Madrid will tighten control over the use of illegal labor
In Spain, labor inspections will soon be sharply stepped up to monitor employers' use of illegal immigrant labor. According to RIA Novosti, this was announced by Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Consuelo Rumí, summarizing the results of the largest legalization process for illegal immigrants in Spain's history.
Recall that during the legalization process, which lasted three months and ended on May 8, 690,679 people "came out of the shadows," which, according to some estimates, will allow adding €1.5 billion annually to the state treasury.
Rumí warned that from now on the authorities will harshly punish with fines of up to €60,000 those employers who have not wished to take advantage of the opportunity to legalize the status of their foreign workers for using illegal immigrant labor. In turn, immigrants who do not wish to legalize are to be actively deported from the country.
The recruitment of new labor will mainly take place through contracts concluded in advance in the countries where those wishing to come to work in Spain reside. Over 80% of legalized immigrant workers are employed in sectors with acute labor shortages. These include construction, agriculture, the hotel and restaurant business, and the textile industry.
Britons banned from working too much
The European Parliament voted to abolish the clause on voluntary opting out of work duration limits. According to the BBC, the opt-out right, which has been in effect for the past three years, may soon be repealed. Health and safety considerations for citizens are cited as the basis. Changes to the directive limiting the working week in the European Union must now be approved by the Council of Ministers.
Currently, workers can ignore limits on the maximum working week if they want to work longer. This system is more in demand in Britain than anywhere else. The British Labour government has already said that abolishing the opt-out right will reduce business competitiveness. They are supported by hospitals and small companies across the European Union.
However, the vote showed that liberals, socialists, communists and the Greens support the changes. 378 members of the European Parliament voted for the changes, and only 262 against.
The Working Time Directive guarantees workers 11 hours of rest per day and regular breaks. The working week must be 48 hours or less. A minimum annual leave of four weeks is guaranteed. Night work is limited to 8 hours out of 24.
The authors of the amendments also argue that time spent by an employee on the phone should always be counted as working time. In addition, average working hours will now be calculated over the whole year, rather than over a four-month period as is currently the case.
However, British trade unions support the innovations, noting that previously the working week could be greatly extended. True, the country's healthcare system will likely face staff shortages after the opt-out right is abolished. Employers are even more dissatisfied. As Lenta.ru reports, they demand a differentiated approach to EU member states.