In the first year of its current mandate, the European Parliament adopted a motion for a resolution on restructuring on 13 March 2025, which included a call for the Commission, “in close collaboration with the social partners, for a framework directive to address the challenges and complexities associated with employers’ obligations in subcontracting chains and labour intermediaries in Europe to ensure decent working conditions and the respect of worker’s rights”.

On 17 July 2025, the own initiative draft report of MEP Danielsson further elaborates on subcontracting in risk sectors. It claims that situations of labour exploitation, abuses and accidents in risk sectors can be solved by limiting subcontracting and ensuring joint and several liability through the subcontracting chain. The current narrative in Europe of subcontracting extrapolates situations of labour exploitation and abuses that happen in some companies concentrated in certain risk sectors, to be tackled by a general legislative framework that limits the number of subcontractors and introduces chain liability.

Ceemet stresses that subcontracting should not be limited because some companies do not respect the existing rules. A limited perspective on subcontracting, if adopted, can become disastrous for our industry and economy.

If there is a problem, the Commission should first thoroughly assess its extent and identify the (sub)sectors affected and then check how the existing acquis is implemented, transposed and enforced. That approach would also be in line with the Commission’s own simplification agenda.