Toespraak van minister Asscher bij het Geopa-Copa Seminar

Toespraak | 19-05-2016

Ladies and gentlemen,

Thank you for inviting me here today. It is a pleasure to speak at the Geopa-Copa seminar. Today you are addressing an issue that is very important to me. Promoting decent work by combating problems such as undeclared work and social dumping.

You are making great strides in this.

There are many other beautiful things I can say about the agricultural sector. Both in Europe and the Netherlands, 1 of the world’s largest agricultural producers. We export more than 65 billion euros worth of agricultural products each year.

But today I want to talk about something different.

I want to talk about villains. You could say that the history of agriculture is a story of villains.

Indeed, in medieval times, the majority of European peasants were villains. The term was used for peasants who were tied to the lord of a manor. They were forced to work for him and were treated as slaves. They could not leave the land without the landowner's consent.

The term villain originates from Latin. A villanus was someone who worked at a Villa Rustica. A large farm. An alternative term is serf, from the Latin servus, meaning 'slave'.

Luckily, the feudal system belongs to a bygone age. Yet some villains still exist today in agriculture. In the modern sense of the word. But with a medieval twist.

I am talking about bad persons who harm people and break the law. Bad apples that are spoiling the barrel.

1 of them is the infamous Dutch asparagus grower. Perhaps you have heard about her. 

She exploited her workers in horrible ways. Ways you wouldn’t think are possible in our modern society. Paying her workers little to nothing. And feeding them just enough so they wouldn’t starve.

The 76 workers – mainly from Romania, Bulgaria and Portugal – were packed together in filthy housing on her property, with no hot water.

Despite previous convictions in 2009 and 2010, the grower had simply continued her abusive practices. This time, she was sentenced to 2 and a half years in prison.

When I was confronted with this story, I was shocked. How can such medieval practices still be possible in our society? I have no other words for it. It’s modern-day slavery.

Of course, this lady is an extreme case. A bad apple in a barrel filled with good ones. Most asparagus growers follow the rules, just like other farmers. But the case is regrettably not unique. There are numerous examples of cross-border mobile workers forced to work for extremely low hourly wages or for too many hours in the week.

Between 2011 and 2014, the Dutch labour inspectorate discovered illegal activities in more than a quarter of Dutch mushroom farms. Activities that included illegal employment, underpayment, and fiscal offences. And these activities also occur in other agricultural sectors, where competition and pressure on prices are fierce too.

Unfortunately, this tempts some to break the rules. In highly automated segments of the agricultural sector, abuses such as undeclared work usually play a limited role. In other segments, manual labour is much more important. This offers more opportunities for undeclared work, illegal work and social dumping. And these abuses are often signs of even worse ones, such as exploitation and human trafficking.

Each abuse is one too many. A step in the race to the bottom on labour conditions.

It’s a race with many victims. Honest employers who are forced out of competition. Local workers who face the risk of losing their jobs. Mobile workers who are treated badly and are forced to work for next to nothing.

The fight against abuses in the labour market is a top priority during the Dutch Presidency. I want a Europe that not only offers work, but also protects its employees. A Europe that prevents unfair competition, while ensuring a properly functioning single market.

I consider achieving a deeper and fairer single market to be of great importance. Only then can we create a level playing field and prevent a race to the bottom on labour conditions. Until recently, it was taboo to talk about the downside of free mobility. Yet now things are changing.

Last month was a turning point. The European Commission published plans to improve the rules on the posting of workers.

The new proposal aims at ensuring that the work of posted workers is better rewarded. It reduces the ambiguity concerning their working conditions and fosters a level playing field for companies.

It also offers a clear definition of the temporary nature of a posting: a maximum of 2 years.

In addition, the proposal extends the 'hard core' working conditions defined in the directive and makes it applicable to all economic sectors.

I am very pleased with this proposal. It is definitely a step in the right direction. From now on, the protection of mobile workers is on the political agenda in Europe. We have no time to lose in order to prevent a race to the bottom and to better ensure decent work.

Unfortunately not everyone shares this view. Last week 1/3 of the national parliaments of the Member States initiated a yellow card procedure against the Commission proposal. The fear exists that the revision of the posting of workers directive may endanger their competitive advantage. I very much regret this move.

I am convinced that the proposed rules leave enough room for fair competition, while at the same time ensuring that posted workers receive a better reward. This is in the interest especially of those workers from Eastern European Member States. It is good to see that the European trade unions also supported this position.

Nevertheless, it is now again up to the European Commission to give due attention to the objections of those national parliaments that are against the proposal.

 

Farmers know that it is necessary to make hay while the sun shines. In spite of possible delays, the time to make hay is right now.

I am very positive about the steps you are currently making in the agricultural sector. You are prepared to address existing problems. And you are prepared to think about effective ways of dealing with them.

This is not an easy endeavour, to say the least. Manifestations of undeclared work may vary strongly. Between sectors, and between Member States.

Comparing the handling of grapes to that of asparagus is as difficult as comparing apples and oranges. Moreover, the background of employees may vary starkly too, ranging from family members and locals to day labourers from others Member States or 3th countries.

I think it is very important that you are first assessing the scope and character of the different labour forms, regions, national and cross-border activities, and so on.

We definitely need a targeted approach here.

This also concerns the measures we can take. Prevention and punishment are indispensable, of course. But more subtle measures are also a possibility.

Different forms of illegal activity often have a similar business model. Shady employers know where to find the loopholes.

Only by understanding their modus operandi can we devise an effective control mechanism that can put a halt to illegal practices.

The Platform on Undeclared Work, which will be in operation from June onwards, can assist in sharing best practices and working towards a targeted approach.

There may be slight differences between Member States concerning the definition of undeclared work: the fact of the matter is it always involves a cheating game. One without winners.

Ladies and gentlemen,

I truly value your support for the fight against social dumping and undeclared work. This fight can only be effectively fought if it is supported by social partners. By those who know the field, its interests, and its actors.

Every play has its villains. But I am confident that with our combined efforts, this story will have a happy ending.

 Together, let’s make a stand against the shady practices of the bad apples that are spoiling it for everyone. I wish you a fruitful conference.