINION

Title

European labour market statistics on businesses, repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 530/1999 and Regulations (EC) No 450/2003 and (EC) No 453/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council

References

COM(2023)0459 – C9-0316/2023 – 2023/0288(COD)

Committee responsible

Date announced in plenary

ECON

19.10.2023

Opinion by

Date announced in plenary

EMPL

19.10.2023

Associated committees - date announced in plenary

19.10.2023

Rapporteur for the opinion

Date appointed

Milan Brglez

17.10.2023

Discussed in committee

23.1.2024

Date adopted

14.2.2024

Result of final vote

–:

Members present for the final vote

João Albuquerque, Atidzhe Alieva-Veli, Marc Angel, Gabriele Bischoff, Vilija Blinkevičiūtė, Milan Brglez, Sylvie Brunet, Jordi Cañas, Ilan De Basso, Margarita de la Pisa Carrión, Klára Dobrev, Jarosław Duda, Estrella Durá Ferrandis, Cindy Franssen, Chiara Gemma, Elisabetta Gualmini, Alicia Homs Ginel, Agnes Jongerius, Stelios Kympouropoulos, Katrin Langensiepen, Miriam Lexmann, Jozef Mihál, Max Orville, Sandra Pereira, Dragoş Pîslaru, Dennis Radtke, Elżbieta Rafalska, Antonio Maria Rinaldi, Daniela Rondinelli, Mounir Satouri, Monica Semedo, Marianne Vind, Maria Walsh

Substitutes present for the final vote

Catherine Amalric, Rosa D’Amato, Paola Ghidoni, Wolfram Pirchner, Pirkko Ruohonen-Lerner, Kim Van Sparrentak

Substitutes under Rule 209(7) present for the final vote

France Jamet

FINAL VOTE BY ROLL CALL IN COMMITTEE ASKED FOR OPINION

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