In 2014, the EU adopted an Enforcement Directive to further strengthen the protection of posted workers with the aim of stopping circumvention of the rules. The Posted Workers Enforcement Directive (effective 2016) created additional employer obligations to increase oversight and tracking of overseas trips, and retain a wide variety of employment documents for both business travellers and assignees.

Posting declaration

Obligation to make a simple declaration to the responsible national authorities, at the latest at the commencement of the service provision, containing relevant information necessary in order to allow enforcement at the place of work.

Contact person for authorities

Obligation to designate a liaison person for the authorities in the host Member State in which the services are provided.

Social documents

• Obligation to keep or make available and/or retain copies of all relevant documents (e.g. employment contract, payslips, work schedules).
• Obligation to provide a translation of the relevant documents into one of the official languages of the host Member State or into (an)other language(s) accepted by the host Member State on request.
• Obligation to deliver the documents referred to under previous point, after the period of posting or travel, at the request of the authorities of the host Member State, within a reasonable period of time.

New legislation, which came into effect in July 2020, extends the 1996 Directive to promote the same level of remuneration for the same kind of work, application of full host country labour law after a certain period, and stricter rules for temporary work agencies. The main elements covered are as follows.

Equal pay for equal work

• This principle ensures that posted workers are entitled, not only to the applicable minimum wage of a host state, but to the same level of remuneration as local employees for the same kind of work in the same location.
• Remuneration, for these purposes, is defined as salary elements embedded in local legislation and generally applicable in collective bargaining agreements.
• Specifically for the assignment allowances, remuneration includes any allowances specific to the posting, with the exception of: allowances paid in reimbursement or compensation of expenditure on travel, board and lodging—these cannot be included in the salary.

Equal working conditions

• In addition to respecting the core minimum terms and conditions of employment as before under the 1996 Directive, employers now also need to maintain the host state’s local working conditions for their posted workers (if more beneficial to them) after an initial period of 12 to 18 months.
• Exceptions to this are the rules on conclusion and termination of employment contracts and supplementary occupation pension scheme rules.

PWD 2020 Rules Implementation Map

Hover over the relevant EEA country to understand the implementation status of the 2020 rules and the impact that these rules are expected to have on each country’s domestic legislation

Information contained within the Equal Pay for Equal Work Implementation Heat Map is based on Deloitte’s interpretation of published documentation as at March 2021. Actual implementation by jurisdictions may vary from our expectations and detail is also subject to change following future updates by relevant EEA and Swiss state authorities. The map is therefore intended for illustrative purposes only. Please contact your local Deloitte contact if you are interested in understanding more about how your business may be impacted.