REPORT on addressing subcontracting chains and the role of intermediaries in order to protect workers’ rights

9.12.2025 - (2025/2133(INI))

Committee on Employment and Social Affairs
Rapporteur: Johan Danielsson

Amendments

• 001-002 (PDF - 110 KB)
• 001-002 (DOC - 42 KB)
• 003-003 (PDF - 103 KB)
• 003-003 (DOC - 40 KB)

MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION

on addressing subcontracting chains and the role of intermediaries in order to protect workers’ rights

(2025/2133(INI))

The European Parliament,

– having regard to Articles 16 and 31 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union,

– having regard to the European Pillar of Social Rights,

– having regard to Directive 96/71/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 1996 concerning the posting of workers in the framework of the provision of services[1], as amended by Directive (EU) 2018/957,

– having regard to Directive 2014/67/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 on the enforcement of Directive 96/71/EC concerning the posting of workers in the framework of the provision of services and amending Regulation (EU) No 1024/2012 on administrative cooperation through the Internal Market Information System (‘the IMI Regulation’)[2],

– having regard to Directive 2011/36/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 April 2011 on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings and protecting its victims, and replacing Council Framework Decision 2002/629/JHA, as amended by Directive (EU) 2024/1712[3],

– having regard to Directive 2009/52/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 June 2009 providing for minimum standards on sanctions and measures against employers of illegally staying third-country nationals[4] (the Employers’ Sanctions Directive),

– having regard to Directive 2014/24/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on public procurement and repealing Directive 2004/18/EC[5],

– having regard to Directive (EU) 2024/1760 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 June 2024 on corporate sustainability due diligence and amending Directive (EU) 2019/1937 and Regulation (EU) 2023/2859[6],

– having regard to the Commission report of 30 April 2024 on the application and implementation of Directive (EU) 2018/957 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 June 2018 amending Directive 96/71/EC concerning the posting of workers in the framework of the provision of services (COM(2024)0320),

– having regard to the Commission report of 26 May 2025 entitled ‘Evaluation of the European Labour Authority (ELA)’ (COM(2025)0256),

– having regard to the Commission communication of 3 December 2020 entitled ‘EU strategic framework on health and safety at work 2021-2027 Occupational safety and health in a changing world of work’(COM(2021)0323), including the Vision Zero approach to work-related deaths in the EU,

– having regard to the Commission publication of May 2020 entitled ‘Making Socially Responsible Public Procurement Work – 71 Good Practice Cases’[7],

– having regard to the ELA report of 2025 entitled ‘Posting of third‑country nationals: Contracting chains, recruitment patterns, and enforcement issues’[8],

– having regard to the ELA report of February 2023 entitled ‘Cooperation practices, possibilities and challenges between Member States – specifically in relation to the posting of third‑country nationals’[9],

– having regard to the ELA report of 20 September 2023 entitled ‘Construction sector: Issues in information provision, enforcement of labour mobility law, social security coordination regulations, and cooperation between Member States’[10],

– having regard to the Europol report of December 2024 entitled ‘Leveraging legitimacy: How the EU’s most threatening criminal networks abuse legal business structures’,

– having regard to Article 10 of the International Labour Organization (ILO) Guidelines on general principles of labour inspection,

– having regard to the ILO Convention concerning Private Employment Agencies (Convention No 181, 1997),

– having regard to the ILO Convention concerning Safety and Health in Construction (Convention No 167, 1988),

– having regard to its resolution of 25 November 2021 on the introduction of a European social security pass for improving the digital enforcement of social security rights and fair mobility[11],

– having regard to its resolution of 13 March 2025 on social and employment aspects of restructuring processes: the need to protect jobs and workers’ rights[12],

– having regard to its resolution of 18 January 2024 on the revision of the European Labour Authority mandate[13],

– having regard to its resolution of 9 September 2025 on public procurement[14],

– having regard to the La Hulpe Declaration on the Future of the European Pillar of Social Rights from 16 April 2024,

– having regard to the Val Duchesse Social Partner Summit Tripartite Declaration for a Thriving European Social Dialogue of 31 January 2024,

– having regard to the Commission green paper of 31 January 2013 on unfair trading practices in the business-to-business food and non-food supply chain in Europe (COM(2013)0037),

– having regard to the Commission communication of 29 January 2025 entitled ‘A Competitiveness Compass for the EU’ (COM(2025)0030),

– having regard to the Eurofound Sixth European Working Conditions Survey,

 – having regard to the report of 9 September 2024 by Mario Draghi entitled ‘The future of European competitiveness’ (the Draghi report),

– having regard to the report of 17 April 2024 by Enrico Letta entitled ‘Much more than a Market – speed, security, solidarity: empowering the Single Market to deliver a sustainable future and prosperity for all EU Citizens’ (the Letta report),

– having regard to the position paper of 14 February 2025 from the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Latvia and Luxembourg on EU policy priorities for the Commission 2024-2029 and the fair posting of third-country nationals,

– having regard to the judgment of the Court of Justice of 5 April 2017 in Case C-298/15, ‘Borta’ UAB v Klaipėdos valstybinio jūrų uosto direkcija VĮ[15], relating to public procurement,

– having regard to national strategies to combat labour exploitation, forced labour and undeclared work[16],

– having regard to Rule 55 of its Rules of Procedure,

– having regard to the opinion of the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection,

– having regard to the report of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (A10-0256/2025),

A. whereas principle 5 of the European Pillar of Social Rights recalls that regardless of the type and duration of the employment relationship, workers have the right to fair and equal treatment regarding working conditions, access to social protection and training; whereas it also recalls that employment relationships that lead to precarious working conditions should be prevented;

B. whereas the freedom to provide cross-border services is one of the four core principles of the single market and whereas subcontracting is part of the freedom to provide services and the freedom of establishment; whereas the EU needs to preserve and enhance its competitiveness so that businesses can thrive, with a special focus on small and medium-sized enterprises (SME)s; whereas it also needs to create clear and proportionate rules which do not impose unnecessary burdens, and to strengthen enforcement;

C. whereas labour exploitation and abuse in the EU labour market constitute a serious problem in high-risk sectors, manifesting in various forms, including but not limited to work-related crime, undeclared work, illegal work, the grey economy, social dumping, labour exploitation and modern slavery;

D. whereas some sectors have higher risks of labour exploitation and abuse, such as construction, agriculture, hospitality, domestic work, transport and logistics, meat and food processing, cleaning services and care work[17]; whereas women are disproportionately represented in subcontracted and intermediary work in the care, cleaning and hospitality sectors;

E. whereas the consequences of labour exploitation and abuse extend beyond workers who are subjected to unfair and unsafe working conditions, inadequate wages, deplorable accommodation and precarious employment, as they also impact enterprises, especially SMEs, which are subjected to unfair competition and distortions of the single market;

F. whereas Europol highlights that 86 % of the most harmful criminal networks use legal business structures as part of their criminal activity, which constitutes a serious threat to fair competition in the single market; whereas analysis by the Commission, as well as operational insights by the ELA, highlight increased risks of labour exploitation and abuse linked to long and complex subcontracting chains, as well as to fraudulent forms of labour intermediation[18];

G. whereas a common variable in most sectors at high risk of labour exploitation is high labour intensity combined with long and complex subcontracting chains, vertically and horizontally[19], which undermines transparency, the role of social partners, applicable collective agreements and democracy at work; whereas high-risk sectors are also often associated with a strong reliance on labour intermediaries, posted workers, EU mobile workers and non-EU nationals; whereas some non-standard forms of employment and complex cross-border arrangements may blur responsibilities, impede awareness-raising and complicate the enforcement of applicable labour law and collective agreements, as well as checks on work permits, social security contributions, tax payments and the identity of workers;

H. whereas non-compliance with occupational health and safety legislation is a constituent part of labour exploitation, which undermines the Vision Zero approach to work-related deaths as set out in the Commission’s EU strategic framework on health and safety at work 2021-2027; whereas ILO Convention No 167 assigns principal contractors the duty to coordinate occupational safety and health measures;

I. whereas the presence of fraudulent and criminal actors in European workplaces also presents security risks, particularly when it affects critical sectors such as transport and logistics, construction, energy and healthcare, or activities with access to security-sensitive workplaces, in particular cleaning and maintenance;

