1432-Live From Brussels n51

8/6/2019 1432-Live From Brussels n51

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Under the responsibility of Boulevard Anspach 111, box 4 1000 Brussels

Anna Maria Torres Tel: +32 2 513 63 23 Fax: 32 2 502 41 73

HOTREC Chief Executive [email protected] www.hotrec.eu

Issue N51, 25 October 2010

Main EU developments over the last 6 monthsof interest to the hotel, restaurant and caf sector

TOURISM

New Commission Communication on tourism p.4 NET meeting with Commission Vice President Tajani p.5

HEALTH AND FOOD

EP vote on food labelling: a positive step but still a long way ahead p.5 Food and kitchen waste on the menu of the EU institutions p.7 Better functioning of the food chain on the EP agenda p.8 Nutrition: Member States want action to reduce salt intake p.8 EU High level conference on nutrition, overweight and obesity p.9 New EU logo for organic food p.9 European Alcohol and Health Forum p.9 Eurobarometer on alcohol: little variation in level of consumption p.10

Commission consultation considers EU ban on tobacco vending machines p.10 Eurobarometer on tobacco: 30% of Europeans are smokers p.11CONSUMER AFFAIRS

Draft IMCO report on the Consumer Rights Directive: new requirementsfor hospitality contracts? p.11

Towards a new optional European contract law regime? p.13 Fire safety: the MBS methodology praised by European fire fighters p.14 Hospitality industry investigated in the Consumer Market Scoreboard p.14


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COPYRIGHT

ECJ confirms copyright fees for TV in hotel rooms p.15 Towards a Framework Directive on copyright management p.16

COMPETITION

Prohibited horizontal agreements: hotels information exchanges in thespotlight! p.16

New guidelines on vertical restraints: few changes for the hospitality industry p.17

TAXATION

VATlatest developments in the Member States p.18 Towards a reform of the VAT and other tax regimes? p.19

Excise duties on alcoholic beveragesReport by the Commission p.19

SOCIAL DIALOGUE

Extraordinary Liaison Forum and EFFAT-HOTREC Qualifications andSkills Passport p.20

SOCIAL AFFAIRS Working timeawaiting second-stage consultation of the social partners p.21 Maternity leavevote in plenary p.21 Social protection of self-employed workers and assisting spouses - Directive

Adopted p.23

New Commission proposal on seasonal workers p.23

STANDARDS

European standardisation: HOTREC reply to Commission consultation p.24

ENTERPRISE POLICY

European Parliament and Council agree on Late Payment Directive p.25ENVIRONMENT

Directive on Energy performance of buildings adopted p.26


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STATISTICS

Draft Regulation on Tourism statistics debated in Parliament and Council p.26 Recent statistical publications p.27

HOTREC GENERAL ACTIVITIES

Next General Assembly p.27

The previous issues of Live from Brussels are available under the following link:

http://www.hotrec.eu/pages/news_publications/live_from_brussels/
http://www.hotrec.eu/pages/news_publications/live_from_brussels/http://www.hotrec.eu/pages/news_publications/live_from_brussels/


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TOURISM

New Commission Communication on Tourism

On 30 June 2010, the European Commission issued its Communication entitled Europe, the

worlds No 1 tourist destination a new political framework for tourism in Europe (COM(2010) 352 final).

The Communication proposes a new policy framework for the development of European

tourism, in view of the new EU competence provided by the Lisbon Treaty, which will

complement the competence of the Member States in this field.

The Commission text first refers to a number of challenges that European tourism is currently

facing: increasing global competition, demographic change, climate change and the rapid

development of information & communication technologies (ICT). It also refers to the current

economic and financial crisis that has had a considerable effect on demand for tourism services,

as well as to the specific challenges linked to the particular characteristics of the European

tourism sector such as the seasonality factor.

The Commission text further identifies the four pillars that will constitute the backbone of the

new EU Tourism policy framework:

Improving the competitiveness of the tourism sector in Europe; Promoting the continuous sustainable development of EU tourism; Enhancing Europe's image as home to sustainable and high quality destinations; and Maximising the potential of EU policies and financial instruments for the development of

European tourism.

A total of 21 actions are announced in order to achieve the above-mentioned objectives.

The Tourism Forum to be held in Malta on 18-19 November 2010 (programme) will serve to

present the Commissions Action Plan, which will provide details on how the proposed actions

will be implemented in the next years.

The European Parliament will draft an own initiative report (non-binding) on the Commission

Communication. The MEP in charge will be Carlo Fidanza (EPP, Italy), member of the

Transport and Tourism Committee.

The Council of the EU adopted on 12 October 2010 its Conclusions on the new politicalframework for tourism in Europe.

HOTREC welcomes the recent Commission Communication and is confident that it will mark the

beginning of a true and efficient European policy for tourism. In itsResponseto the Commission,

HOTREC insists on the need to provide oxygen to the industry, as this is critical to ensure its

competitiveness. It also advocates for the enforcement of the better regulation principle; for a

proper assessment by the EU institutions of the impact of every legislative proposal on tourism;

and for the creation of a sufficient EU budget line. In addition, HOTREC analyses in detail each

of the 21 foreseen actions and offers the experience of its member associations and collaboration

for the implementation of those actions.
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NET meeting with Commission Vice President Tajani

On 27 September 2010 (European Tourism Day), the Network of European Private

Entrepreneurs in the Tourism Sector(NET) held a meeting with the European Commissions

Vice President in charge of tourism, Mr. Antonio Tajani, who was accompanied by MattiaPellegrini (Member of his Cabinet), Pedro Ortun (Director General) and Alan Vella

(Administrator), to present a Joint-Response to the Communication on Tourism containing the

industry priorities for the future development of this important economic sector.

HOTRECs President, Mr. Kent Nystrm, acted as the highest representative of NET in this

occasion, which was very appreciated by all the parties participating in the meeting.

Addressing tourism industry leaders, Vice President Tajani said: Today's meeting with the NET

alliance shows the contribution of tourism businesses and operators to the implementation of the

European Commission Communication. The proposals presented to me by NET will support the

concrete implementation of many of the key actions of our Communication. Together we canmake tourism in Europe more competitive, more sustainable and more diversified.

Vice-President Tajani agreed to create a round table between the Commissions services and the

tourism stakeholders to exchange views on the follow-up to the Commission Communication. In

particular, a first meeting could deal with the complex issue of standardization. As already

announced, details on the implementation of the actions contained in the Communication will be

presented in the Malta Forum in the form of an Action Plan.

