Latvian firm tests EU labour laws
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/europe/6245551.stm Version 0 of 1. The EU's laws on labour migration are being tested by a court case about a Latvian firm that offered Latvian pay and conditions for work done in Sweden. Swedish trade unions say such accords undermine pay deals negotiated locally. They say collective bargaining agreements are doomed if the European Court of Justice decides in favour of the construction firm, Laval. Laval said its workers lost their jobs after Swedish pickets blocked the site and forced the firm out of Sweden. "Laval, as a company temporarily providing services, should not have been a victim of such a far-reaching industrial action," said the firm's lawyer Anders Elmer at the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg. Under EU law companies working abroad must abide by minimum wage regulations in the host country. However, Laval argues that Sweden has no national minimum wage, and that employment agreements are typically derived by collective negotiation. It said it therefore felt entitled to follow the same rules it followed at home. Impact of migrants The case has pitted national interests against each other, and experts say it could have a fundamental effect on migrant labour within the European Union. Sweden has backed its trade unions while Latvia has lined up behind Laval. "The free movement of services cannot take precedence over such fundamental rights as negotiating a collective agreement or staging industrial action," said Andres Kruse, representing the Swedish government. The Swedish government has said its labour market model has been one of the main reasons for its development into a successful welfare state. It has found support from Denmark and other countries in Western Europe that fear the impact of a flood of cheap workers on their highly-regulated labour markets. Other new entrants to the EU, like Estonia and Lithuania, have sided with Laval. The court is expected to announce its judgement later in the year. |