J. whereas, according to the Commission[20] and an ELA case-study report[21], the posting of workers from third countries is on the rise, with one in four posted workers being a third-country national; whereas mobile and migrant workers, including workers from third countries, are especially vulnerable to labour exploitation and work-related crime and often find themselves in a spiral of dependency concerning visas, excessive recruitment fees, travel arrangements and accommodation; whereas third-country nationals tend to be less likely to organise and join a union and experience more difficulties in accessing the justice system and defending their rights;

K. whereas the fraudulent practice of ‘hiring to post’ is increasing, whereby non-EU nationals are recruited to work not in the Member State of employment, but solely for the purpose of being posted to another Member State; whereas ELA has identified this as a growing enforcement challenge[22];

L. whereas horizontal and vertical subcontracting constitutes an essential practice in many sectors, in particular with regard to large-scale projects, facilitating flexible access to specialised expertise and addressing specific needs in a cost-effective manner; whereas sub-contracting is an important element of the employment landscape, particularly for SMEs and microenterprises; whereas subcontracting may generate added value for contracting authorities and enhance efficiency and innovation, particularly in sectors exposed to global competition; whereas subcontracting is not inherently problematic, in particular when there is a need for specific competences; whereas well-functioning subcontracting is important for fair competition in the EU, in particular benefiting SMEs; whereas the extent of subcontracting varies considerably across sectors and companies;

M. whereas long and complex subcontracting chains, however, can distort fair competition, obscure accountability, undermine workers’ rights and increase risks related to fraud, labour exploitation, criminal infiltration and the occupational health and safety of workers, especially in high-risk sectors and cross-border situations; whereas, in certain cases, a lack of transparency and oversight in extended subcontracting arrangements can make it more difficult for contracting authorities to ensure compliance with applicable EU and national law;

N. whereas exploitative labour models often overlap with environmentally hazardous practices[23];

O. whereas the practice of outsourcing core activities can lead to a separation of powers and profiting from the diffusion of risks and responsibilities; whereas this practice is used by some undertakings as a business model, leading among other things to a race to the bottom for wages, a deterioration of working conditions and unfair competition;

P. whereas rules restricting subcontracting could impact companies’ value chains, particularly in sectors exposed to global competition; whereas such measures must be balanced with the need to protect SMEs operating in sectors where the risk of abusive subcontracting is low and there is, contrary to high-risk sectors, no need for any limitation of subcontracting chains; whereas joint and several liability in subcontracting chains meets the dual objective of providing recourse to workers who have been exploited and of incentivising contractors throughout the chain to voluntarily limit the length and complexity of subcontracting;

Q. whereas some Member States have adopted legislation limiting the length of subcontracting chains or banning subcontracting completely in certain sectors[24], which has increased the number of directly employed workers; whereas the Commission considers that limiting the number of levels in subcontracting chains and/or extending the subcontracting liability to the full chain could help Member States, as the main responsible actors for enforcing the rules on the posting of workers, and, where applicable, social partners, to increase transparency and liability in subcontracting chains on a proportionate and non-discriminatory basis[25]; whereas there some enterprises have voluntarily restricted the length of their subcontracting chains;

R. whereas the practice of labour intermediation is not defined in EU law, with the exception of temporary agency work[26]; whereas labour intermediation can take many forms, ranging from established companies to individual recruiters; whereas even informal brokers and gangmasters may be disguised as labour intermediaries;

S. whereas unfair trading practices, including purchasing below the cost of sustainable production, imposing short lead times and making late payments, are identified as key factors driving abusive subcontracting; whereas SMEs participating in public contracts via subcontracting often suffer as a result of late payments by the main contractors;

T. whereas in sectors with widespread subcontracting, the practice of ensuring that workers maintain their rights and working conditions when transferred because of a change in contractor is an essential safeguard to ensure employment stability, guarantee health and safety standards, and prevent social dumping;

U. whereas some cases of unregulated or disguised labour intermediaries are used to obscure and circumvent labour law and employer responsibility, in particular in high-risk sectors; whereas abusive recruitment and intermediation practices are often associated with falsifying or withholding information, failing to provide written contracts, imposing illegitimate recruitment fees, deducting excessive accommodation costs from wages, charging workers for transport, training, equipment, or work permits, confiscating passports, or engaging in forced labour or union busting; whereas better and targeted labour inspections can help to combat such violations;

V. whereas in response to these challenges, several EU countries have adopted national action plans and policies seeking to combat labour exploitation, including by taking action to address abuse in subcontracting chains and by labour intermediaries[27];

W. whereas in response to these challenges, social partners at EU, national and local level, as well as at sectoral and cross-sectoral level, have taken measures to tackle issues related to abusive subcontracting and labour intermediation, including through collective bargaining, as well as joint initiatives safeguarding serious enterprises and protecting workers’ rights;

X. whereas specific legislation is already in place that regulates subcontracting in civil aviation, including the leasing of aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance, also known as ‘wet leasing’; whereas the use of wet leasing has increased, also beyond its intended use to fill capacity during peaks; whereas the Commission should address the problems related to wet leasing in the upcoming revision of the Air Services Regulation[28];

Y. whereas the Commission highlights the Norwegian Skien Model[29], which was jointly developed between the Municipality of Skien, trade unions and employer organisations, and which includes strict limitations on long subcontracting tiers and a pre-approval of temporary labour, aiming to ensure accountability and decent working conditions in high-risk sectors;

Z. whereas Member States, the Commission and the social partners in the La Hulpe Declaration committed to pay special attention to measures in the areas of subcontracting and agency work, recognising the common challenges these two phenomena present to European labour markets; whereas the Letta report underlines the urgent need to regulate subcontracting practices in order to prevent exploitation and abuse; whereas the report warns that unchecked subcontracting chains can lead to the erosion of labour standards, social dumping and the undermining of fair competition, as well as violations of health and safety obligations;

AA. whereas Article 12(2) of Directive 2014/67/EU requires Member States to introduce subcontracting liability in the context of posting of workers in the construction sector, and Article 12(1) offers Member States the possibility of extending this to other sectors and introducing more stringent liability rules;

AB. whereas most Member States have some rules in place regarding subcontracting chains and labour intermediaries, taking national specificities into account; whereas the level of regulating, however, varies significantly from one Member State to another, therefore creating fragmentation in the single market; whereas challenges persist due to varying interpretations as regards the application of the internal market rules on the regulation of subcontracting chains and labour intermediaries; whereas Directive 2014/24/EU does not provide contracting authorities with sufficient tools to effectively address the non-performance of public contracts, and in some cases even hampers authorities wishing to take proactive measures;

AC. whereas combating undeclared work, trafficking in human beings and labour exploitation requires rigorous labour inspections, cross-border checks and effective licensing or registration of labour intermediaries; whereas the enforcement of current rules and better cooperation between Member States can help to address problems associated with abusive forms of subcontracting and labour intermediation;

Preventing labour exploitation

1. Stresses the need for a comprehensive EU approach to tackling labour exploitation, including illegal work and organised crime linked to it, as well as abusive forms of business practices, notably abusive subcontracting and labour intermediation; calls, therefore, for an EU strategy to combat these problems, the impact of which may vary across Member States and sectors; stresses that labour exploitation is not only a violation of workers’ rights and human rights, but also undermines fair competition for businesses; welcomes, in this context, the Commission’s commitment to present a fair mobility package in 2026; recalls that the overall objectives of strengthening the competitiveness of European companies, simplification and reducing unnecessary administrative burdens must not lead to a lower level of protection of workers; stresses the need for stronger enforcement of current labour laws to ensure the effective protection of workers’ rights and a level playing field in the single market;

2. Recalls the challenges faced by some Member States, due to varying interpretations of single market rules, to regulate subcontracting at national level, for example, through limiting the length of subcontracting chains, joint and several liability and requirements for direct employment; calls on the Commission to clarify the possibilities for Member States to adopt legislation that is proportionate to address the risks and problems stemming from long and complex subcontracting chains; calls on the Commission to intensify efforts to combat labour exploitation;

3. Recalls its resolution on social and employment aspects of restructuring processes, which calls on the Commission, in close cooperation with social partners, to consider establishing 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 respect for workers’ rights, to include measures regulating the role of labour intermediaries, other than temporary work agencies, and to introduce an EU general legal framework limiting subcontracting and ensuring joint and several liability through the subcontracting chain;

4. Reiterates its call on the Commission, in order to end abusive subcontracting and to protect workers’ rights, to strengthen transparency and accountability throughout the supply chain, and to consider introducing a well-defined regime for the joint and several liability of economic operators and subcontractors and for ensuring transparency regarding the subcontractors involved and the share of the contract that the contractor intends to subcontract[30];