To complete the information, please, see also the NETThank-you letterandpress release.

HOTREC was very honoured to meet with Vice President Tajani and that its President could

represent all NET members in this occasion.Actually, HOTRECs President will continue having

this honour since he has been asked to speak at the Malta Forum on behalf of all NET members.

HOTREC will make sure that the good relation established with the Vice-President, his Cabinet

and DG Enterprise will continue strengthening and will prepare thoroughly together with its

member associations its contribution to the deployment of the new EU policy framework for the

tourism industry.

HEALTH AND FOOD

EP vote on food labelling: a positive step but still a long way ahead

On 16 June 2010, the European Parliament adopted a first-reading legislative Resolution

(P7_TA(2010)0222) on the Commission proposal for a Regulation on food information to

consumers. The proposed legislation was issued in 2008, with the objective to modernise EU

labelling rules (COM(2008) 40 final).

The amendments adopted by the Parliament in first reading (Report by Renate Sommer, EPP,

Germany) go in the right direction, largely excluding non-prepacked food, which includes

meals prepared by restaurants, cafs, etc. from the scope of the Regulation. Contrary to what

was suggested in the Commission proposal, non- prepacked food would be exempted from

mandatory EU labelling requirements. However, MEPs consider that at least allergens
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information (not labelling) should always be made available to consumers, even for non-

prepacked food: in this case, it must be indicated in a clearly visible manner in the sales area or

on menus that:

customers can obtain information regarding allergenic substances directly during thesales talk and/or by means of material displayed on the premises;

the possibility of cross-contamination cannot be excluded.At the same time, MEPs take the view that Member States should be allowed to adopt national

measures to require the display of additional information (ingredients, quantity, nutrition

declaration, etc.) and to regulate how the information should be made available to consumers,

including in relation to potential allergens.

The EP vote is an important but not conclusive step in the EU legislative procedure, since the

Regulation needs to be adopted jointly by the Parliament and the Council of the EU. The opinion

of the Parliament was transmitted to the Council, where the experts of the national governments

continue the examination of the text under the aegis of the EU Belgian Presidency. As regards theissue of non- prepacked food, the current position in the Council is that the indication of the

particulars listed in Article 9 and 10 (name, list of ingredients, quantity, nutrition declaration, etc.)

shall not be mandatory, with the exception of allergens information. In addition, Member States

could always decide to require the provision of elements other than allergens and adopt rules on

how the information will be given to consumers. In the Council, Member States have not yet

found an agreement on some key issues (e.g. responsibilities of food operators, requirements

applicable to alcoholic beverages, country of origin labelling) and it is not clear whether a

common position will be reached under the Belgian Presidency or if negotiations will carry on

under the Hungarian Presidency (JanuaryJuly 2011).

As the Council position is not expected to coincide with the one of the Parliament, the legislativeproposal (once amended by the Council) will most probably return to the Parliament for a second

reading in 2011.

HOTREC welcomes the Parliament first reading, as it largely takes into account the concerns

voiced by the hospitality sector. MEPs have rightly acknowledged that restaurants, cafs,

caterers, etc. should not be subject to the same labelling requirements as large food processing

companies. A one-size-fits-all solution at EU level is certainly not appropriate because it does

not take into account the specificities of the different sectors. Compliance with the Regulation, as

proposed by the Commission, would simply be unworkable for the vast majority of hospitality

establishments, which employ less than ten people, unless they reduced the menu offer, used ready-

made and pre-labelled food instead of fresh products.

However, HOTREC remains of the opinion that non- prepacked food should be completely

excluded from the scope of the legislation rather than exempted from mandatory EU labelling

requirements. The structure and content of the proposal clearly show that it was conceived to

apply to packaged food and not to meals served by restaurants, catering services, etc. The

requirements applicable to prepacked food are in practice unworkable for non-prepackedfood. In addition, the provision of information in relation to meals prepared and served locallyshould not be regulated at EU level, as it has no impact on the functioning of the internal market

and cross-border trade.

HOTREC will continue its dialogue with EU policy makers and hopes that also the Council willtake into account the concerns of the hospitality sector, throughout its review of the Commission


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proposal. In this mission, HOTREC counts on the collaboration of its member associations to

contact their national MEPs and governments.

Food and kitchen waste on the menu of the EU institutions

On 18 May 2010, the European Commission (DG Environment) adopted a Communication onFuture steps in bio-waste management in the EU (COM(2010) 235 final). The document

explains the steps considered necessary by the Commission for improving the management of

bio-waste, outlining possible actions at EU and national levels. The issue is of interest for the

hospitality industry because bio-waste, as defined in Directive 2008/98/EC on waste (Waste

Framework Directive), includes: food and kitchen waste from households, restaurants,

caterers and retail premises, [].

The Communication notes that - on the EU average - 40% of bio-waste is still landfilled. This

situation is deemed unsatisfactory and the Commission considers that more should be done to

reap the full benefits of proper bio-waste management. However, at this stage, the

Commission is of the opinion that improved management of bio-waste can be achieved with abetter enforcement and application of the existing EU legislative framework, rather than with

new EU legislation. Therefore, the priority should be the implementation by Member States of

the relevant provisions of the Waste Framework Directive (i.e. Art. 11 and Art. 22):

Increasing bio-waste prevention; Promoting separate collection, re-use and recycling of bio-waste.

In parallel, national efforts should focus on the full implementation of the Landfill Directive

(Directive 1999/31/EC), which requires a progressive reduction in the landfilling of municipal

biodegradable waste. At the same time, the Communication acknowledges that a wide margin of

discretion should be allowed to Member States in choosing the best options for them toimplement existing EU rules, taking into account local conditions and needs.

