The New EWC-Directive  - Recommendations on negotiating during the transposition period (5 June 2009 to 5 June 2011)

The new EWC Directive 2009/38/EC entered into force on 5th June 2009. From that date Member States have 2 years to transpose the recast EWC Directive into their national law. The current laws (based on the 1994 Directive) will continue to apply during the transposition period. The new provisions will only come into force after implementation into national law. In other words the improvements introduced by the recast EWC Directive will be directly and automatically applicable from 6 June 2011.

The new Directive will improve the powers and the effectiveness of the European Works Councils. But it has also introduced some special arrangements for the transposition period which require particular attention from trade unions and workers’ representatives.

These recommendations do not replace any existing guidelines or checklists. They deal purely with additional issues that may arise concerning EWC agreements signed during the transition period from 5 June 2009 to 5 June 2011. In particular, they are intended to provide guidance on how to anticipate the changes in the Directive; how to ensure that new and renegotiated agreements benefit from all the improvements in the new Directive; and how to support colleagues faced with management attempts to fast-track negotiations or renegotiations in order to circumvent the new obligations

The Publication is produced by the European Trade Union Federations and the Social Development Agency (SDA) as part of the Information and Observation Point ‘ INFOPOINT ‘ project 2008-09, supported by the European Commission.