5. Stresses that any EU-level initiative seeking to tackle labour exploitation and complex subcontracting chains should take into account Member States’ best practices, be developed in close cooperation with social partners, including the European sectoral social dialogue committees (CDSS), and be tailored to specific sectoral realities; recalls that any sector-specific measures and initiatives, including joint and several liability in high-risk sectors, must be in conformity with EU law and not create unnecessary barriers to cross-border business activities; underlines that sector-specific measures and initiatives may also provide for lower regulatory requirements for companies in low-risk sectors;

6. Points out that the principle of joint and several liability is a way of ensuring that the main contractor bears overall responsibility for the services provided within the entire subcontractor chain; considers that such a principle can ensure that quality, performance and compliance with labour, social and safety standards are contractually guaranteed at every level of the subcontracting chain; notes that several Member States have decided to adopt more stringent liability rules in subcontracting chains than the minimum set out in Article 12 of Directive 2014/67/EU;

7. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to address practices whereby the main contractor subcontracts all work without performing any work itself, also known as ‘financial subcontracting’; underlines that main contractors should perform a defined part of a contract themselves; reiterates, in this context, its call on the Commission to assess the impact of public contracts being performed mainly by the successful tenderer’s direct workers and recommends that public procurement rules encourage companies to have sufficient in-house staff to implement the projects for which they are awarded public contracts[31];

8. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to address illegal practices in subcontracting chains in order to ensure business competitiveness and fair and safe working conditions; encourages, in this context, direct employment relationships in high-risk sectors, where feasible, justified, proportionate and based on overriding reasons of public interest, such as the protection of workers and their rights; calls on the Commission to include relevant proposals favouring direct employment relationships in its upcoming quality jobs act;

9. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to encourage the inclusion of community benefit provisions in public procurement and EU-funded projects, such as requiring contractors and subcontractors to contribute to local skills development or to social inclusion initiatives, thereby creating positive spill-over effects from public investments;

10. Emphasises that national and regional initiatives that limit the levels of subcontracting have often been initiated jointly by social partners, including SME representatives; stresses that such initiatives should be respected, while limitations to subcontracting must be proportionate;

11. Notes that the length and complexity of subcontracting chains pose a significant challenge to labour inspectorates in establishing legal responsibility for labour law violations, which needs to be tackled; calls on the Commission to propose a framework to limit subcontracting chains with a focus on addressing issues in high-risk sectors;

12. Stresses the importance of including gender-sensitive provisions in any new framework;

13. Underlines that, in order to limit the fragmentation of the single market, high-risk sectors should be defined by the Commission in close cooperation with Member States and social partners, including the CDSS; stresses that Member States may request the Commission to allow them to adjust the common list of high-risk sectors to their specific national situation, where necessary, in order to ensure the best possible approach to tackling abusive subcontracting, labour exploitation and work-related crime; underlines that any identification and adjustment of high-risk sectors should be based on accurate and up-to-date data;

14. Notes that subcontracting core business activities can lead to fragmented and unsafe workplaces, reduced transparency and accountability, and greater exposure of workers to longer hours, lower wages and other labour law violations, as well as job insecurity and precariousness[32]; stresses that, in line with Directive 2002/14/EC[33], employee representatives must be informed and consulted on decisions likely to lead to substantial changes in work organisation or in contractual relations; calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure the principle of equal treatment, as well as decent working conditions for all workers;

15. Is concerned about the lack of legal clarity as regards the differentiation between genuine and fraudulent postings of non-EU nationals, as well as the abuse of EU law on service provision to circumvent migration rules and national labour law; stresses that fraudulent postings erode the social fabric of the single market and exploit the situations of the most vulnerable people; calls on the Commission, in line with the Letta report, to review enforcement challenges, especially in terms of cross-border cooperation, and take appropriate measures to put an end to postings without any genuine connection of the workers to the sending Member State; recalls the overall conclusion of the Letta and Draghi reports of the need to enhance the competitiveness of the single market;

16. Notes with concern the risks related to posting when combined with abusive forms of subcontracting and labour intermediation; calls on the ELA to look into the use of labour intermediaries in postings, including the risk of these arrangements being used to evade liabilities, circumvent social security obligations and erode health and safety standards; calls on the Commission to address any possible abuses of the Temporary Agency Work Directive[34] in the context of the posting of workers;

17. Stresses that accommodation provided to a worker by an employer or labour intermediary must conform to applicable quality, hygiene and safety standards; underlines that the rent for such accommodation must be proportionate and non-discriminatory; calls for the integration of accommodation inspections into labour inspections in high-risk sectors in order to prevent employers or intermediaries from providing workers with degrading, unsafe or overcrowded accommodation; stresses that contractual provisions governing the accommodation of a worker must not lead to precarious housing situations if the employment relationship is terminated;

18. Calls on the Commission to engage with Member States to ensure the efficient implementation and enforcement of current legislation on posting of workers; recalls that the EU has adopted a number of legal instruments to combat labour exploitation and illegal work, the enforcement of which needs to be improved at national level; calls on the Commission to take stock of the situation, to ensure the efficient and effective implementation and enforcement of the relevant legal instruments by Member States and to launch, where necessary, infringement procedures against Member States that do not comply with applicable EU law;

19. Stresses the need for a minimum EU framework under which labour intermediaries operate in order to strengthen their accountability, transparency obligations and compliance with minimum requirements and quality standards, as stipulated by ILO Convention No 181 on Private Employment Agencies; highlights the added value of public, interoperable registers of licensed labour intermediaries; underlines that any licensing or registration should be subject to minimum integrity criteria; calls on the Commission to take stock of national practices and legislation on labour intermediaries and to ensure that labour intermediaries operating in the EU do not charge any fees or pass any costs on to workers, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part; underlines that labour intermediaries who violate the applicable law or collective agreements should receive dissuasive sanctions, such as their removal from public registers and their exclusion from public contracts;

20. Calls for the forthcoming revision of the public procurement directives to ensure that the exclusion criteria better address specific sectoral risks related to fraud, corruption and criminal infiltration; stresses that different sectors require separate, tailored exclusion criteria, reflecting their specific vulnerabilities; stresses that contracting authorities should be empowered to adapt procurement procedures to combat and address criminal activities; highlights that, in order to promote greater efficiency and simplification, the provisions relating to grounds for exclusion should be streamlined; underlines that any economic operator that breaches its obligations under applicable labour and environmental laws pursuant to Article 18(2) of Directive 2014/24/EU should effectively be excluded from the public procurement process in question;

21. Underlines the value of national business registers and the European Business Registers Interconnection System for enterprises seeking information on subcontractors, for trade unions seeking to engage in collective bargaining and for enforcement authorities; regrets that the level of information accessible in national business registers varies widely; calls on the Commission to review how the level of publicly available information can be improved, drawing on the best practices in Member States;

22. Is concerned that posted workers and workers in subcontracting chains face disproportionate occupational safety and health (OSH) risks due to fragmented chains of responsibility and unclear coordination, especially in the construction sector; stresses, in this context, the importance of information and consultation for posted workers and workers in subcontracting chains, as well as the effective enforcement of health and safety provisions as stipulated by ILO Convention No 167; considers it important, in this context, to strengthen the role of social partners in developing tools and training for workers and to further promote healthy working conditions in the next EU strategic framework on health and safety at work; calls on the Commission to assess whether current OSH legislation adequately covers the implementation of minimum safety and health requirements in subcontracting chains;

Enforcement and control

23. Recalls the importance of cross-border cooperation, efficient enforcement and transparency in tackling criminal networks associated with work-related crime; supports strengthened collaboration between the ELA, Europol, national authorities and social partners in this regard; stresses the need for efficient and well-resourced enforcement systems to combat labour exploitation and promote fair competition in the single market; stresses the need to tackle abusive subcontracting that uses artificial arrangements such as letter-box companies and bogus temporary agency work; recalls that Directive 2009/52/EC requires Member States to ensure effective and adequate inspections to control employment of illegally staying third-country nationals and calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure proper enforcement;

