27/11/2007
On 21 November, unions demand that the European Commission takes all necessary steps to respect the European social model by protecting 500 cleaning workers against abuses in their own premises.

UNI-Europa, the European Federation of Workers from the services sector, and its Belgian affiliates FGTB and CSC have on many occasions denounced workloads imposed by the Commission to the cleaning workers. Certain cleaning companies engaged by the Commission are sub-contracting the work in order to boost their profits. The press recently revealed subcontractors working undeclared at the Commission, which has lead to the imprisonment of two cleaning company managers.

Working conditions for cleaners at the Commission are unacceptable. Working late at night and early in the morning makes family and personal life almost impossible. These unsociable working hours also mean that cleaners are increasingly invisible to the EU staff and visitors in the buildings they clean.

On 22 November 2007, unions from Austria, Belgium, France, Finland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and United Kingdom organised a protest in front of the Commission buildings. They say that the European Commission should be role model for best practices, rather than falling to the lowest common denominator.

Bernadette Ségol, UNI-Europa Regional Secretary said: “Cleaners across the world experience low pay, short working hours, work intensification, poor job security. The invisibility of the cleaning workforce, who start their shifts when other workers are on their way home, makes it easy to ignore this situation. But we can not allow the situation to be ignored any longer and it is institutions like the European Commission which should be leading the way on issues like this, not dragging workers down.”

The unions demand that the Commission take immediate measures to ensure that :

• labour standards are respected in its own buildings
• cleaning and other contractors are selected on the basis of quality rather than price only
• prohibit sub-contracting of work by cleaning companies performing for the European Commission
• require that cleaning work be carried out during day-time hours, and that any exception to this rule be justified.

Source : UNI-Europa