By Chris Jones - 3rd February 2006
Pressure is growing on ‘old’ Europe to lift restrictions on workers ahead of a report on the impact of enlargement on labour markets next week.
The European commission’s study is expected to show that the restrictions imposed by 12 countries on workers from central and eastern Europe were largely ineffective.
It will also claim that the three countries that did not impose restrictions – the UK, Ireland and Sweden – have benefited significantly from the arrival of new workers.
Fearful of a flood of cheap labour and so-called ‘benefit tourists’ following the last round of enlargement in 2004, most of the old EU countries imposed ‘transitional restrictions’ on workers from eight of the new member states – Cyprus and Malta were exempted.
The 12 countries will have to decide by May 1 – the second anniversary of enlargement – whether to lift the restrictions or keep them in place for a further three years.
Although the commission has no mandate to recommend the lifting of the restrictions – let alone to demand it – employment chief Vladímir Spidla has made it clear that he would like to see equal treatment for all member states as quickly as possible.
The commission argues that Europe needs migrant workers to help combat the impact of lower birth rates and longer life spans, and to reach its ambitious – and currently unreachable – targets for economic growth.
Business leaders have also called for the restrictions to be lifted, pointing to findings that show they have been largely ineffective at stopping migration flows and that they simply push more jobs into the black market, to the benefit of no-one except unscrupulous employers.
And European trade unions have recently entered the debate for the first time, adding to the calls for the barriers to be removed.
Spidla is expected to use the positive examples of the three member states that have opened up their markets to migrant workers to try and persuade more countries to follow suit.
Although Britain saw a large number of job seekers from central and eastern Europe following enlargement in 2004 – around 290,000, more than both Ireland and Sweden put together – Spidla will argue that they have largely benefited the British economy, often filling low-paid service sector jobs that British workers do not want.
Several countries are thought to be considering dropping the restrictions on May 1, including Spain, Finland, Portugal and Greece, while France and Belgium are expected to ease them.
But the EU’s biggest economy – Germany – and the country that currently holds the EU presidency – Austria – have both indicated that they will maintain the ban as they struggle to cope with high levels of unemployment.
The commission’s report will be published at a time when the EU is bitterly divided over labour issues.
The ‘Polish plumber’ syndrome – the fear of low-cost workers from the east – was said to be one of the main reasons behind the French ‘no’ vote in the referendum on the constitution, while Poland’s recent defiance over reduced VAT rates was in part motivated by anger at the lack of equal treatment between old and new member states.
And the Vaxholm case, pitting Swedish trade unions against Latvian building firm Laval over wage agreements, has further highlighted the many pitfalls that still litter the road towards labour market integration.
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