24. Welcomes the Commission’s evaluation report on the ELA and reiterates its call[35] on the Commission to substantially strengthen the ELA’s mandate by allowing it to investigate alleged breaches of EU labour law and to initiate and conduct inspections of cross-border cases on its own initiative, by expanding the scope of the agency’s mandate to cover labour mobility of third-country nationals, by enhancing its operational risk-analysis capacity, as well as by providing sufficient resources for it to carry out its tasks; stresses the need for the further alignment and simplification of labour mobility regulations and control procedures, including uniform control standards and better information exchange, under the guidance of the ELA; recommends the establishment of sector-specific enforcement units within the ELA, particularly for construction, transport and agriculture, and the enhancement of cooperation with social partners in the respective sectors;

25. Highlights the vital role of labour inspections in both the detection and prevention of labour exploitation and in overall compliance with labour laws; urges the Member States to increase their numbers of labour inspectors and their support for labour inspectorates; recalls that Directive 2006/22/EC[36] already sets minimum rules for checking compliance with social legislation in road transport and calls on the Commission and the Member States to improve the quality and frequency of labour inspections and to ensure an adequate minimum labour inspection capacity, in line with the ILO benchmark of at least one labour inspector per 10 000 workers; stresses that, despite their importance for initiating targeted inspections, complaint mechanisms remain underused and inaccessible, particularly for mobile workers and workers from non-EU countries; recalls that, in line with Directive 2009/52/EC, Member States must ensure there are effective mechanisms through which non-EU nationals in illegal employment may lodge complaints against their employers;

26. Underlines the importance of accurate and up-to-date data; notes that the level of information on the make-up of subcontracting chains and work-related crime diverges across Europe and that this represents a challenge for both enforcement and policymaking; calls on the Commission to enhance data collection in this regard and highlights the role of the ELA in providing reliable information on general trends and abusive behaviour in cross-border situations;

27. Highlights the success of initiatives for worksite identification at national and sectoral level, such as social ID cards; welcomes, in this context, the inclusion of the European Social Security Pass (ESSPASS) in the 2026 Commission work programme; reiterates its call[37] for a swift roll-out of the ESSPASS system and for the improved protection and digital enforcement of social security rights and fair mobility, including real-time verification and exchange of information between enforcement authorities; calls for the integration of the ESSPASS with national and sectoral labour card systems in order to ensure interoperability and minimum disruptions; underlines that the ESSPASS should reduce unnecessary administrative burdens, simplify compliance for businesses with minimal compliance costs for SMEs, and support the ELA and national authorities in fighting abuse and criminal activities; stresses the importance of strong data security and protection for the ESSPASS and the involvement of social partners in the design and roll-out of the system; notes, furthermore, the ongoing work on other EU initiatives, such as the Digital Identity Wallet, that could help to improve the ability of authorities to tackle criminal behaviour without burdening SMEs or increasing costs for consumers;

Sanctioning labour exploitation

28. Notes with concern that individuals subject to trading prohibitions in one Member State can bypass national restrictions by registering and operating a business in another Member State, thus undermining the fight against labour exploitation across the single market; calls on the Commission to ensure more effective information exchange and cooperation between Member States, as well as the mutual recognition of trading prohibitions and of criminal sanctions, in line with the Treaties, to prevent the circumvention of restrictions; underlines the importance of compliance with the rule of law and fair trial safeguards in this context; recommends the use of the Internal Market Information System (IMI) for the timely and secure exchange of relevant information between Member States;

29. Notes the discrepancies regarding penalties and sanction regimes across EU policy areas; stresses that penalties and sanctions for work-related crimes and violations of workers’ rights must be effective, dissuasive and proportionate to the nature, gravity and duration of the undertaking’s infringement and to the number of workers affected; calls on the Commission to examine linking sanctions to company size or turnover, in order to ensure proportionality, deterrence and a level playing field; underlines the need for a mechanism to recover outstanding wages, social security contributions, fines and damages in cross-border cases;

30. Highlights the problem of fraudulent and criminal labour market actors using strategic bankruptcies and business disappearance to evade responsibility for outstanding payments and sanctions; calls on the Commission and the Member States to analyse the issues associated with strategic bankruptcies and disappearing companies, especially in cross-border cases, and to take necessary initiatives to reduce their prevalence;

31. Recalls that linking public spending to the respect of workers’ rights and decent working conditions is one of the means available for tackling abusive subcontracting and work-related crime;

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32. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and the Commission.

 

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Workers in sectors such as construction, agriculture, domestic work, transport and logistics, meat and food processing, cleaning services, hospitality and care work are the backbone of our economy. At the same time, in most European countries, these are sectors that are plagued by persistent levels of abuse, exploitation and fraudulent competition, harming workers as well as legitimate businesses, especially SMEs.

Several tragic workplace incidents in recent years across Member States have exposed the real human costs of losing control over who is ultimately responsible for ensuring compliance with basic health and safety and employment standards, raising fundamental concerns about legal accountability, traceability and control over working conditions.

At the same time, Europol has warned that almost all of Europe’s most threatening criminal networks are using legal business structures to gain a foothold in the European economy, with logistics, cash-intensive businesses and construction being particularly affected.

In today’s security landscape, the lack of oversight can also present opportunities for hostile actors seeking to gain information on, or disrupt, critical infrastructure, or gain access to security sensitive workplaces.

There is not one single factor driving labour exploitation and the risks it represents to European workplaces. However, there are certain variables that keep recurring in national and European studies as well as in reports from enforcement authorities. One of those is the increasing reliance on long and complex subcontracting chains and the other is the presence of abusive labour intermediation. Together these two interconnected practices make it more difficult for authorities to prevent and detect fraudulent or criminal actors from entering a workplace.

For many workers and businesses on the ground, this does not come as a surprise. The rise of workplaces without adequate control and where responsibility is divided up, diluted and pushed downstream has been the source of discontent for many years.

In response to these challenges, Member States have tried to step up, tightening controls and taking action to prevent the most common forms of abuse. They have made efforts to limit long subcontracting chains, strengthen liability requirements, increase information exchange and set up specific control units focusing on detecting and rooting out labour exploitation and abuse. National and sectoral social partners have also stepped up to the challenge and taken autonomous initiatives to help clean up their sectors as well as jointly pushed their governments to do more. It is clear these efforts have had important positive effects, but it is also clear it is not enough and that more needs to be done.

The challenges are particularly felt when dealing with companies operating across borders, as cross-border cooperation between enforcement authorities, information exchange and legal frameworks have not kept pace with the developments on the ground. Without a united European response, it becomes easier for fraudulent and criminal actors to exploit weaknesses of the Single Market. There are also several instances where Member States have faced legal challenges when taking action against labour exploitation and to ensure fair competition, often with reference to Union law.

Labour exploitation in general, and abusive forms of subcontracting and labour intermediation in particular, therefore requires a coordinated response at European level.

A successful response to these challenges must mean making the business-models of fraudsters and criminals unprofitable, thus protecting workers and making life easier for all law-abiding businesses. This response should be based on three pillars:

1. Prevention, making it as hard as possible to engage in fraudulent activities

2. Control, making the risk of discovery as high as possible

3. Sanctions, making sure the consequences are strongly felt by those who get caught

Ultimately, I hope this report will provide an impetus for intensifying the fight against labour exploitation with a focus on abusive forms of subcontracting and labour intermediation, gathering broad support from across the political aisle and from social partners. While opinions may differ on the precise solutions, it is my sincere hope that we can all depart from the shared recognition that these problems on the European labour market are real, intensifying and in need of urgent attention.

 

 

ANNEX: DECLARATION OF INPUT

Pursuant to Article 8 of Annex I to the Rules of Procedure, the rapporteur declares that he included in his report input on matters pertaining to the subject of the file that he received, in the preparation of the report, prior to the adoption thereof in committee, from the following interest representatives falling within the scope of the Interinstitutional Agreement on a mandatory transparency register[38], or from the following representatives of public authorities of third countries, including their diplomatic missions and embassies:

1. Interest representatives falling within the scope of the Interinstitutional Agreement on a mandatory transparency register

3F Byggegruppen

3F Transport

BUSINESSEUROPE

Byggföretagen

Byggnadsarbetareförbundet

CEEMET

Confederation of Swedish Enterprise

Danish Trade Union Confederation EU Office

Deutscher Gewerkschaftsbund

European Builders Confederation

European Construction Industry Federation

European Federation of Building and Woodworkers

European Federation of Food, Agriculture and Tourism Trade Unions

European Trade Union Confederation

European Trade Union Institute

European Transport Workers’ Federation

Fagbevægelsens Hovedorganisation

Fastighetsanställdas Förbund

Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung

Göteborgs Räddningsmission

HOTREC

IF Metall

IndustriAll

Kommunalarbetareförbundet

LO

LO Norge

NHO - Norway

Rättvist Byggande

Svensk Byggkontroll

Swedish Trade Union Office

The Adecco Group

Transportarbetareförbundet

UNI Europa

Unionen

World Employment Confederation-Europe

2. Representatives of public authorities of third countries, including their diplomatic missions and embassies

The list above is drawn up under the exclusive responsibility of the rapporteur.