The European Parliament has also addressed the issue of bio-waste management with the

adoption of a non-legislative Resolution on 6 July 2010 (P7_TA(2010)264). The Parliament,

contrary to the Commission, takes the view that new EU legislation is needed. According to

MEPs, a specific directive for bio-waste would offer greater clarity and legal certainty,

compiling all existing rules in a single piece of legislation. Therefore, the Parliament urges the

Commission to draw up a specific proposal by 2010, in order to:

Establish a mandatory separate collection system in all Member States, unless impossiblefor economic or environmental reasons;

Introduce binding targets to increase the recycling of bio-waste.HOTREC will continue to follow the issue as new rules and targets for separate collection and

recycling of bio-waste (including food and kitchen waste) could have an impact on hospitality

businesses. It is essential that the implementation at national level of existing EU legislation

makes use of the flexibility offered by the legal instruments (directives) and take into account the

specificities of the sectors concerned. The objective of better management of bio-waste should be

achieved without creating disproportionate burdens for businesses, considering practical

constraints and local conditions.
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Better functioning of the food chain on the EP agenda

On 7 September 2010, the European Parliament voted a non-legislative Resolution on the

functioning of the food chain in Europe (P7_TA(2010)0302). The text, which is based on an

own-initiative report by MEP Jos Bov (Greens, France), expresses the opinion of theParliament on the Communication A Better Functioning of the Food Chain issued by the

European Commission in 2009 (seeLive from Brussels N49). The Resolution deals with issues

such as: price transparency; competition; abuse of buyer power and contracting; sustainability

and food quality. The Commission and the Member States are invited to urgently address the

problem of unfair distribution of profits within the food chain adopting measures to ensure

adequate incomes for farmers and to make the food supply chain more efficient. Amongst others,

MEPs call on the Commission to assess possible modifications to rules on public procurement

practices for catering services so as to enhance sustainable farming practices and animal

welfare and develop seasonal and local food.

HOTREC continues to follow with interest this issue and further developments at EU level, as theEuropean hospitality industry is an important player in the food chain and a major end-user of

food and agricultural products.

Nutrition: Member States want action to reduce salt intake

At their meeting of 8 June 2010, the Council of the EU (Ministers of Employment, Social Policy,

Health and Consumers Affairs) adoptedconclusionson Action to reduce population salt intake

for better health. Considering that there is strong scientific evidence that the current high

consumption of salt throughout Europe is a major factor increasing blood pressure and thereby

cardiovascular disease, the Council calls on Member States to strengthen or develop their

nutrition policies to reduce the consumption of salt by the population. In particular, MemberStates are invited to:

Set targets and deadlines for achieving reduction in salt intake; Encourage food producers and providers to achieve the highest possible reduction in salt

content of foods and meals on the market.

The Ministers also called on the European Commission to continue its approach to tackle high

salt consumption at EU level, taking into account the work of the WHO. The Commission is

invited to:

Identify mechanisms and tools to encourage the food industry to maintain progress onreducing the levels of salt in foods;

Analyse the action taken at EU and national level and report in 2012.The issue of salt reduction is also on the agenda of the High Level Group on Nutrition and

Physical Activity, a group of Member States representatives coordinated by the Commission.

HOTREC shares the concerns of the European and national authorities in relation to the issue of

nutrition determining citizens health to a great extent. However, because eating habits and

lifestyles vary significantly with geography and cultures, it is essential that policy interventions

and solutions to encourage healthy diets be suggested at national level, taking into accountgastronomic traditions and the specificities of the different sectors.
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EU High level conference on nutrition, overweight and obesity

The EU Belgian Presidency is organising in cooperation with the European Commission (DG

Health and Consumers) a High Level Conference on monitoring and evaluation of the EU and

Member States strategies on nutrition, overweight and obesity. The Conference will take place in

Brussels on 8-9 December 2010.

The objective of the initiative is to exchange views on current experiences in the field and to lay

the groundwork for a future policy. Some Member States (Belgium, France, Germany, Portugal

and Slovenia) will present an evaluation of their nutrition policies. In addition, the Commission

and World Health Organization will respectively report on the implementation of EU nutrition

strategy and the WHO second Action Plan on food and nutrition policies.

Further details on the Conference are available on thewebsiteof the EU Belgian Presidency.

HOTREC will attend the Conference and report back to its national associations on the outcome.

New EU logo for organic food

New EU rules on organic food labelling, including the requirement to display the new EU

organic logo, entered into force on 1July 2010. The logo, the so-called Euro-Leaf, will now be

obligatory on pre-packaged organic food products that have been produced in any of the EU

Member States and meet the requirements laid down by Regulation 834/2007 on organic

production and labelling of organic products. (Catering operations are not subject to Regulation

834/2007). Foods may be marked as organic if at least 95% of their agricultural ingredients are

organic. Operators have a two-year transition period to comply with the new labelling rules. The

logo stays optional for non-packed and imported organic products. Private, regional or national

logos can continue to appear alongside the EU label.

Another change is the introduction of EU rules for organic aquaculture for the first time.

Further details and the new logo and EU organic legislation can be found on the EU Organic

Farmingwebsite.

European Alcohol and Health Forum

In October 2010, the European Commission (DG Health and Consumers) launched the

RAYPRO website. RAYPRO (Resource on Alcohol and Youth Projects) is an online-database

which gathers information on existing projects to reduce alcohol-related harm among children

and young people. The objective of the initiative is to promote the exchange of good practice

among interested parties (industry, public authorities, NGOs, etc.) across Europe. The RAYPRO

database is open to contributions from all organisations and agencies working on alcohol and

young people.

The projects included in the online database are grouped according to five themes: under-age

drinking; drink-driving; education of young people; promotion of responsible selling and serving

of alcohol and protection of young people from the consequences of alcohol abuse by others.

The initiative was developed in the context of the European Alcohol and Health Forum. The Forumbrings together European associations (and their members) that are willing to take self-binding andverifiable actions (so-called commitments) to reduce alcohol-related harm. Members of the Forum
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include representatives of economic operators (alcohol producers, advertising agencies, media,

retailers, hospitality, etc.), consumers, medical professions and health NGOs.

The next plenary meeting of the Alcohol Forum will take place on 18 November 2010, followed by

an Open Forum session (open to non-members and the media) on 19 November 2010.

HOTREC and its National Associations share the concern of public authorities in relation to the

abuse of alcohol, in particular by young people. Responsible drinking is in the best interest of

producers, retailers, hospitality establishments and individuals who have a responsibility to

themselves and others not to abuse alcohol.

HOTREC is a member of the European Alcohol and Health Forum since 2008, together with the British Beer and Pub Association, the Finnish Hospitality Association and the Swedish Hotel and

Restaurant Association. Details on the commitments by HOTREC and its members can be found on

the HOTRECwebsite.

Eurobarometer on alcohol: little variation in level of consumptionOn 21 April 2010, the European Commission published the results of aEurobarometersurvey on

EU citizens attitudes towards alcohol. The enquiry was carried out in October 2009 at the

request of the Directorate General for Health and Consumers (DG SANCO). The following

issues were examined:

Patterns of alcohol consumption across Europe (level, frequency and amount); Awareness of risk and harm; support for public policies on alcohol.

