Ahead of the vote on the INI report “2025/2133(INI) Addressing subcontracting chains and the role of intermediaries to protect workers’ rights” in the European Parliament plenary, Ceemet, alongside BusinessEurope and the co-signatory European-level employers’ sectoral organisations, call upon the Members of the European Parliament to reject the report or at least address its most problematic provisions.
Subcontracting is a fundamental element of the freedom of contract and a vital component of the European economy. Because comprehensive legislation already exists at the EU level to protect workers in subcontracting situations, we encourage Members of the European Parliament to reject the following particularly problematic provisions:
- Paragraphs 3 and 4 on joint and several liability, in particular, the proposed regime for joint and several liability of economic operators and subcontractors.
- Paragraph 11 on limiting subcontracting chains, in particular, calls on the Commission to propose a framework to limit subcontracting chains.
- Paragraph 20 on exclusion criteria in public procurement directives, Article 18.2 of Directive 2014/24/EU is sufficient. Social criteria should be designed according to the conditions of each Member State.