Where natural persons are identified in the list by their name, by their function or by both, the rapporteur declares that he has submitted to the natural persons concerned the European Parliament’s Data Protection Notice No 484 (https://www.europarl.europa.eu/data-protect/index.do), which sets out the conditions applicable to the processing of their personal data and the rights linked to that processing.

 

 

 

OPINION OF THE COMMITTEE ON THE INTERNAL MARKET AND CONSUMER PROTECTION (13.11.2025)

for the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs

on addressing subcontracting chains and the role of intermediaries in order to protect workers’ rights

(2025/2133(INI))

Rapporteur for opinion: José Cepeda 

 

AMENDMENTS

The Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection submits the following to the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs, as the committee responsible:

Amendment  1

Motion for a resolution

Citation -1 a (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	– having regard to Articles 16 and 31 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union,

Amendment  2

Motion for a resolution

Citation 4 a (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	– having regard to Directive 2014/24/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on public procurement1a, ______________ 1a OJ L 94, 28.3.2014, p. 65, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2014/24/oj.

Amendment  3

Motion for a resolution

Citation 4 b (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	– having regard to Directive (EU) 2024/1760 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 June 2024 on corporate sustainability due diligence and amending Directive (EU) 2019/1937 and Regulation (EU) 2023/28591a, ______________ 1a OJ L, 2024/1760, 5.7.2024, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2024/1760/oj.

Amendment  4

Motion for a resolution

Citation 5 a (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	– having regard to the Commission green paper of 31 January 2013 on unfair trading practices in the business-to-business food and non-food supply chain in Europe (COM(2013)0037),

Amendment  5

Motion for a resolution

Citation 8 a (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	– having regard to the Sixth European Working Conditions Survey,

Amendment  6

Motion for a resolution

Citation 18 a (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	– having regard to the Commission communication of 29 January 2025 entitled ‘A Competitiveness Compass for the EU’ (COM(2025)0030),

Amendment  7

Motion for a resolution

Citation 18 b (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	– having regard to the report by Mario Draghi of 9 September 2024 entitled ‘The future of European competitiveness’ (the Draghi report),

Amendment  8

Motion for a resolution

Recital A

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
A. whereas labour exploitation and abuse in the EU labour market constitutes a widespread and urgent challenge, manifesting under various terminologies, including but not limited to work-related crime, undeclared work, the grey economy, social dumping, labour exploitation and modern slavery;	A. whereas labour exploitation and abuse in the EU labour market constitutes a challenge and negatively affects the internal market by creating an unfair playing field;

Amendment  9

Motion for a resolution

Recital A a (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	Aa. whereas subcontracting is an expression of the freedom to conduct a business enshrined in Article 16 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union; whereas, in the context of a market economy, any form of business organisation is lawful, provided that it is exercised in accordance with EU law and national laws and practices;

Amendment  10

Motion for a resolution

Recital A b (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	Ab. whereas companies, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and microenterprises, do not always have all the required technical expertise, know-how, tools or infrastructure available in-house to address specific challenges in relation to their core business;

Amendment  11

Motion for a resolution

Recital A c (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	Ac. whereas subcontracting is an important element of the employment landscape, particularly for SMEs and microenterprises; whereas subcontracting can help companies and public sector bodies to address specific needs and provide technical expertise; whereas subcontracting can encourage specialisation, which has economic benefits;

Amendment  12

Motion for a resolution

Recital A d (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	Ad. whereas European companies are currently facing enormous global economic pressures, and EU regulators and Member State governments have highlighted the importance of addressing declining EU competitiveness as a priority;

Amendment  13

Motion for a resolution

Recital B a (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	Ba. whereas in 2024, the International Labour Organization (ILO) reported that the total annual illegal profits from forced labour in Europe were the highest in the world1a;
	__________________
	1a Article published on 19 March 2024 on ILO website entitled ‘Annual profits from forced labour amount to US$ 236 billion, ILO report finds’.

Amendment  14

Motion for a resolution

Recital C a (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	Ca. whereas reliance on non-standard forms of employment and complex cross-border arrangements can blur workers’ rights and employers’ responsibilities and further complicates awareness, monitoring and enforcement of labour laws and applicable collective agreements;

Amendment  15

Motion for a resolution

Recital E

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
E. whereas subcontracting is a well-functioning and important practice in many sectors, facilitating access to specialised expertise; whereas long and complex subcontracting chains can, however, increase risks related to fraud, criminal infiltration, the occupational health and safety of workers, and to unfair competition for enterprises, especially small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs);	E. whereas subcontracting is a well-functioning and important practice in many sectors, facilitating access to specialised expertise, and is especially important for SMEs to thrive; whereas long and complex subcontracting chains can, however, increase risks related to fraud, criminal infiltration, the occupational health and safety of workers, and to unfair competition for enterprises;

Amendment  16

Motion for a resolution

Recital E a (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	Ea. whereas subcontracting is a useful business practice that allows companies to access specialised expertise and respond to demand fluctuations in a cost-effective manner;

Amendment  17

Motion for a resolution

Recital E b (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	Eb. whereas, in certain cases, a lack of transparency and oversight in extended subcontracting arrangements can make it more difficult for contracting authorities to ensure compliance with applicable EU and national law;

Amendment  18

Motion for a resolution

Recital F

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
F. whereas some Member States have adopted legislation limiting the length of subcontracting chains in certain sectors; whereas the Commission considers a limitation to the levels of subcontracting and the extension of subcontracting liability to the full chain as a good practice for Member States; whereas there are also enterprises that have voluntarily restricted the length of their subcontracting chains;	F. whereas some Member States have adopted legislation limiting the length of subcontracting chains in certain sectors, although with varying degrees of success and implementation; whereas there are also enterprises that have voluntarily restricted the length of their subcontracting chains;

Amendment  19

Motion for a resolution

Recital G

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
G. whereas the practice of labour intermediation is not defined in law and can take many forms, ranging from larger established companies to individual recruiters, informal brokers and even gangmasters;	G. whereas the practice of labour intermediation is not defined in law and can take many forms, ranging from larger established companies to individual recruiters or informal brokers; whereas improving the competitiveness of businesses and the proper functioning of the single market are strategic priorities, while the importance of protecting workers’ rights through decent, inclusive and fair working conditions should be recognised;

Amendment  20

Motion for a resolution

Recital G a (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	Ga. whereas legal disparities and weak law enforcement can mean that multiple layers of subcontracting dilute responsibility and can increase the risk of labour law violations and hinder effective law enforcement;

Amendment  21

Motion for a resolution

Recital G b (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	Gb. whereas in sectors with widespread subcontracting, the practice of ensuring that workers maintain their rights and working conditions when transferred as a result of a change in contractor is essential to protect employment stability, guarantee health and safety standards, and prevent social dumping;

Amendment  22

Motion for a resolution

Recital G c (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	Gc. whereas unfair trading practices, including purchasing below the cost of sustainable production, imposing short lead times and making late payments, are identified as key factors driving unauthorised subcontracting;

Amendment  23

Motion for a resolution

Recital G d (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	Gd. whereas SMEs often participate in public contracts via subcontracting, and can suffer when the main contractors make late payments;

Amendment  24

Motion for a resolution

Recital I

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
I. whereas the process of regulating subcontracting chains and labour intermediaries at national level can be lengthy and difficult for Member States, not least due to legal ambiguities stemming from internal market rules;	I. whereas the process of regulating and monitoring the legal compliance of subcontracting chains and labour intermediaries at national level varies significantly from one Member State to another;

Amendment  25

Motion for a resolution

Recital I a (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	Ia. whereas decent work is not only a matter of employment and social protection, but also of governance, which must include dialogue with social partners at all levels of the global chain and at all stages of the production processes in the single market;