The main findings of the Eurobarometer are:

Since the last survey in 2006, there is little variation in the level of alcohol consumption.Most EU citizens drink moderately but there is a wide variation in the frequency and

level of alcohol consumption from country to country.

Most Europeans are aware that alcohol can have harmful effects on their health.However, the majority do not know the legal blood alcohol limit for driving in their

country.

53% of the respondents think that individuals are responsible enough to protectthemselves from alcohol-related harm, while 43% say public authorities have to

intervene. At the same time, a clear majority supports public policy and measures to

reduce alcohol-related harm such as: an 18 year age limit for selling and serving alcoholic

beverages across the EU (89%); lower blood alcohol limit for young drivers (73%);warnings for pregnant women (89%) and drivers (79%) on bottles; a ban across Europe

on alcohol advertising targeting young people (77%).

Commission consultation considers EU ban on tobacco vending machines

On 24 September 2010, the European Commission (DG Health and Consumers) launched a

public consultation on the possible revision of Directive 2001/37/EC on the manufacture,

presentation and sale of tobacco products. The objective of the initiative is to gather the views of

all interested parties on the need to revise the current Directive as well as on some policy

options proposed by the Commission for the revision of the legislation.

The consultative document is divided into six sections. The first five sections include questions

on the need of stricter requirements for the manufacturing and packaging of tobacco products
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(e.g. mandatory pictorial warnings on tobacco packages, plain packaging and regulation of

tobacco ingredients). Section 6 deals with the issue of Access to tobacco products. In this

respect, one of the policy options proposed by DG SANCO suggests the possibility to extend

the scope of the Directive in order to ban tobacco vending machines in all Member States as well

as the display of tobacco products in retail stores (policy option 3).

Detailed information on the consultation and all related documents can be found on thewebsite

of DG SANCO.

HOTREC supports activities to promote health and preventing smoking-related diseases.

Nonetheless it considers that when cross-border sale is not involved, rules regarding access to

tobacco product s (e.g. vending machines and display in retail outlets) should be decided at

national level, in accordance with the subsidiarity principle.

HOTREC notes that an EU ban on tobacco vending machines could have an impact on the

hospitality sector in those Member States where these devices may still be available in

hospitality venues.

Eurobarometer on tobacco: 30% of Europeans are smokers

On 27 May 2010, EU Commissioner for Health and Consumers, Mr. John Dalli, presented the

results of the latest Eurobarometer on tobacco. The survey, carried out in October 2009,

enquiries the behaviour and attitudes of Europeans towards tobacco, covering themes such as:

Frequency and amount of tobacco use; Exposure to passive smoking in private and public places; Measures to reduce tobacco use.

Amongst others, the survey finds that around 30% of Europeans are current smokers, while 25%

of non-smokers are exposed to tobacco smoke at home and 25% of people are exposed to

tobacco smoke at work. As regards public places, the Eurobarometer reports that there appears

to be a greater incidence of people smoking inside bars as opposed to eating establishments.

The survey also shows that most EU citizens would be in favour of a wide range of tobacco

control measures. However, contrary to the last Eurobarometer on tobacco (March 2009), the

new study does not enquiry the attitudes of people towards smoking bans and restrictions in

hospitality venues.

As regards the issue of smoking in public and workplaces, HOTREC continues to be of the opinion

that the matter is best tackled at national level, where local conditions and specificities can be better

taken into account. HOTREC considers that the current policy, consisting of national legislation

supported by EU programs and campaigns, has so far proven to be effective in developing rules best

tailored to the needs and attitudes of society vis--vis smoking in the different EU Member States.

CONSUMER AFFAIRS

Draft IMCO report on the Consumer Rights Directive: new requirements forhospitality contracts?

As explained inLive from Brussels N44, the Commission released in October 2008 a proposal

for a Directive on consumer rights (COM(2008) 614/3 final). The aim of this Directive is to
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review, simplify and improve the coherence of the consumer contract regulatory framework

through the incorporation into one set of rules of four existing Directives:

The unfair contract terms Directive (93/13/EEC); The distance selling Directive (97/7/EC); The consumer sales and guarantees Directive (99/44/EC); and The doorstep selling Directive (85/577/EC).

This draft Directive intends to regulate all business-to-consumer contracts for sales of services

and goods, including distance contracts and unfair contract terms. In particular, it:

Contains black and grey lists of unfair contract terms; Proposes to ban pre-ticked opt-in boxes in contracts; Upholds the existing exemption to the right of withdrawal and to the right to a

written confirmation of information granted in relation to accommodation contracts

sold at distance.

The text is currently being discussed in both the European Parliament and the Council under the

ordinary legislative procedure (previously called co-decision procedure). In the European

Parliament, the Rapporteur - Mr. Andreas Schwab (EPP, Germany) - released in June 2010 his

draft reportfor the IMCO (Internal Market and Consumer protection) Committee. The Schwab

draft report proposes, in particular, to maintain the exemption on the right of withdrawal for

hotel and restaurant contracts concluded at distance that is contained in the existing Distance

Selling Directive.

The draft report also includes obligations for hotel and restaurant contracts concluded at distance

to provide to the consumer a list of mandatory pre-contractual information which would include

among others:

The identity of the trader, his business address, telephone and email; The prices inclusive of all taxes; Details on the complaint handling policy and the performance of the service; The possibility of having recourse to an amicable dispute settlement; etc.

According to the draft report, such information should be provided to the consumer in time for

the conclusion of the distance contract and also be confirmed to the consumer on a durable

medium in reasonable time after the conclusion of the contract. Emails would not be considered

as durable medium. This heavy obligation would be a novelty for hospitality contracts concludedat distance.

The draft Schwab report also confirms the general ban on pre-ticked opt-in boxes applying to

payment in all consumer contracts and the idea of black and grey lists of contract terms that are

respectively always considered unfair or presumed to be unfair. However, the draft report

proposed that Member States should still be allowed to adopt or maintain provisions identifying

other contract terms as unfair provided such provisions fulfil certain conditions.

The IMCO Committee will vote on the Schwab report on 9 December 2010.

HOTREC and its National Associations already welcomed the Commission proposal to maintainthe exemptions to the right of withdrawal and to the confirmation of information on a durable

medium in case of distance contracts for the provision of accommodation, catering or leisure
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services. HOTREC therefore welcomes the Rapporteurs proposal to keep the exemption to the

right of withdrawal, but regrets his proposition to scrap the exemption to the confirmation of

information on a durable medium for accommodation and catering contracts. Given the specific

nature of hotel room or catering contracts and the highly perishable nature of the services

provided by the hospitality industry, such derogations are essential for hospitality establishments

in Europe.

