Revision of the European Labour Authority mandate
TA-9-2024-0052 · P9_TA(2024)0052 · PE753.637
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Parliament's resolution calls on the Commission to propose a targeted revision of the European Labour Authority (ELA) founding regulation to strengthen its mandate.¶ It asks for ELA to be able to open inquiries and inspections of cross-border cases on its own initiative, after notifying national authorities, and to pursue cases brought by social partners.¶¶ It wants ELA's scope extended to third-country nationals' labour mobility and to sector-specific rules such as transport, construction, agriculture and temporary agency work.¶ It calls for ELA to process investigation data, access the Internal Market Information System and national data, and cooperate with Europol, Eurojust and the European Public Prosecutor's Office.¶¶ It asks Member States to give their authorities enough resources to cooperate with ELA, and for a sufficient number of seconded national expert posts to become permanent.¶¶ It repeats its call for a European social security number and a European social security pass, and for a more user-friendly EURES portal.¶¶
Key points
- Calls on the Commission to present a proposal for a targeted revision of ELA's founding regulation to strengthen its mandate and added value for national authorities.¶
- Asks that ELA be allowed to investigate alleged breaches or non-application of EU law and to start inquiries and inspections of cross-border cases on its own initiative, after notifying national competent authorities.¶
- Stresses that ELA and national authorities must cooperate with social partners while respecting their autonomy, rights and prerogatives under national industrial relations.¶
- Calls for ELA's scope to cover labour mobility for third-country nationals, with a focus on ending bogus posting and bogus self-employment, and to explicitly include sector-specific labour law such as transport, construction, agriculture and temporary agency work.¶
- Calls for effective follow-up on concerted and joint inspections, for ELA to be empowered to start administrative and legal proceedings, and to support recovery of unpaid wages and social security contributions.¶
- Says social partners should be able to request an ELA inquiry or inspection, receive follow-up information, and get a comprehensive justification if a request is rejected.¶
- Urges ELA to prioritise cross-border law enforcement and controls, cooperate with other EU agencies, and keep a record of violations in line with EU data protection rules.¶
- Wants a revision to include an obligation for ELA to report suspected irregularities in the application of Union law, including beyond its competences, to the Commission and the member state concerned.¶
- Calls for timely, systematic and structural involvement of EU, sectoral and national social partners in ELA's activities, and for national authorities to cooperate more closely with their social partners.¶
- Calls on member states to recognise ELA's added value, strengthen cooperation and provide sufficient resources; says national liaison officers and seconded national experts should not work under their member state's direction.¶
- Says ELA should be empowered to address the situation of third-country nationals, collect and access data on mobile workers, and help member states enforce existing legislation for them.¶
- Repeats its call for a European social security number and a European social security pass, and calls for a clear provision allowing ELA to process investigation data and access the Internal Market Information System and national data.¶¶
Who is affected
- The Commission, which is asked to propose a targeted revision of ELA's founding regulation.¶
- Member states, which are asked to give their competent authorities enough resources and to cooperate more closely with ELA.¶
- Social partners, who should be involved in ELA's activities and able to request inquiries or inspections.¶¶
- Third-country nationals working in the EU, whose labour mobility would fall under an expanded ELA mandate.¶¶
- ELA itself, which would gain investigation powers, data access and permanent staff.¶¶¶
Figures and deadlines
- About 10 million EU citizens of working age lived in another member state in 2021.¶
- 9,93 million third-country nationals were employed in the EU labour market in 2022, 5,1 % of the total working age population.
- By 1 August 2024, and every five years thereafter, the Commission must assess ELA's performance under Article 40 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1149.¶
Legal basis: Article 45(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.¶