kom (2020) 0682 - Endeligt svar på spørgsmål 27: Spm. om oversendelse af det danske svar på spørgeskema vedr. forslag om en europæisk mindsteløn, som er omtalt i artikel i Agence Europe den 19. januar 2021, til beskæftigelsesministeren, kopi til udenrigsministeren

Europaudvalget 2020-21
KOM (2020) 0682
Offentligt

PCY Questionnaire

Proposal for a DIRECTIVE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE

COUNCIL on adequate minimum wages in the European Union

Impact Assessment

2020/0310 (COD)

Delegation

Lead DG

Denmark

DG LIFE.4

Are the policy context and the legal basis of the initiative explained clearly?

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

According to article 5 TEUF (2) the Union shall act only within the limits of the

competences conferred upon it by the Member States in the Treaties to attain the

objectives set out therein. Competences not conferred upon the Union in the Treaties

remain with the Member States.

According to Article 153 (5) TFEU the provisions of this Article shall not apply to pay.

The Danish government is waiting for the opinion from the Council Legal Service on the

legal basis.

There is a concern that the proposed Directive may interfere in the Danish labour market

model where the social partners have full autonomy to regulate wage through collective

agreement without interference from the state and full autonomy and responsibility for

the collective bargaining coverage in Denmark.

Problem definition

Are the problems and the underlying drivers clearly demonstrated and underpinned

by evidence including comments and studies submitted by Member States or

stakeholders during consultations carried out by the Commission?

Is any gap in evidence acknowledged?

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

The problems have been clearly demonstrated. However not all evidence has been

underpinned. For example there is no evidence that declining collective bargaining has let

to inadequate minimum wages. This has not been the case in Denmark over the years.

Neither has evidence been provided demonstrating regulation on minimum wages leads to

adequate minimum wages per se.

kom (2020) 0682 - Endeligt svar på spørgsmål 27: Spm. om oversendelse af det danske svar på spørgeskema vedr. forslag om en europæisk mindsteløn, som er omtalt i artikel i Agence Europe den 19. januar 2021, til beskæftigelsesministeren, kopi til udenrigsministeren

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

Yes, reference is made to the reply above.

Policy objectives

Coherence of the intervention logic: Do the objectives correspond to the problems?

Are the objectives consistent with the broad policy strategies and other relevant

policy initiatives?

Does the IA set out clear policy objectives, including general aims and more

specific/operational objectives?

Are objectives linked to measurable monitoring indicators?

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

Yes, but the underlying question is whether there is a legal basis and whether the

principle of subsidiarity is fully met.

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

Subsidiarity & Proportionality

Is the Union's competence clearly established, and the legal basis?

Does the IA analyse whether acting is consistent with the principle of subsidiarity?

Are necessity and added value of EU action clearly demonstrated?

Does the IA analyse whether acting is consistent with the principle of

proportionality?

Does the IA contain consideration of action already taken or planned by EU and

Member States, if relevant?

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

According to Article 153 (5) TFEU the provisions of this Article shall not apply to pay.

The Danish government is waiting for the opinion from the Council Legal Service on the

legal basis.

Case law that the Commission refers to has concerned ancillary regulation of pay (in the

context of non-discrimination etc.) ECJ has never stated that pay can be regulated as the

main purpose of a directive as long as there is no direct intervention in the level of pay etc.

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

The Danish government is in the process of assessing the principle of subsidiarity. The

comments below are only preliminary:

Looking at the IA and the analysis the Danish government raises doubts whether the

added value and necessity of the EU action is clearly demonstrated.

It is important that the social partners’ autonomy and right to freely negotiate and

conclude collective agreements are respected.

In the IA it is stated that this approach (the Directive) would not interfere with Member

States and social partners’ competence to determine the detailed modalities of their

minimum wage setting frameworks and in particular the level of minimum wage.

However, the autonomy of the social partners and there responsibility for the collective

bargaining coverage will be affected. In Article 4 (1) 2, read in connection with the

considerations that if the collective agreement coverage is below 70 per cent, the Member

State must by law or tripartite agreement create or strengthen a framework for collective

bargaining. In accordance with the principle of subsidiarity it should be possible to do so

by agreement only between the social partners. In this context, Article 13 of the proposal,

which reflects the Treaty, states that the parties may be left to implement the Directive.

This is not possible if the Member state is responsible for making laws or tripartite

agreements for a regulatory framework.

Articles 11 and 12 of the proposal contain provisions on enforcement / punishment that

are not sufficiently clear, and therefore may risk giving a worker without collective

agreement the right to go to court to demand collective bargaining pay or otherwise

interfere in the parties' conflict resolution mechanisms.

The mentioned provisions go too far in relation to the principle of subsidiarity.

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

The IA does not sufficiently analyze that the proposed directive is in line with the

principle of proportionality and the objectives could not be met using the existing

mechanism in the European Semester etc.

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

Yes, e.g. reference is made principle 6 of the European Pillar of Social Rights.

Policy Options

Does the IA identify all feasible policy options (regulatory and, where appropriate in

accordance with the 2003 IIA, non-regulatory) to meet the objectives, including the

“no EU action” option, alternatives to regulation and further harmonisation?

Are the most affected subjects/stakeholders identified?