Towards a new optional European contract law regime?

On 1 July 2010, the European Commission released a Green Paper entitled Policy options for

progress towards a European Contract law for consumers and businesses. This Green Paper is

accompanied by a public consultation which is open until 31 January 2011.

The purpose of this Green Paper is to set out options on how to strengthen further the internal

market by improving the quality and coherence of the European Contract Law in order to lift

existing legal barriers to cross-border trade. This initiative is extremely important as it may affect

the contract law regime applied in the Member States, including rules regulating hospitalityservices contracts.

The Green Paper identifies 7 options for a new instrument of European Contract Law:

Option 1: Publication of the work of the Expert Group on a Common Frame ofReference in the area of European Contract Law. The result of the work of thisExpert Group could be used by European and national legislators and by contractual

parties;

Option 2: An official toolbox for the legislator, possibly binding the EUinstitutions through an inter-institutional agreement;

Option 3: Commission Recommendation on European Contract Law. Such aRecommendation could either encourage Member States to replace national contract

laws by the recommended European instrument or could encourage Member States to

incorporate this new instrument as an optional regime;

Option 4: Regulation setting-up an optional instrument of European ContractLaw. When entering into a contract, parties would have the choice between thetraditional contract law regime and this new European contract law regime;

Option 5: Directive on European Contract Law; Option 6: Regulation establishing a European Contract Law; Option 7: Regulation establishing a European Civil Code. Such an instrument

would not only cover contract law but also other types of obligations (e.g. tort law).

In addition to these seven options, the Green Paper also examines whether such initiative should

cover both business-to-consumer contracts and business-to-business contracts, both cross-border

and domestic contracts and what should be the material scope of this instrument (definitions, pre-

contractual duties, right of withdrawal, content and effect, remedies, tort law, etc.).

As a key component of the tourism industry, hospitality businesses are engaged in cross-border

contracts on a daily basis. Therefore, any initiative which aims to strengthen the single market

and to affect the legal regime of cross-border contracts is of high relevance for HOTREC and its

national hospitality associations. HOTREC will, therefore, consider contributing to this

consultation in order to ensure that the specificities and needs of the hospitality industry arefully taken into account.
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Based on 3 pillars (sectoral consumer market investigations, benchmarking retail market

integration and benchmarking the consumer environment), its aim is to monitor the performances

ofa specific market from the consumers perspective. Using key indicators (complaints, prices,

switching possibilities, consumers satisfaction and safety), the consumer scoreboard will allow

the Commission to identify underperforming markets (in terms of economic or social outcomes)which need to be given special attention and regulated further.

In this context, the European Commission announced in a letter addressed to HOTREC on 15

July 2010 that the next edition of the scoreboard will assess, among others, the performance of

the hospitality industry for consumers. The Commission also announced that it would like to

establish a dialogue with HOTREC on the findings of this enquiry. The next edition of the

Consumer Market Scoreboard is due to be published at the end of October or beginning of

November 2010.

As a service industry, the European hospitality industry is highly interested in the result of this

enquiry and is confident about the possible findings. HOTREC, nonetheless, stresses that theresulting information and data should be processed in a practice-oriented manner for SMEs and

that the method used to measure consumer satisfaction should be transparent.

COPYRIGHT

ECJ confirms copyright fees for TV in hotel rooms

As referred to in Live from Brussels N47, on 10 April 2009, the Greek Supreme Court lodged

with the ECJ (European Court of Justice) a reference for a preliminary ruling concerning theneed to pay copyright fees for the use of TV in hotel rooms (caseC-136/09). The case involved a

Greek hotelier questioning whether a TV in a hotel room was sufficient to constitute a

communication to the public in the meaning of article 3-1 of the 2001/29/EC Directive on

Copyright in the information society, exactly as in the previous Rafael case (C-306/05). As the

Greek Supreme Court thought that the ECJs ruling in the Rafael Case was not clear enough, it

asked for clarifications on the matter.

On 18 March 2010, the ECJ released a Court order in which it confirms its previous judgement

in the Rafael case and unambiguously states that:

Authors, when allowing the broadcasting of their works, only consider direct users(i.e. individuals receiving the TV/radio signal) in the private circles of their families;

Hotel clients constitute a new public, and the hotelier consciously intervenes to giveto this new public access to the protected works. The hotelier does so by providing

TV sets which are able to access the broadcasts.

Therefore, by installing TV sets in the hotel rooms and by connecting them to thecentral antenna of the hotel, the hotelier is making a communication to the public in

the meaning of article 3-1 of the 2001/29/CE Directive.

This decision was released through a court order, instead of a normal court decision. Court

orders are used when the answer to the legal questions referred to the Court can obviously befound in the existing jurisprudence. In this specific case, the Court used this procedure, as it

found that the Rafael case was sufficiently clear. Consequently, the Court did not require a new
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opinion of the Advocate General. The ECJs order is available on the ECJs website, under case

C-136/09.

The hospitality industry acknowledges the ECJs ruling but nonetheless stresses that it expresslyrefers to article 3-1 of the 2001/29/CE Directive, which deals with authors rights to authorise or

prohibit a communication to the public, and not in any manner to the less favourable makingavailable right contained in article 3-2 and which is granted to neighbouring right holders.

Towards a Framework Directive on copyright management

On 19 May 2010, the European Commission adopted a new Communication entitled A Digital

Agenda for Europe (COM(2010) 245), as announced in the EU 2020 Strategy. As part of this

digital agenda, one priority identified by the Commission is to achieve a digital single market

through the adoption of several measures at EU level.

To achieve this goal, one of the key actions envisaged by the Commission is to issue, by the end

of 2010, a proposal for a framework Directive on collective rights management. The aim of thisDirective would be to enhance the governance, transparency and pan European licensing for

online rights management. It would, therefore, concentrate on the inadequacies of the current

territorial licensing practices with the development of legal online distribution of copyrighted

works and creative content. Such a focus was clear in the Commission public hearing on the

governance of collecting societies organised in April 2010 and which HOTREC attended.

This framework Directive could possibly be followed by a Green Paper addressing the

opportunities and challenges of online distribution of audio-visual works protected by copyright.

The hospitality industry has been voicing for years concerns over the management of collecting

societies and their licensing practices. The Commissions announcement of a proposal for aframework Directive is, therefore, an important development for the hospitality industry.