Amendment  26

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph -1 (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	-1. Acknowledges that in order to have a competitive and socially fair internal market, it is necessary to ensure both the freedom to provide services and the protection of workers; stresses that subcontracting may generate added value for contracting authorities, enhance efficiency and innovation, particularly in sectors exposed to global competition, by allowing the inclusion of specialised SMEs, and can be a strategic lever for staying competitive and adapting to a rapidly changing economic environment; stresses that subcontracting can allow for the creation of employment, particularly in specialised areas, and help to reduce the costs of large contracts and infrastructure development; stresses, further, that it can allow SMEs to participate in procurement processes for large contracts; recalls that the freedom to conduct a business, as enshrined in Article 16 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, includes the right to engage in an economic or commercial activity, freedom of contract and free competition, in accordance with EU law and national laws and practices; recalls, furthermore, that fair and just working conditions, as enshrined in Article 31 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, include the right to working conditions which respect health, safety and dignity, among other things;

Amendment  27

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph -1 a (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	-1a. Recalls that the EU needs to preserve and enhance its competitiveness and be a place where businesses can thrive, both within the EU and on the global stage; stresses the importance of the Commission’s competitiveness compass as a new roadmap to restore the EU’s dynamism and boost its economic growth; highlights, in this regard, that improving the competitiveness of businesses and the proper functioning of the single market are strategic priorities, while also recognising the importance of protecting workers’ rights through decent, inclusive and fair working conditions;

Amendment  28

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 1

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
1. Stresses the need for a comprehensive European approach to labour exploitation in general, and abusive forms of subcontracting and labour intermediation in particular, and calls, therefore, for a European strategy to combat labour exploitation;	1. Stresses the need to tackle abusive forms of subcontracting across the EU while promoting competitiveness and SME participation in the economy; highlights the Commission’s commitment to present a fair mobility package in 2026 within the single market strategy; calls on the Commission to support Member States in sharing best practice concerning subcontracting; emphasises that enforcing current rules, ensuring better cooperation between Member States and providing targeted support for labour inspectorates are essential to addressing many of the concerns and ensuring fair practices in subcontracting; adds that any abuse, fraud or violation of labour and social legal requirements in the context of subcontracting should be sanctioned effectively;

Amendment  29

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 2

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
2. Regrets the lack of legal clarity as regards the possibility for Member States to regulate long and complex subcontracting chains; calls on the Commission to clarify that Member States are not prevented by EU internal market rules from adopting legislation to address long and complex subcontracting chains, including requiring direct employment relationships in high-risk sectors, where feasible and justified by evidence;	2. Takes note of the fact that only some Member States regulate long and complex subcontracting chains; calls on the Commission and the Member States to take measures to address illegal practices in subcontracting chains in order to ensure business competitiveness and fair and safe working conditions in these chains, including, where feasible, proportionate and supported by evidence, encouraging direct employment relationships in high-risk sectors, in the light of overriding reasons of public interest, namely the protection of workers and their rights, and provided that such measures do not create unjustified obstacles to the free movement of goods and services within the single market; stresses that the identification of national high-risk sectors should be the responsibility of the Member States, following consultations with the most representative social partners;

Amendment  30

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 3

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
3. Reiterates its call11 on the Commission to consider a framework directive to address the challenges related to abusive forms of subcontracting and labour intermediation in Europe and for this framework directive to introduce a general legal framework, limiting subcontracting and ensuring joint and several liability throughout the subcontracting chain, as well as to introduce measures regulating the role and responsibilities of labour intermediaries, other than temporary work agencies;	3. Reiterates its call11 on the Commission and the Member States to address the challenges related to abusive forms of subcontracting and labour intermediation in Europe, providing the necessary transparency and considering joint and several liability throughout the subcontracting chain, especially in cross-border business; recalls, in addition, that while ‘horizontal subcontracting’ can often bring benefits, such as allowing companies to take on larger projects or ensuring collaboration between companies, in certain circumstances, if misused, it can also lead to the circumvention of liability and oversight, which is a form of abuse that must be addressed;
_________________	_________________
11 Resolution of 13 March 2025.	11 European Parliament resolution of 13 March 2025 on social and employment aspects of restructuring processes: the need to protect jobs and workers’ rights (OJ C, C/2025/3156, 20.6.2025, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2025/3156/oj ).

Amendment  31

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 4

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
4. Emphasises that national and regional policies to limit the levels of subcontracting have often been initiated jointly by social partners, including SME representatives; calls on the Commission to put forward proposals for setting a general rule limiting subcontracting to a maximum of two levels below the main contractor for sectors with a high risk of labour exploitation; stresses that the identification of national high-risk sectors and the establishment of a process for deviating from the general rule, where duly justified, should be the responsibility of Member States in cooperation with social partners;	4. deleted

Amendment  32

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 5

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
5. Notes that the increasing use of subcontracting for core business activities can lead to fragmented workplaces and greater exposure of workers to longer hours, lower wages and job insecurity; calls, in this regard, on the Commission to ensure equal treatment for equal work and to promote direct employment in sectors where such risks occur;	5. Stresses that subcontractors in the EU are often SMEs or craftspeople; recognises that subcontracting can provide flexibility for companies and opportunities for specialised SMEs in supply chains, thereby helping these SMEs, sole traders, and mobile, self-employed workers to thrive and creating a dynamic and innovative market for providers; notes that long and complex subcontracting chains for core business activities can increase risks of exposing workers to labour and social law infringements when a lack of transparency and clear responsibilities prevents the effective enforcement of the applicable rules; recalls, in this regard, the need to ensure equal treatment for equal work, fair working conditions and safe environments for all workers;

Amendment  33

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 5 a (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	5a. Emphasises that the EU has adopted a number of legal acts aiming at combating labour exploitation and illegal work, and that the application of these acts at the national level needs to be improved; calls on the Commission to take stock of the application of current rules, not least in high-risk sectors, and to undertake concrete measures to reinforce, where justified, infringement procedures against Member States that are failing to comply with the applicable rules; stresses, furthermore, the need to engage with the Member States to ensure the effective implementation and enforcement of current legislation concerning the posting of workers;

Amendment  34

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 6

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
6. Is concerned about the lack of legal clarity as regards the differentiation between genuine and fraudulent postings of third-country nationals; calls on the Commission, in line with the Letta report, to review enforcement challenges and take the appropriate initiative to close identified legislative gaps;	6. Notes the lack of legal clarity and certainty as regards the differentiation between genuine and fraudulent postings of third-country nationals; calls on the Member States, in line with the Letta report, to review enforcement challenges and take the appropriate initiatives where necessary, especially in terms of cross-border cooperation; recalls the overall conclusion of the Letta and Draghi reports of the need to enhance the competitiveness of the single market;

Amendment  35

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 6 a (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	6a.  Stresses that the Commission and the Member States should assess how best to address unfair trading practices in the context of subcontracting, in particular by identifying the practices that lead to unauthorised subcontracting and labour exploitation;

Amendment  36

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 7 a (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	7a. Recalls that the 2023 Strategic Analysis on the construction sector by the European Labour Authority1a and the Commission report on the application and implementation of Directive (EU) 2018/9572a have determined that long and complex subcontracting chains can pose numerous challenges for labour enforcement authorities when they are used to escaping legal responsibilities, and may lead to unclear accountability and difficulty in ensuring compliance with public procurement contracts and labour obligations; notes, in that context, that Directive 2014/24/EU does not provide contracting authorities with sufficient tools to effectively address the non-performance of public contracts, and in some cases even hampers authorities wishing to take proactive measures;
	_________________
	1a 2023 Strategic Analysis entitled ‘Construction sector: Issues in information provision, enforcement of labour mobility law, social security coordination regulations, and cooperation between Member States’. 2a Commission report on the application and implementation of Directive (EU) 2018/957 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 June 2018 amending Directive 96/71/EC concerning the posting of workers in the framework of the provision of services (COM(2024)0320).