Has the information on how the inputs from end-users and stakeholders informed

the policy options been provided?

If options favoured by stakeholders in open consultations are discarded, is thorough

examination provided?

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

For MS with labour market models where the social partners are the solely responsible

for wage setting through collective agreements the issue of monitoring and enforcement of

collective agreements, including conflict resolution mechanism is lacking in the AI.

Analysis of impacts

Are the positive and negative impacts

of each policy option and for the ‘no EU

action’ option, including the direct and indirect environmental, economic, and social

impacts, clearly considered?

Are impacts of different policy options expressed in a comparable format and

compared against a clear set of criteria?

Are impacts on the main groups of affected subjects/stakeholders clearly analysed,

for each policy option, especially for the preferred option?

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

No substantive analysis of the impact of a Council Recommendation has been made.

Where relevant, are specific impacts

clearly presented, both in qualitative and

quantified terms, for each option in a comparable manner and assessed on the basis

of appropriate data and evidence?

a) Economic impacts

aa) Impacts on competition

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

ab) Impacts on consumers

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

ac) Impacts on competitiveness

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

ad) Impacts on Small and Medium Enterprises including micro-enterprises

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

For a detailed list of possible impacts see section 8 of the Commission’s Impact Assessment Guidelines

(footnote 2), see

http://ec.europa.eu/governance/impact/commission_guidelines/docs/iag_2009_en.pdf

Impact assessments should assess SME impacts, and should also analyse the case for allowing (a)

exemptions for micro-enterprises

with <10 employees and <€2 mio turnover or balance sheet,

and (b)

lighter regimes for SMEs. See

http://ec.europa.eu/governance/impact/key_docs/docs/meg_guidelines.pdf.

b) Social impacts

(for example impacts on employment and labour markets, social inclusion and protection

of particular groups, public health and safety, etc.)

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

The IA does not analyse of the impact of right to free collective bargaining and the

autonomy of the social partners in relation to the provision in the Directive that the MS

has to interfere if the coverage is less than 70 percent.

In the IA it is stated that the proposal is expected to support gender equality and help

reduce the gender pay gap as the majority of minimum wage earners but this is not

justified any further.

c) Environmental impacts

(for example impacts on climate, air and water quality, use of the renewable or non-

renewable resources, the likelihood or scale of environmental risks, use of energy etc.)

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

d) Regulatory costs (including administrative burdens and compliance costs,

especially for businesses or business operators)

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

The cost for the comprehensive monitoring and data collection (which are not

further justified in a Directive, which is not supposed to regulate the level of wages) is not

analysed adequately, including costs for SMV.

e) Impacts on individual Member States / regional or local authorities

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

According to the IA, the strengthening of enforcement of minimum wage rules may have

direct costs for public administrations, arising from the provisions of enforcement,

monitoring and data collection. This should have been analyzed further.

f) Impacts on third countries/ international aspects

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

See also Guidance for assessing Social Impacts within the Commission Impact Assessment system

(http://ec.europa.eu/governance/impact/commission_guidelines/commission_guidelines_en.htm)

g) Impacts on fundamental rights

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

The IA does not analyse of the impact of right to free collective bargaining and the

autonomy of the social partners in relation to the provision in the Directive that the MS

has to interfere if the coverage is less than 70 percent.

In the IA it is stated that the proposal is expected to support gender equality and help

reduce the gender pay gap as the majority of minimum wage earners but this is not

justified any further.

Opinion of the Impact Assessment Board

(IAB) of the Commission

Are all comments and recommendations of the IAB (as presented in its latest

opinion) considered in the Impact Assessment report?

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

There is no separate analysis of the preferred option for countries relying on collective

bargaining exclusively.

The IA should have provided greater clarity on costs for public authorities.

Monitoring, transposition, compliance

Will the proposed indicators enable the intended effects to be measured? Are those

responsible for monitoring (and compliance) identified?

Are operational monitoring and evaluation arrangements proposed?

Does the IA contain information on the impact of the transposition deadline

proposed in the context of MS legislative processes?

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

Detailed data collection as proposed in the Directive is not necessary in order to measure

the overall intentions.

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

Reference is made to the reply in a.

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

10.

Methodology

Is an appropriate methodology applied? Are the methodological choices, limitations

and uncertainties made clear?

Available by searching by Commission DG and date of publication at the following website

http://ec.europa.eu/governance/impact/ia_carried_out/cia_2012_en.htm

Yes

To some extent/partly

(please comment, if necessary)

Combatting working poor calls for a wider agenda about securing the right conditions for

growth and job creation, about encreased productivity to create a basis for real wage

growth and about priorising welfare. The initiative would have benefitted from a more

comprehensive assessment taking into account the differences in MS.

Summary

Main isues regarding the Commission IA proposed to be discussed during the WP meeting

when examining the Commission’s IA:

The legal basis.

The principle of subsidiarity

No legal certainty. It should be clear from the Directive that it does not create any

individual rights

No intervention in collective bargaining and the social partners autonomy

Enforcement, monitoring and data collection. It should be possible for the social partners to

be solely responsible for the implementation of the Directive in accordance with the Danish

labour market model. This means that provision involving state responsibilities should be

deleted or adjusted (art. 4, 2, and article 10 in particularly)