Nevertheless, HOTREC, which is currently working on the issue with other trade associations

members of the Copyright Users Platform (CUP), is disappointed by the likely restriction of the

scope of this initiative to the problem faced by online distribution of work protected by copyright,

thus leaving aside the long standing problems faced by the hospitality industry when negotiating

licenses with collecting societies for offline uses. HOTREC, therefore, considers that this

aspect should also be covered by the upcoming Framework Directive.

COMPETITION

Prohibited horizontal agreements: hotels information exchanges in the spotlight!

The European Commission is currently reviewing the existing regime for the assessment of

horizontal cooperation agreements (i.e. agreement between actual or potential competitors or

agreement between two companies active in the same product market but not necessarily active

in the same geographic market). Such agreements may fall under the scope of Article 101 of the

Treaty on the functioning of the European Union prohibiting agreements/decisions/concerted

practices between undertakings restricting competition.

As part of this review, the European Commission released on 4 May 2010draft Guidelineson

the applicability of Article 101 of the Treaty to horizontal cooperation agreements. They are
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meant to set out the principles used to assess the compatibility of horizontal cooperation

agreements with the Treaties competition rules on the prohibition of concerted practices.

In particular they include a chapter on exchange of information between competitors (either

directly, through a trade association, a third party or by means of publishing) which uses as an

illustration of prohibited cooperation agreements, the example of luxury hotels which directlyexchange information on current occupancy rates and revenues. Such information exchange

would constitute an unlawful horizontal agreement as it would have restrictive effects on

competition [] because knowing the competitors actual current prices would be likely to leadto coordination (i.e. alignment) of companies competitive behaviour.

The draft guidelines also contain a chapter on standardisation agreements which might be

relevant for the hospitality industry, as agreements to produce common quality standards may

also constitute, under certain conditions, a violation of the EU competition rules.

These draft guidelines were accompanied by a public consultation which was open until 25 June

2010.

HOTREC took note of the draft guidelines published by the European Commission, which will

help hospitality businesses understand better which information exchanges are lawful under EU

competition rules.

New guidelines on vertical restraints: few changes for the hospitality industry

On 20 April 2010, the European Commission adopted its new Block Exemption Regulation

330/2010on the application of Article 101(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European

Union to categories of vertical agreements and concerted practices. This new Regulation

replaces the previous Block Exemption Regulation2790/1999since 1 June 2010.

The block exemption regulation on vertical restraints is of particular importance for the

hospitality industry mainly for two types of agreements which fall under its scope: franchising

contracts and beer supply contracts.

The new Regulation and guidelines on vertical restraints (which help determining whether

sector-specific agreements, such as franchising agreements or beer supply agreements, are falling

under the scope of the block exemption regulation) released by the Commission are very close to

the previous Regulation 2790/1999 and accompanying guidelines. The Commission was

apparently considering that the previous rules were working well overall and should not befundamentally modified.

Nevertheless, few modifications were introduced in the new texts. They mostly intend to take

into account two developments over the recent years:

Increased market power at the level of buyers (big retailers). The new Regulationforesees that the 30% market share threshold, for a vertical agreement to be block-

exempted, should not only apply to the seller but also to the buyer;

New form of distribution, in particular due to the development of internet. In thiscase, specific rules are introduced for online sales and possible restriction of

competition in distribution agreements. This novelty may have some impact onrelationship between hotels and booking websites.
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The new Regulation (and guidelines) entered into force on 1 June 2010 and will remain in force

until 31 May 2022. Vertical agreements already in force on 31 May 2010, and which were

satisfying the conditions provided for in the previous Regulation 2790/1999, would continue to

be block-exempted until 31 May 2011.

During the consultation process, which led to the adoption of the new Regulation and relatedguidelines, HOTREC considered that the previous Regulation 2790/1999 and its related

guidelines on vertical restraints had delivered an optimal level of performance for the hospitality

industry and that they should not be fundamentally altered.

As the new Regulation and its related guidelines maintain the status quo in relation to the main

types of vertical agreements used by the hospitality industry, HOTREC welcomes these two texts.

TAXATION

VATlatest developments in the Member States

Since the last issue ofLive from Brussels, the following changes in VAT rates for hospitality

services were communicated to HOTREC.

In Greece, following an increase in VAT rates in March, the standard VAT rate was increased

again as from 1 July 2010, from 21 to 23% and the reduced rate, applied to hotel and restaurant

services, from 10 to 11%. The islands of the Aegean Sea continue to benefit from a special

reduction on these rates.

In Finland, as from 1 July 2010, the standard VAT rate was increased from 22 to 23% and thereduced rates went up from 8 and 12 to 9 and 13% respectively. However, as good news for the

Finnish restaurant industry, as from the same date the reduced VAT rate of 13% applies to

restaurant services, instead of the standard rate. Accommodation services still benefit from the

lower reduced rate of currently 9%.

In Spain, as from 1 July 2010, the government increased the VAT reduced rate from 7 to 8% and

the standard rate from 16 to 18%. Hotel and restaurant services continue benefiting from the

reduced rate.

In Portugal, also as from 1 July 2010, the standard rate was increased from 20 to 21% and the

reduced rates of 5 and 12% to 6 and 13% respectively. Similarly to Finland, accommodationservices benefit from the lower reduced rate of now 6%, while restaurant services are subject to

the higher reduced rate of currently 13%.

Following the development in Finland, as from 1 July 2010, 14 out of 27 EU Member States are

applying a reduced VAT rate to restaurant services. Finland is the third country (after France and

Belgium) joining those 11 Member States, which were the only ones allowed to apply a reduced

VAT rate to restaurant services until 1 June 2009.

HOTREC is pleased that now the majority of the EU Member States apply a reduced VAT rate to

restaurant services. The number of 23 countries out of the 27 applying the reduced rate to

accommodation services remains unchanged.


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Towards a reform of the VAT and other tax regimes?

On 10 May 2010, Mario Monti, former Commissioner for Internal Market and Taxation,

presented areportto the Commission on a new strategy towards a single market at the request of

President Jos Manuel Barroso.

In the study Mr. Monti mentions that coordination of policies directed at raising standard VAT

rates or limiting the application of reduced VAT rates may be beneficial and finally

recommends reforming VAT rules in a single market-friendly way. Mr. Monti suggested the

setting up of a Tax Policy Group, chaired by the Commissioner responsible for taxation and

composed by personal representatives of the Finance Ministers of the Member States.