Amendment  37

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 7 b (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	7b. Considers that contracting authorities must be guaranteed access to information on all subcontractors involved in the performance of public contracts in order to ensure accountability, facilitate inspections and safeguard consumer confidence in the quality and integrity of services, especially those funded with public money;

Amendment  38

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 7 c (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	7c. Calls on the Commission, in order to end abusive subcontracting and to protect workers’ rights in the context of public procurement, to strengthen transparency and accountability throughout the supply chain, and to consider introducing a well-defined regime for the joint and several liability of economic operators and subcontractors and for ensuring transparency regarding the subcontractors involved and the share of the contract that the contractor intends to subcontract;

Amendment  39

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 7 d (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	7d. Calls for a revision of the exclusion criteria in procurement processes, enabling these criteria to better address specific sectoral risks related to fraud, corruption and criminal infiltration; stresses that different sectors require separate, tailored exclusion criteria, reflecting their specific vulnerabilities; firmly believes that contracting authorities should be empowered to adapt procurement procedures to combat and address criminal activity; highlights that in order to promote greater efficiency and simplification, provisions relating to grounds for exclusion should be streamlined through an exhaustive list and a clear distinction between mandatory grounds for exclusion, intended to protect the public interest, and optional grounds for exclusion, intended to protect the interests of the contracting authorities or entities; adds that any economic operator that breaches its obligations under applicable labour and environmental laws pursuant to Article 18(2) of Directive 2014/24/EU should effectively be excluded from the public procurement process in question;

Amendment  40

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 9

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
9. Recalls that Directive 2006/22/EC13 already sets minimum rules for checking compliance with social legislation in road transport and calls on the Commission to present a legislative initiative to require Member States to ensure an adequate minimum labour inspection capacity for all high-risk sectors, in line with the ILO benchmark of at least one labour inspector per 10 000 workers;	9. Recalls that Directive 2006/22/EC13 already sets minimum rules for checking compliance with social legislation in road transport and calls for its full implementation and enforcement;
_________________	_________________
13 Directive 2006/22/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 March 2006 on minimum conditions for the implementation of Council Regulations (EEC) No 3820/85 and (EEC) No 3821/85 concerning social legislation relating to road transport activities and repealing Council Directive 88/599/EEC (OJ L 102, 11.4.2006, pp. 35, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2006/22/oj).	13 Directive 2006/22/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 March 2006 on minimum conditions for the implementation of Council Regulations (EEC) No 3820/85 and (EEC) No 3821/85 concerning social legislation relating to road transport activities and repealing Council Directive 88/599/EEC (OJ L 102, 11.4.2006, p. 35, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2006/22/oj).

Amendment  41

Motion for a resolution

Paragraph 10 a (new)

Motion for a resolution	Amendment
	10a. Notes the ongoing implementation of other EU legislative frameworks, such as the European Digital Identity Framework1a, that will improve the ability of authorities to tackle criminal behaviour without damaging the employment market, burdening SMEs or increasing costs for consumers;   ______________ 1a Regulation (EU) 2024/1183 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 April 2024 amending Regulation (EU) No 910/2014 as regards establishing the European Digital Identity Framework (OJ L, 2024/1183, 30.4.2024, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1183/oj).

 

 

 

 

 

ANNEX: DECLARATION OF INPUT

Pursuant to Article 8 of Annex I to the Rules of Procedure, the rapporteur for opinion declares that he included in his opinion input on matters pertaining to the subject of the file that he received, in the preparation of the opinion, prior to the adoption thereof in committee, from the following interest representatives falling within the scope of the Interinstitutional Agreement on a mandatory transparency register[39], or from the following representatives of public authorities of third countries, including their diplomatic missions and embassies:

1. Interest representatives falling within the scope of the Interinstitutional Agreement on a mandatory transparency register

EUROPEAN TRADE UNION CONFEDERATION (ETUC)

CEOE - Confederación Española de Organizaciones Empresariales

BUSINESSEUROPE

UNIÓN GENERAL DE TRABAJADORES DE ESPAÑA (UGT)

Confederación Sindical de Comisiones Obreras (CCOO)

Council of European Employers of the Metal, Engineering and Technology-based Industries (Ceemet)

2. Representatives of public authorities of third countries, including their diplomatic missions and embassies

The list above is drawn up under the exclusive responsibility of the rapporteur for opinion.

Where natural persons are identified in the list by their name, by their function or by both, the rapporteur for opinion declares that he has submitted to the natural persons concerned the European Parliament’s Data Protection Notice No 484 (https://www.europarl.europa.eu/data-protect/index.do), which sets out the conditions applicable to the processing of their personal data and the rights linked to that processing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

INFORMATION ON ADOPTION BY THE COMMITTEE ASKED FOR OPINION

Date adopted	11.11.2025
Result of final vote	+: –: 0:	43 2 2
Members present for the final vote	Alex Agius Saliba, Pablo Arias Echeverría, Jeannette Baljeu, Arno Bausemer, Biljana Borzan, Anna Cavazzini, Stefano Cavedagna, David Cormand, Henrik Dahl, Dóra Dávid, Adnan Dibrani, Klara Dostalova, Hanna Gedin, Sandro Gozi, Maria Grapini, Elisabeth Grossmann, Maria Guzenina, Svenja Hahn, Anna-Maja Henriksson, Virginie Joron, Pierre Jouvet, Arba Kokalari, Nikola Minchev, Piotr Müller, Reinis Pozņaks, Christel Schaldemose, Andreas Schwab, Tomislav Sokol, Dimitris Tsiodras, Inese Vaidere, Adina Vălean, Kim Van Sparrentak, Marion Walsmann
Substitutes present for the final vote	Marc Angel, José Cepeda, Veronika Cifrová Ostrihoňová, Salvatore De Meo, Dirk Gotink, Sophia Kircher, Alice Kuhnke, Marlena Maląg, Gaetano Pedulla’, Joanna Scheuring-Wielgus, Tomáš Zdechovský, Kosma Złotowski
Members under Rule 216(7) present for the final vote	Siegbert Frank Droese, Pál Szekeres

 

 

FINAL VOTE BY ROLL CALL
BY THE COMMITTEE ASKED FOR OPINION

43	+
ECR	Stefano Cavedagna, Marlena Maląg, Piotr Müller, Reinis Pozņaks, Kosma Złotowski
PPE	Pablo Arias Echeverría, Henrik Dahl, Dóra Dávid, Salvatore De Meo, Dirk Gotink, Sophia Kircher, Arba Kokalari, Andreas Schwab, Tomislav Sokol, Dimitris Tsiodras, Inese Vaidere, Adina Vălean, Marion Walsmann, Tomáš Zdechovský
PfE	Klara Dostalova, Virginie Joron, Pál Szekeres
Renew	Jeannette Baljeu, Veronika Cifrová Ostrihoňová, Sandro Gozi, Svenja Hahn, Anna-Maja Henriksson, Nikola Minchev
S&D	Alex Agius Saliba, Marc Angel, Biljana Borzan, José Cepeda, Adnan Dibrani, Maria Grapini, Elisabeth Grossmann, Maria Guzenina, Pierre Jouvet, Christel Schaldemose, Joanna Scheuring-Wielgus
Verts/ALE	Anna Cavazzini, David Cormand, Alice Kuhnke, Kim Van Sparrentak

 

2	-
ESN	Arno Bausemer, Siegbert Frank Droese

 

2	0
The Left	Hanna Gedin, Gaetano Pedulla’

 

Key to symbols:

+ : in favour

- : against

0 : abstention

 

 

 

INFORMATION ON ADOPTION IN COMMITTEE RESPONSIBLE

Date adopted	3.12.2025
Result of final vote	+: –: 0:	35 20 0
Members present for the final vote	Maravillas Abadía Jover, Grégory Allione, Li Andersson, Marc Angel, Pascal Arimont, Konstantinos Arvanitis, Nikola Bartůšek, Gabriele Bischoff, Vilija Blinkevičiūtė, Andrzej Buła, David Casa, Estelle Ceulemans, Leila Chaibi, Per Clausen, Henrik Dahl, Johan Danielsson, Marie Dauchy, Margarita de la Pisa Carrión, Mélanie Disdier, Niels Geuking, Isilda Gomes, Alicia Homs Ginel, Irena Joveva, Martine Kemp, Marit Maij, Jagna Marczułajtis-Walczak, Eleonora Meleti, Idoia Mendia, João Oliveira, Branislav Ondruš, Aodhán Ó Ríordáin, Hristo Petrov, Dennis Radtke, Nela Riehl, Liesbet Sommen, Villy Søvndal, Pál Szekeres, Georgiana Teodorescu, Romana Tomc, Jana Toom, Raffaele Topo, Francesco Torselli, Brigitte van den Berg, Marianne Vind, Mariateresa Vivaldini, Jan-Peter Warnke, Séverine Werbrouck
Substitutes present for the final vote	Raúl de la Hoz Quintano, Jaroslav Knot, Arba Kokalari, Lara Magoni, Sara Matthieu, Kim Van Sparrentak, Angelika Winzig
Members under Rule 216(7) present for the final vote	Adrian-George Axinia, Emmanouil Fragkos

 

 

