Accommodation and food service activities :Issues and challenges related to labour mobility : 2024 ELA strategic analysis

Table of Contents

• Abbreviations 10
• Glossary 12
• Executive summary 15
• 1. Introduction 18
• 2. The Horeca sector in the economy of the EU 20
• This chapter in brief 20
• Introduction 20
• 2.1 Mediterranean countries have the largest Horeca sector in the EU 20
• 2.2 The relevance of the Horeca sector in the EU is closely linked to tourism activity 22
• 2.3 The financial and COVID-19 crises differed in their impacts on Horeca 25
• 2.4 Small enterprises and sole proprietorships are characteristic of the Horeca sector, but there are large cross-country differences 28
• Conclusion 33
• 3. The labour market in the Horeca sector of the EU 34
• This chapter in brief 34
• Introduction 34
• 3.1 The Horeca sector in the EU often employs mobile workers, young workers and women 35
• 3.1.1 Migrants contribute to easing labour market shortages in the Horeca sector 35
• 3.1.1.1 Third-country-national workers and shortage occupations 37
• 3.1.2 Mobile workers constitute an important share of the workforce in the Horeca sector in the Member States 38
• 3.1.2.1 Third-country nationals among Horeca workers 39
• 3.1.3 The overqualification rate in the Horeca sector is well above the average for the EU economy 40
• 3.1.4 Cross-border intra-EU labour mobility in the Horeca sector is underexplored 41
• 3.1.4.1 Cross-border workers 41
• 3.1.4.2 Posted workers 42
• 3.1.4.3 Seasonal workers 42
• 3.2 The need for work outside standard business hours is reflected in flexible work arrangements in terms of contracts and working time 42
• 3.3 Wages in the EU Horeca sector are below the EU average 47
• Conclusion 49
• 4. Recruitment in the Horeca sector 50
• This chapter in brief 50
• Introduction 50
• 4.1 Labour shortages are an enduring challenge for the Horeca sector 50
• 4.2 Possibilities to engage the labour force are shaped both by EU-wide and national legislation 51
• 4.3 European employment services are a valuable support tool for recruiting EU mobile workers 52
• 4.4 EU legislation on labour market access for third-country nationals includes several directives relevant to Horeca 53
• 4.5 Strategies observed in Member States include measures and practices facilitating flexibility and labour market access for third-country nationals and young workers 55
• Conclusion 58
• 5. Employment and working conditions 59
• This chapter in brief 59
• Introduction 59
• 5.1 EU law contributes to fair employment and working conditions and protects mobile workers 59
• 5.2 Member States’ labour laws offer a broad range of flexible work arrangements 61
• 5.3 Collective bargaining is important for setting rules on working conditions, including remuneration 67
• 5.4 Economic pressures and flexible work arrangements may exacerbate workers’ vulnerability 74
• 5.5 The regulation of the platform economy is being tackled at both the EU and Member State levels 76
• Conclusion 79
• 6. Enforcing labour law and EU labour mobility rules 80
• This chapter in brief 80
• Introduction 80
• 6.1 Member States report a range of non-compliance issues in Horeca that are often related to undeclared and under-declared work 80
• 6.2 Enforcement challenges in Horeca test the capacities of enforcement authorities 83
• 6.2.1 Enforcement challenges are related to the features and limitations of labour enforcement authorities, such as the scope of their mandate and resource constraints 83
• 6.2.2 Challenges in enforcement in Horeca are also linked to the engagement of mobile workers in the sector 83
• 6.2.3 Challenges in enforcement are related to the unique characteristics and operational schedules of the Horeca sector 86
• 6.3 To tackle challenges in the effective enforcement of applicable rules faced by labour authorities, Member States have worked out several good practices 87
• 6.4 Member States are enhancing the enforcement of labour law, especially through interinstitutional cooperation 92
• 6.4.1 Interinstitutional cooperation in the Member States helps effectively enforce labour and social security laws 92
• 6.4.2 More cross-border cooperation could further improve labour law enforcement 93
• 6.5 Social partners contribute to improving workers’ rights by means of collective agreements and other initiatives 95
• Conclusion 97
• 7. Information needs 99
• This chapter in brief 99
• Introduction 99
• 7.1 A variety of measures help address workers’ information needs, but some gaps remain 99
