Things are not going well for Europe. While countries like France and Germany reintroduce border controls within the Schengen zone, one of the biggest problems facing the transportation sector remains unanswered: social dumping. Instead of undermining the core of the European project by increasing controls at internal borders, EU member states would do better to focus their energy on tackling exploitation and injustice in the transportation sector.
Social dumping: open borders for exploitation
Recently, Norway, Austria, Germany, Denmark, France, Sweden, Slovenia and Italy reintroduced border controls. Soon, trucks will again be forced to queue at internal borders.
At the same time, truck drivers both EU an third country nationals, many of whom are away from home for weeks or months at a time, are exploited by abusive employers. These drivers often live and work in inhumane conditions, while receiving a pittance that barely meets basic rights. The strike by third-country national truck drivers last year in Gräfenhausen underscores the desperation and frustration of these workers. They revolted against employers who treat them like modern-day slaves, with no respect for European rules that should protect their working conditions.
The Mobility Package provides for measures around driving and rest periods, fair wages and basic labor rights, but compliance with these rules is totally inadequate. In Belgium, where only a handful of inspectors oversee hundreds of thousands of trucks, enforcement is often lacking, giving exploiters free rein. It is no different in other European member states! Without strict controls and sanctions, the Mobility Package remains a paper promise, while social dumping and exploitation increase.
Border controls as useless symbol politics
The reintroduction of border controls under the guise of security is an expensive, useless and misguided measure that plays into the right-wing extremist narrative. This narrative reduces migrants and cross-border traffic to a threat and mainly plays on gut feelings without offering real solutions. It gives the image of decisiveness, but does not solve any structural problems, such as the exploitation and lack of protection for migrant workers.
While allocating resources to facilitate these useless border controls, Europe is failing in terms of social justice. Indeed, the failure to combat exploitation and social dumping is a greater threat to European society. The problem of exploitation in the transport sector requires effective European cooperation and inspection, not rolling back the Schengen idea.
A call for true European solidarity and enforcement
Europe must focus on fair working conditions for all. The real problems we are facing today originates from a European Union that was built mainly as a large common market area with no adequate measures to address the imbalances created by such big, diverse market.
The answer to the challenges in the transport sector lies not in reintroducing borders, but in strengthening cooperation, enforcement and solidarity and going back to the founding principles that inspired the European project.
In cross-border transport activities this means deploying more inspectors, both at the national and European level, and strengthening the European Labor Authority (ELA) with a mandate to actually organize inspections. The priority should be to protect these rights instead of blindly focusing on symbolic politics.
Instead of hunting down people fleeing war, hunger and violence, Europe would do better to hunt down the organizers of fraud and exploitation.
No return to closed borders, but fair working conditions
It is time for Europe not to follow the rhetoric of division, but to make a firm commitment to social and solidarity policies. We must strive for fair working conditions and equal protection for all workers, no matter their origin, within our Union. Only by tackling social dumping across borders can we ensure a transport sector that is just, fair and future-proof. A return to closed borders is not a solution to the challenges of the future – a united Europe that protects its workers is.
Frank Moreels
President of the European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF)