PWD implemented into national law

On the 28th of June 2018, the European Parliament agreed on the Directive 2018/957, revising the Posted Worker Directive of 1996, most commonly known as the Posted Worker Directive, or PWD. The 2-year transposition period for the Member States to adopt the Directive into national law ended 30th of July 2020. Going forward, the terms of the Directive will be fully applicable.
 

Rights and rules for posted workers

The most significant result of the revision of the Posted Worker Directive is the principle of “equal pay for equal work”. This has resulted in the following changes being introduced to the Directive:

• Application to posted workers of all the mandatory elements of remuneration - instead of just the “minimum rates of pay”
• Application to posted workers of the rules of the receiving Member State on worker’s accommodation and allowances or reimbursement of expenses during the posing assignment 
• For long-term postings, longer than 12 or 18 months, the application of the full extent of the receiving Member State’s employment law
   

What this means for your organization

The Posted Worker Directive requires employers to provide pre-travel notifications to the relevant authorities in the country of posting, prior to commencement of travel. This typically includes providing a copy of the contract, A1 or Certificate of Coverage, payslips, etc. This can be challenging for employers to manage, given that the notification requirement generally applies to business travelers and assignees, and the rules and scope vary significantly between member states.

For Norwegian employers, the implementation of the revised Directive does not impact the applicable rules when posting workers to Norway, as it is considered that Norway’s existing rules meet the requirements of the Directive. However, for employers posting workers to other EU/EEA countries, the rules of the different EU/EEA Member States apply.

According to figures issued by the EU commission, exchanges of information between member states in the context of PWD related audits have increased by over 60 percent in the last two years, with some countries sending more requests than others do. The Norwegian authorities have been cooperating with member States to collect penalties for not complying with the notification requirement. It is therefore imperative for companies to have the right processes in place to manage this requirement.
 

Deloitte’s PWD solution

To address the compliance challenges these rules create, Deloitte has developed a technology-driven end-to-end solution, which offers efficiency and best-in-class compliance support, governance, and oversight, integrated information flows from corporate data services as well as data security and privacy. Our PWD services can also be integrated into Deloitte wider offering such as assistance with A1 certificates of coverage, tax and immigration services.