FINAL VOTE BY ROLL CALL BY THE COMMITTEE RESPONSIBLE

35	+
NI	Branislav Ondruš, Jan-Peter Warnke
PPE	Pascal Arimont, Andrzej Buła, David Casa, Niels Geuking, Martine Kemp, Jagna Marczułajtis-Walczak, Dennis Radtke, Liesbet Sommen
Renew	Grégory Allione, Irena Joveva, Hristo Petrov, Jana Toom, Brigitte van den Berg
S&D	Marc Angel, Gabriele Bischoff, Vilija Blinkevičiūtė, Estelle Ceulemans, Johan Danielsson, Isilda Gomes, Alicia Homs Ginel, Marit Maij, Idoia Mendia, Aodhán Ó Ríordáin, Raffaele Topo
The Left	Li Andersson, Konstantinos Arvanitis, Leila Chaibi, Per Clausen, João Oliveira
Verts/ALE	Sara Matthieu, Nela Riehl, Villy Søvndal, Kim Van Sparrentak

 

20	-
ECR	Adrian-George Axinia, Emmanouil Fragkos, Lara Magoni, Georgiana Teodorescu, Francesco Torselli, Mariateresa Vivaldini
PPE	Maravillas Abadía Jover, Henrik Dahl, Raúl de la Hoz Quintano, Arba Kokalari, Eleonora Meleti, Romana Tomc, Angelika Winzig
PfE	Nikola Bartůšek, Marie Dauchy, Mélanie Disdier, Jaroslav Knot, Margarita de la Pisa Carrión, Pál Szekeres, Séverine Werbrouck

 

0	0

 

Key to symbols:

+ : in favour

- : against

0 : abstention

 

 

• [1] OJ L 18, 21.1.1997, pp. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/1996/71/oj.
• [2] OJ L 159, 28.5.2014, p. 11, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2014/67/oj.
• [3] OJ L 101, 15.4.2011, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2011/36/oj.
• [4] OJ L 168, 30.6.2009, p. 24, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2009/52/oj.
• [5] OJ L 94, 28.3.2014, p. 65, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2014/24/oj.
• [6] OJ L, 2024/1760, 5.7.2024, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2024/1760/oj.
• [7] https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2826/844552.
• [8] https://www.ela.europa.eu/sites/default/files/2025-03/ELA-posting-third-country-nationals-report.pdf.
• [9] https://www.ela.europa.eu/sites/default/files/2023-04/ela-report-posting-third-country-nationals.pdf.
• [10] https://www.ela.europa.eu/en/publications/construction-sector-issues-information-provision-enforcement-labour-mobility-law.
• [11] OJ C 224, 8.6.2022, p. 81.
• [12] OJ C, C/2025/3156, 20.6.2025, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2025/3156/oj.
• [13] OJ C, C/2024/5741, 17.10.2024, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2024/5741/oj.
• [14] Texts adopted, P10_TA(2025)0174.
• [15] judgment of the Court of Justice of 5 April 2017, ‘Borta’ UAB v Klaipėdos valstybinio jūrų uosto direkcija VĮ, C-298/15, ECLI:EU:C:2017:266.
• [16] See, for instance: German Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs’ Nationaler Aktionsplan gegen Arbeitsausbeutung und Zwangsarbeit (2025); Italian Ministry of Labour and Social Policies’ Piano nazionale per la lotta al lavoro sommerso (2022); Spanish Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration’s Plan de Acción contra el Trabajo Forzoso (2021); Swedish Government’s Nationell strategi mot arbetslivskriminalitet (2022) and additionally: Norwegian Government’s Strategi mot arbeidslivskriminalitet (2021).
• [17] European Commission, fourth report on the progress made in the fight against trafficking in human beings (COM(2022)0736); European Commission, fifth report on the progress made in the fight against trafficking in human beings (COM(2025)0008).
• [18] ELA, Posting of third-country nationals: contracting chains, recruitment patterns, and enforcement issues (2025); ELA, Counteracting undeclared work and labour exploitation of third-country national workers (2021); ELA, Tackling undeclared work in supply chains – Learning Resource Paper (2022); Commission report on the application and implementation of Directive (EU) 2018/957 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 June 2018 amending Directive 96/71/EC concerning the posting of workers in the framework of the provision of services (COM(2024)0320).
• [19] Commission communication entitled ‘Guidelines on the applicability of Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union to horizontal co-operation agreements’ (OJ C 259, 21.7.2023, p. 1).
• [20] European Commission: Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, EFTHEIA, HIVA-KU Leuven, IRIS, Milieu and WIIW, Posting of workers – Collection of data from the prior declaration tools – Reference year 2022, Publications Office of the European Union, 2024.
• [21] ELA report on contractual chains and recruitment patterns of posted third-country nationals, March 2025, and ELA report on the cooperation practices, possibilities and challenges between Member States – specifically in relation to the posting of third-country nationals, February 2023.
• [22] ELA report entitled ‘Posting of third-country nationals: contracting chains, recruitment patterns, and enforcement issues’, 2025.
• [23] Report by European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, Protecting migrant workers from exploitation in the EU (2019); report by Europol, Environmental crime in the age of climate change, 2022.
• [24] European Commission: Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, ECORYS, HIVA-KU Leuven, Spark Legal and Policy Consulting and wmp consult, Study supporting the Monitoring of the Posting of Workers Directive 2018/957/EU and of the Enforcement Directive 2014/67/EU – The situation of temporary cross-border mobile workers and workers in subcontracting chains, Publications Office of the European Union, 2024.
• [25] Commission report on the application and implementation of Directive (EU) 2018/957 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 June 2018 amending Directive 96/71/EC concerning the posting of workers in the framework of the provision of services (COM(2024)0320).
• [26] Commission report on the application and implementation of Directive (EU) 2018/957 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 June 2018 amending Directive 96/71/EC concerning the posting of workers in the framework of the provision of services (COM(2024)0320).
• [27] For example, Sweden (https://www.regeringen.se/contentassets/f6f461b310984b598ee4f7a2d83350d0/nationell-strategi-mot-arbetslivskriminalitet.pdf), Finland (https://julkaisut.valtioneuvosto.fi/bitstream/handle/10024/165395/TEM_2024_5.pdf), Italy,
  Germany (https://www.bmas.de/DE/Service/Presse/Meldungen/2025/nationaler-aktionsplan-gegen-arbeitsausbeutung-und-zwangsarbeit-beschlossen.html), Spain and Norway (https://www.regjeringen.no/no/dokumenter/strategi-mot-arbeidslivskriminalitet-2021/id2831867/).
• [28] Regulation (EC) No 1008/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 September 2008 on common rules for the operation of air services in the Community (OJ L 293, 31.10.2008, p. 3, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2008/1008/oj).
• [29] European Commission: Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, Making socially responsible public procurement work – 71 good practice cases, Publications Office, 2020.
• [30] European Parliament resolution of 9 September 2025 on public procurement.
• [31] European Parliament resolution of 9 September 2025 on public procurement.
• [32] European Parliament study, 2016, Precarious Employment in Europe: Volume 1: Patterns, Trends and Policy Strategies; Eurofound, 2010, Key elements of fair employment and decent work; European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Outsourcing, working conditions and inequality, 2025.
• [33] Directive 2002/14/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2002 establishing a general framework for informing and consulting employees in the European Community - Joint declaration of the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on employee representation (OJ L 80, 23.3.2002, p. 29, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2002/14/oj).
• [34] Directive 2008/104/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 November 2008 on temporary agency work (OJ L 327, 5.12.2008, p. 9, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2008/104/oj).
• [35] European Parliament resolution of 18 January 2024 on the revision of the European Labour Authority mandate.
• [36] Directive 2006/22/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 March 2006 on minimum conditions for the implementation of Council Regulations (EEC) No 3820/85 and (EEC) No 3821/85 concerning social legislation relating to road transport activities and repealing Council Directive 88/599/EEC (OJ L 102, 11.4.2006, p. 35, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2006/22/oj).
• [37] European Parliament resolution of 25 November 2021 on the introduction of a European social security pass for improving the digital enforcement of social security rights and fair mobility.
• [38] Interinstitutional Agreement of 20 May 2021 between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the European Commission on a mandatory transparency register (OJ L 207, 11.6.2021, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/agree_interinstit/2021/611/oj).
• [39] Interinstitutional Agreement of 20 May 2021 between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the European Commission on a mandatory transparency register (OJ L 207, 11.6.2021, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/agree_interinstit/2021/611/oj).