• 7.2 Employers’ and labour market intermediaries’ legal awareness varies by country, with reportedly smaller information gaps compared with workers 100
• 7.3 Awareness campaigns and comprehensive websites on the rights of workers constitute important good practices 101
• 7.3.1 Provision of information in the Horeca sector 101
• 7.3.2 Provision of information for mobile workers 102
• Conclusion 103
• 8. Operational conclusions 104
• References 106
• Table 2.1: Statistics on the dynamics of business demographics, averages for 2015–2019 32
• Table 4.1: Student work contracts in selected EU countries 56
• Table 4.2: Non-exhaustive overview of shortage occupations with simplified recruitment of TCNs 57
• Table 5.1: Selected flexible work arrangements, employment patterns and contract types in Member States 61
• Table 5.2: Several Member States have implemented specific arrangements for working time in the Horeca sector 66
• Table 5.3: Non-exhaustive overview of relevant collective agreements in Member States in the first semester of 2024 68
• Table 5.4: Provisions on applicable wages in the collective agreements covering the Horeca sector in selected Member States 71
• Table 6.1: Cooperation at the national level 92
• Table 6.2: Cross-border cooperation 94
• Box 2.1: The tourism sector created 9.1 % of EU GDP and 9.4 % of EU employment in 2023 23
• Box 2.2: The platform economy has a divergent impact on various subsectors of the Horeca industry 32
• Box 3.1: Migrants contribute to easing labour market imbalances in the EU 36
• Box 4.1: Recruitment in Asian restaurants in the Netherlands 57
• Box 5.1: Overcoming challenges in collective bargaining in Italy 73
• Box 5.2: A turbulent recovery after the pandemic: the case of Hungary’s Horeca sector 74
• Box 5.3: The regulation of digital platforms in the Spanish economy 77
• Box 6.1: The Netherlands Labour Authority’s experience combating labour law violations in a selected Horeca subsector 84
• Box 6.2: Shortcomings in the protection mechanism for third-country-national seasonal workers in Croatia 85
• Box 6.3: Cases of outsourcing practices in the Horeca sector in Venice (Italy) 86
• Box 6.4: The Certified Cash Register System in Belgium 88
• Box 6.5: The Spanish anti-fraud tool 89
• Box 6.6: On-site inspection in Finland 91
• Box 6.7: Joint cross-border inspections and Joint Action Days in France 95
• Box 6.8: Fair Labour Responsible Hotel Certification in Spain 96
• Box 6.9: Hotlines and help desks in the Netherlands and France 96
• Box 6.10: Cross-border cooperation between trade unions in Croatia, North Macedonia and Montenegro 97
• Figure 2.1: Mediterranean Member States have the largest Horeca sector in terms of gross value added 21
• Figure 2.2: Mediterranean Member States also have the largest Horeca sector in terms of the number of workers 22
• Figure 2.3: Accommodation and food services have the greatest share in employment within the broader tourism industry in Member States 24
• Figure 2.4: Employment in the Horeca sector in the EU-27 had recuperated by 2023 25
• Figure 2.5: Turnover recovery in the Horeca sector within the EU-27 was slower than in the broader services sector 26
• Figure 2.6: The volume of tourist activities in the EU-27 had largely recovered by 2022 27
• Figure 2.7: The Horeca sector was among those most severely hit by the COVID-19 crisis 28
• Figure 2.8: Horeca businesses comprise about 6 % of all enterprises in the EU, but their share in the business population is substantially larger in Mediterranean countries 29
• Figure 2.9: Smaller enterprises play an important role as employers in the Horeca sector 30
• Figure 2.10: The share of sole proprietorships in employment in Horeca is larger than in the overall labour market 31
• Figure 3.1: The share of foreign nationals among workers in the EU Horeca sector is higher than the average for the economy as a whole 38
• Figure 3.2: The high share of foreign workers among workers in the Horeca sector in the Member States is also driven by the high share of TCNs 39
• Figure 3.3: The overqualification rate in the Horeca sector is higher than the average across all the sectors 41
• Figure 3.4: Temporary employees are more prevalent in the Horeca sector than in the overall economy 44
• Figure 3.5: Own-account self-employment is less prevalent in Horeca than it is in the economy as a whole 45
• Figure 3.6: Part-time work is widespread across the Horeca sector 46
• Figure 3.7: Working at least 45 hours weekly is more common in the Horeca sector than it is among workers in general 47
• Figure 3.8. Wages and salaries in the EU Horeca sector are considerably lower than the EU average 48