Iohannis, during joint statement with Macron: The posted workers’ directive needs improvements

French president Emmanuel Macron said during a joint press conference with president Klaus Iohannis that France backs Romania’s efforts to join Schengen, although this space is not working very well right now. He also referred to the changes to the posted workers’ directive.

“Already, for many years, you have all the rights to ask to enter the Schengen space and you have reminded this and I know how important this is for you. I don’t have any ideology on this, I am very open to this subject. But, I have to be honest, the Europe of the Schengen space is not working well, and we can’t be glad about it,” said Macron. He called for a better control of the borders at EU level and increased convergence on asylum policy and the acceptance of citizens from outside the Union.

Macron spoke with the Romanian president about the posted workers’ directive, claiming that a deal could be reached by the end of the year, during Estonia’s presidency of the EU.

“I am glad there is this will to work together and I am sure that we will reach an agreement by the end of the year – to be approved during the Estonian presidency – to clarify this process and go to the core of the European project, which is a convergence project between our economies, from a social and fiscal perspective,” said Macron, who spoke about his directive earlier this week with the Austrian chancellor Christian Kern and the Czech and Slovak PMs. They backed Macron’s call for workers to be paid the same amount for the same work in the same place. But they stopped short of supporting Macron’s plan to limit the duration of these contracts to one year rather than two under a new European Commission proposal, according to Reuters.

The French president wants to change the system under which posted workers can be sent to other EU states on contracts that must guarantee the host country’s minimum wage, but under which taxes and social charges are paid in the home nation.

President Iohannis said during the press conference that the posted workers’ directive has to be improved.

“We all want a posted worker directive, in addition to a transports directive, which improves the situation for some and for others, but force out of the market those that speculate the development gaps, which still exist,” said Iohannis.

The Romanian head of state added that the EU rules have to be amended so that Romanian firms can got to France and operate there, while French firms can work in Romania “without having suspicions that some are taking the jobs of others.”

“Nobody wants to remove the competition or the free market, but what is wanted, for instance, in France is to bar the system that leaves room for tax avoidance practices,” said Iohannis.