On 29 September 2010, the Commissioner in charge for taxation, Algirdas Semeta, announced

that a Green Paper will be published still in 2010 to launch a wide-scale debate on the evaluation

of the current VAT regime. This would be followed by a Commission Communication in 2011

setting out the priorities for the evolution of the VAT system.

On 12 October 2010, the first meeting of the Tax Policy Group, as proposed by the report of

Mario Monti, was held. The Group will work on topics such as how taxation can contribute to a

stronger Internal Market, to the growth and competitiveness of Europes economy and to a

greener economy. It shall also serve as a forum for deeper discussions on not only a new VAT

strategy, but also on corporate taxation, i.e. the common consolidated corporate tax base.

HOTREC is watching these developments carefully as these discussions may lead to the long

envisaged reform of the provisional VAT rules established in 1992 and also to a formal proposal

for corporate taxation.

Excise duties on alcoholic beveragesReport by the Commission

As last reported on the issue of excise duties on alcoholic beverages (see Live from Brussels

N41), a proposal by the Commission (COM(2006) 486) to increase the minimum level of excise

duties was halted in the Council, following an opinion of the European Parliament saying that the

proposal shall be withdrawn. In September 2007, the Council postponed any decision, awaiting a

comprehensive study from the Commission on the issue.

In June 2010, the Commission issued a study, prepared by London Economics, analysing

possible changes in the minimum rates and structures of excise duties on alcoholic beverages.

The study identified a lack of clarity in the classification system of the different products (based

on the current Directive92/83/EC) and a lack of harmonisation in excise duty rates (based on the

current Directive92/84/EC). According to the study some Member States apply 10 to 300 times

higher excise duties on different types of alcoholic beverages than the countries applying the

lowest rates. Furthermore, the study noted that the minimum rates of excise duties laid down by

the Directive in 1992 have not increased and therefore lost around 44% in value.

Taking the above into consideration the study proposes that (inter alia):

The minimum rates of excise duty be increased, taking account of the inflation since1992;

A minimum rate on wine be introduced;
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A maximum rate of excise duty rates be introduced in order to better harmonise therates at EU level.

HOTREC will watch the developments carefully as excise duties influence the final price of

alcoholic beverages sold in hospitality establishments.

SOCIAL DIALOGUE

Extraordinary Liaison Forum and EFFAT-HOTREC Qualifications and SkillsPassport

On 30 September 2010, the European Commission organised an Extraordinary Liaison Forum to

present and discuss the findings of theCommission Staff working documenton the functioning

and potential of European Sectoral Social Dialogue. The document highlights the dynamics,

concrete impact and possible improvements of the sectoral social dialogue committees works andidentifies possible improvements with a view to extending the scope and quality of the

consultation and negotiation process.

The conference consisted of four working sessions, each of which was devoted to one particular

dimension of European sectoral social dialogue:

1. Discussion and consultation;

2. Negotiation and implementation of agreements;

3. Joint actions/projects carried out by the social partners; and

4. Contribution to the EU policy agenda.

At session 3 Martin Couchman, HOTREC Chairman of the European Sectoral Social Dialogue

Committee, and Kerstin Howald, EFFAT Tourism Sector Secretary, took the floor to deliver a

presentation on the EFFAT-HOTREC Qualification and Skills Passport for the hospitality sector.

In his speech, Martin Couchman emphasised the message on the need for funding to carry out

the pilot phase of the project in four countries (Hungary, Italy, Malta and Spain) where both the

employers and trade unions had agreed to continue working in the project.

As explained inLive from Brussels N 50, in June 2009, the European Commission had agreed to

support financially the first one-year phase of an EFFAT-HOTREC project to develop a

Qualifications and Skills Passport (QSP) for the hospitality sector. Currently the QSP is ready to

be piloted in the four countries mentioned above. HOTREC and EFFAT need to secureadditional funding from the Commission to carry out the next phase in these countries.

As reported in Live from Brussels N49, HOTREC already replied to the draft outline on the

future Communication on the European Sectoral Social Dialogue. In its replyHOTREC stressed,

amongst others, that the social partners be consulted on all developments at Community level

having social implications. On the negotiation dimension, HOTREC pointed out that it does

not have the mandate to negotiate social issues on behalf of its affiliate members.

HOTREC also pointed out in its reply that the Commission should simplify and facilitate the

procedures to access the social dialogue budget heading. Only in this way will social partners be

able to fully use the EU funding instruments. Therefore, HOTREC expects that the Commissionagree to support financially the pilot phase of the EFFAT-HOTREC QSP project as the value of

having a mobility scheme for the hospitality industry could be enormous.
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SOCIAL AFFAIRS

Working time awaiting second-phase consultation of the social partners

As reported inLive from Brussels N50, on 24 March 2010, the European Commission adopted a

Communication (COM(2010) 106) on Reviewing the Working Time Directive. This

Communication launched the first-stage consultation of the European social partners, in

accordance with article 154 (2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU),

on a possible revision of the Working Time Directive.

In this consultation, the Commission was looking for the social partners views on whether

action is needed at European level to review the current Directive and on the possible scope of

such a revision. In the description of the key issues, the Commission document referred to:

Working hoursopt-out; On-call time; Calculation of average weekly working hours; and Flexibility on the timing of minimum daily and weekly rests.

The consultation was extended until 7 June 2010. According to the Commission the number of

replies received both from cross-sectoral and sectoral organisations was quite large. However,

responses were not unanimous on whether EU action is needed in this area.

As explained in the previous issues of Live from Brussels, the Commission had also

commissioned from an external consultancy an extensive impact assessment on the legal

application of the Directive in the Member States, as well as a study on the social and economicaspects that are pertinent to a comprehensive review of the Directive. It is expected that this

impact assessment will be presented in mid-November.

With regard to the second-phase consultation of the social partners on a possible revision of the

Working Time Directive, it will most probably be launched by mid November/beginning of

December.

In itsreplyto the first-stage consultation of the social partners, HOTREC pointed out that no

action is needed at European level in this area. HOTREC is of the opinion that over the years

national legislation and collective agreements have developed to adapt the current European

legislation to the different national/sectoral situations, as well as to the new developments in the

world of work. A revision of the Directive would only disrupt these national/sectoral rulesand create further uncertainties for the future.

HOTREC will follow the next developments in this area and will be pleased to contribute to the

second-phase consultation of the social partners.

Maternity leavevoted in the EP Plenary

As reported in previous issues ofLive from Brussels, in October 2008, the European Commission

issued a package of documents on work-life balance. The package includes, amongst others, aCommission proposal (COM(2008) 637 final) for a Directive, amending Directive 92/85/EEC,

on the introduction of measures to encourage improvements in the safety and health at work of
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pregnant workers and workers who have recently given birth or are breastfeeding. This

legislative proposal is currently being dealt with by the European Parliament and the Council

under the ordinary legislative procedure.

