Under a provisional deal between Members of the European Parliament and EU Ministers, posted workers are to receive equal pay for equal work.

A posted worker is an employee who is sent by their employer to carry out a service in another EU member state on a temporary basis. 

The deal aims to ensure better protection for posted workers and fair competition for companies. Member states will have a 2-year transition period for the new rules and will have to apply the new rules by the end of this period.

Under the agreed text, all of the host country’s rules on remuneration, set by law or certain collective agreements, would apply to posted workers. European Parliament negotiators ensured that large, representative regional or sectorial collective agreements could also be applied.

The deal also stated that travel, board and accommodation costs should be paid by the employer and not deducted from workers’ salaries. Employers will also have to ensure that the accommodation conditions for posted workers are decent, and in line with national rules.

Furthermore, the duration of the posting has been set at 12 months, with a possible extension of 6 months. After that time-limit, the worker will still be able to stay in the member state where he or she is posted, but all of the host country’s labour rules will start to apply.

“This agreement reflects the social, economic and political reality of the European Union,” Elisabeth Morin-Chartier, Member of the European Parliament, said. “It gives a clear direction towards a more social Europe with a fairer competition between companies and better rights for workers. This agreement will provide better rights for workers and also ensure the necessary protection toward companies.”

Reuters reported that poorer EU states such as Spain, Hungary and Poland have opposed the change, saying their citizens should be allowed to work in a wealthier state on a lower salary than a worker from the host country under the bloc’s competition rules.

Poland’s Deputy Foreign Minister Konrad Szymanski said it was a case of more powerful EU states like France imposing their will on the others.

“Such initiatives undermine the European project because they undermine its fundamental elements - the single market, the freedom to provide services, the freedom of movement for workers,” Szymanski said. “Unfortunately, member states have not gathered enough resolve to tame such ideas.”

The provisional agreement still needs to be confirmed by EU member states’ permanent representatives and adopted in the European Parliament’s Employment and Social Affairs Committee. Before entering into force, the draft directive will need to be formally approved by the full Parliament and the Council.

In 2016, there were 2.3 million posted workers in the EU. Posting increased by 69% between 2010 and 2016.