“Stop unpaid traineeships,” Commission unveils proposed directive

Brussels – No more unpaid vocational training. Whether traineeships or apprenticeships, the concept does not change: it must be paid. Those in trial periods must have access to social protection and union representation. The European Commission delivers on its announcements and promises, putting on the table a package of measures designed to reshape the labor market in the EU: a proposed directive for quality traineeships, with clear indications for States, and an action plan to attract the skilled workforce that is needed but lacking.

The backbone of the EU executive’s strategy is undoubtedly the proposed directive, which aims to fill a regulatory gap. The Treaties on the Functioning of the European Union talk about work and workers, not apprentices. But under the same Treaties, Article 151 details the EU’s social policy objectives: “promoting employment, improving working and living conditions, […] developing human resources aimed at achieving a high and sustainable level of employment.” Because of this, Article 153 states that it “shall support and complement the activities of the Member States in the following fields: a) improvement in particular of the working environment to protect workers’ health and safety;
b) working conditions; c) social security and social protection of workers”.

The EU executive is working according to the law to come up with a proposal for a directive that, while leaving room for maneuver to member states, establishes the general principle that a trainee is equivalent to a worker and, therefore, is entitled to pay, union representation, and social protection. It does not impose a minimum wage for the trainee, which remains a matter for the States to decide, but it urges States to guard against the practice of undeclared work and to conduct checks through the competent authorities.

Inspections will have to consider a whole set of requirements that serve to unmask the actual worker from the alleged one: duties, responsibilities, and the absence of the learning component, which is crucial to the definition of an intern; also, there is a cap on the number of interns and the requirement for prior experience: all parameters on which inspections will have to be based, with employers required to provide the appropriate information. In any case, the directive provides that, in principle, an internship should last no longer than six months. However, Member States may have longer periods, provided it is “justified” and “based on objective reasons.”

Brussels estimates that approximately 3.1 million men and women are trainees, and only 1.6 million paid. The objective is to close this gap, which is also unequal treatment and discrimination. Putting an end to the practice of unpaid labor helps prevent many Europeans of working age (15-64), especially young people, from being discouraged from seeking employment at a time when the EU needs workers, skilled ones, in particular.

“Traineeships can be a great way for young people to get a first work experience, learn new skills,” Nicolas Schmit, Commissioner for Labor, stressed. “However, they must be quality traineeships, meaning there’s a clear learning objective, they are paid, and the trainees can receive mentoring and guidance to help them transition to the world of work.”

The ‘mandatory’ measures included in the proposed directive, which governments will be called upon to endorse once adopted, are joined by the less binding ones in the Manpower Shortage Action Plan. The EU executive calls on member states to encourage the use of older workers (over 50), promote targeted and controlled channels of economic immigration, and reform first-employment services so as to find those jobs in short supply. 

At least 42 types of workers are needed, especially in the technology sector (cybersecurity, telecommunications), health and healthcare, transportation, and the green economy (solar panel installation technicians, battery manufacturing experts). A change of pace is needed to offset all this. Not least because the population is aging, as the  European Central Bank warned, and going forward, there will be fewer and fewer workers. “By 2050, the working-age population in the EU will fall to 236 million, down from 272 million in 2009,” the European Commission warned. 

The two initiatives are interrelated. Paid traineeships, explains Valdis Dombrovskis, commissioner for an Economy that serves people, “contribute to alleviating skills shortages, to improving our competitiveness.” The action plan on skills and labor shortages “represents our path to strengthen EU competitiveness within our social market economy.”