Impact revision of posting directive limited for posting to Belgium
An employee is posted when he is sent abroad by the employer to work there for a certain period of time. In the case of posting within the EU, according to the Regulation 883/2004, during this period the worker remains in principle subject to the social security system of the country where he is normally employed.
The posting directive determines which employment and wage conditions of the host member state must be applied during the posting period. The aforementioned directive was converted into Belgian law by the Act of 5 March 2002.
The revision of the posting directive has received considerable media attention. The main key points are as follows:
- Extension of the wage conditions of the host member state that must be respected during the period of posting.
- After 12 months (extendable to 18 months), posted workers are entitled to all the working conditions of the host member state with the exception of the procedures, formalities and conditions of the conclusion and termination of the employment contract, as well as the supplementary pension scheme.
- Application of the “equal treatment” principle for temporary work for posted workers.
The impact of the revision of the posting directive is limited for postings to Belgium due to the fact that the Act of 5 March 2002 was already stricter than what was imposed by the posting directive. However, the revision of the posting directive may well have major consequences for posting to other EU member states.
Please note that the member states have two years to convert the revision of the directive into national law. So only after two years will more local legislation apply to postings within the EU.