The Commission suggests, amongst others, to extend the minimum period of maternity leave to

18 weeks (14 under the current Directive), 6 of which would have to be taken after the birth.Maternity allowance should be 100% of the full monthly salary, though this provision is not

made mandatory. A first report on the proposal was referred back to the Committee on Womens

Rights and Gender Equality (FEMM) by the plenary session of the European Parliament in May

2009.

On 23 February 2010, the FEMM Committee adopted the report prepared by MEP Estrela (S&D, Portugal) on the Commission proposal. The report requests that maternity leave be extended

from 14 to 20 weeks with full pay. It introduces a new pro vision on paid paternity leave for a

period of 2 weeks for workers whose life-partner has recently given birth.

The vote in the plenary on the Estrela report initially scheduled for 24 March was, however,postponed, as the coordinators of the FEMM Committee announced in mid March that they had

requested from an external company an assessment of the impact of prolonging maternity leave

to 18 or 20 weeks with full pay and of introducing 2 weeks paid paternity leave.

The impact assessment attempted to determine the economic and social costs and benefits of

introducing 18 or 20 weeks fully paid maternity leave as well as of introducing 2 weeks fully-

paid paternity leave in 10 Member States: Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany,

Hungary, Poland, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. The costs of the proposals vary

widely among the Member States analysed because of the different rules on maternity and

paternity leave schemes.

Members of the FEMM Committee debated the conclusions of the impact assessment, presented

by Ramboll consultancy, on 5 October 2010. Differing views about the costs and benefits of

introducing 18 or 20 full paid maternity leave and 2 weeks full paid paternity leave were voiced

by MEPs and invited experts.

Finally, on 20 October 2010, the plenary session of the European Parliament adopted its first

readinglegislative resolutionon the Estrela report. MEPs voted by a large majority in favour of

introducing both a 20 weeks maternity leave on full paid and a 2 weeks full paid paternity leave

for workers whose life-partner has recently given birth.

However, MPEs adopted amendments adding that, when family related leave is available at

national level, the last four weeks of the 20 may be regarded as maternity leave and must be paid

at least 75% of salary.

The Members States will now analyse the parliaments resolution within the Council of

Ministers.

HOTREC supports measures on work-life balance and protection of working women who are

pregnant, have recently given birth or are breastfeeding. Nevertheless, HOTREC is of the

opinion that an excessive regulation in this area will add financial costs and additional burdens

on SMEs. The compulsory extension of maternity leave to 20 weeks with full pay and theintroduction of 2 weeks paid paternity leave would entail additional burdens in the majority of
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the Member States, where the situation in relation to maternity and paternity leave varies

greatly.

HOTREC shares the opinion of BUSINESSEUROPE, according to which extra rules in the field

of maternity protection might discourage employers from recruiting young women and could

have a negative impact on employment possibilities for women.

Social protection of self-employed workers and assisting spouses - Directive adopted

As part of the Commission proposal on work-life balance,Directive 2019/41/EU of the European

Parliament and the Council on the application of the principle of equal treatment between men

and women engaged in a self-employed capacity and repealing Directive 86/613/EEC was

adopted on 7 July 2010 under the ordinary legislative procedure.

The Directive establishes, amongst others:

Social protection: Where a system for social protection for self-employed workers existsin a Member State, that Member State shall take the necessary measures to ensure that

spouses and life partners can benefit from a social protection in accordance with national

law. It is up to the Member States to decide if this social protection is implemented on a

mandatory or voluntary basis;

Maternity benefits: The Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure thatfemale self-employed workers and female spouses and life partners may, in accordance

with national law, be granted a sufficient maternity allowance enabling interruptions in

their occupational activity owing to pregnancy or motherhood for at least 14 weeks. It is

up to the Member States to decide whether the maternity allowance is granted on a

mandatory or voluntary basis.

With regard to the allowance, the Directive establishes that it shall be deemed sufficient if it

guarantees an income at least equivalent to:

(a) the allowance which the person concerned would receive in the event of a break in her

activities on grounds connected with her state of health;

(b) or the average loss of income or profit in relation to a comparable preceding period

subject to any ceiling laid down under national law;

(c) or any other family related allowance established.

HOTREC took note of the new Directive. HOTREC supports measures to improve the social

protection of self-employed workers and assisting spouses, but is of the opinion that this issue

should be dealt with at national level.

New Commission proposal on seasonal workers

On 13 July 2010, the European Commission presented a proposal for a Directive on the

conditions of entry and residence of third-country nationals (TCN) for the purposes of seasonal

employment (COM (2010) 379 final). The proposal is to be dealt with by the European

Parliament and the Council under the ordinary legislative procedure. The Civil Liberties, Justice

and Home Affairs (LIBE) Committee will take the lead on the discussions on the proposal in the

Parliament. Claude Moraes (S&D, UK) has been appointed Rapporteur for this dossier.
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The proposal aims at establishing a common procedure for entry and residence of third country

seasonal workers in the EU. Seasonal workers are third-country nationals (non-EU citizens),

coming to an EU Member State for the purposes ofemployment in a sector of activity dependent

on the passing of the seasons (typically in agriculture, horticulture and tourism). Also, according

to the proposal their work is regulated in one or more fixed-term work contracts concluded

directly between the third-country national and the employer established in a MemberState.

The proposal for a Directive establishes, amongst others, that:

Seasonal workers will be issued a visa or residence permit allowing them to work for amaximum period of 6 months. Such strict limitation is devoted to ensure that workers are

employed for work that is genuinely seasonal and not for regular work; and

Employers shall provide evidence that the seasonal worker will have appropriateaccommodation during his/her stay.

It also lays down the rules governing working conditions, so as to prevent exploitation and

protect the health and safety of non-EU seasonal workers etc.

The proposed legislation does not create a right to admission of TCN, as it remains the right of

the Member States to determine the number of seasonal workers to be admitted to their country.

The proposal for a Directive when adopted will not be binding in the following Member States:United Kingdom, Ireland and Denmark

HOTREC will monitor the next developments in this area.

HOTREC is of the opinion that seasonal workers should be welcomed in the EU to deal with

shortages in certain sectors of activity like the tourism sector. However, HOTREC considers that

the current economic climate is s not the appropriate moment to for the proposed legisla

Documents

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