Compliance with COVID-19 preventive measures at the workplace

11.11.2020

Question for written answer  E-006105/2020
to the Commission
Rule 138
Marc Botenga (GUE/NGL)

In Belgium, the labour inspectorates carried out 17 600 ‘COVID-19’ checks between March and October. These checks, designed to verify whether employers are complying with compulsory health and safety measures at the workplace, revealed a shocking and scandalous reality: out of 17 600 employers checked, 8 170 - almost half - were penalised for not complying with the rules. Workers are therefore being forced to go to work without any guarantee of proper protection against the risk of contamination.

• 1.Could the Commission provide, for each Member State and/or for the EU as a whole, figures for the number of inspections carried out and the percentage of infringements identified concerning the application at the workplace of health and safety regulations linked to the COVID-19 pandemic?
• 2.As a result of austerity measures, social and labour inspectorates in many Member States have suffered cuts and reductions in resources and staff. The pandemic is creating an additional workload for these services. Does the Commission regard an increase in resources for these services as necessary, and in which Member States does it intend to call for this?