FIEC Newsletter – 10 Σεπτεμβρίου 2024

Following her election in July, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen received the nominations for the European Commissioner jobs from all Member States, but Slovenia. Indeed, Slovenia decided to change its candidate (originally a man) for a woman candidate. Bulgaria is the only country which nominated two candidates, a male and a female, as asked by Ursula von der Leyen.On the 26 candidates, 20 are newcomers and 6 incumbents. So far, the nominees are mostly men (17 out of 26). The majority of nominees are affiliated with the European People’s Pary (15), followed by the centre-left (5), Renew (4), the European Conservatives and Reformists (1) and Patriots for Europe (1).

On 11 September, the European Commission President will present the portfolio of each candidate and the structure of her College to the leaders of the European Parliament political groups. Following this presentation, the Parliament committees will organise hearings of the candidates, probably in October. The members of the European Parliament will confirm or reject the candidates depending on the results of the hearings.
The new College of Commissioners will most likely start its work on 1 December.

On 19 June, the European Commision published a proposal for a Council Decision on Guidelines for the employment policies of the Member States. This proposal revised four of the existing guidelines to include new elements on education and training, artificial intelligence and algorithmic management and to reflect recent policy initiatives.The European Commission indicates that Member States should reduce the barriers that businesses face in hiring people, support upskilling and reskilling measures and promote the Social Dialogue. A key element of the revised guidelines is the need for a strong support and funding of education, including vocational education and training. Mobility of learners, apprentices and workers should be also further developed and facilitate.

The focus remains on the need to tackle labour and skills shortages and on taking the opportunity of the green and digital transition to offer renewed perspective for young people in the labour market.

The European Labour Authority (ELA) focused on the construction sector in 2023 and 2024. Many actions took place such as the awareness-raising Campaign on Social Media and on Construction sites as part of the EU4FairConstruction initiative.ELA published a booklet to present an overview of these activities and, in particular, a summary of the main achievements, challenges, and lessons learned. The activities focused – among other highlights – on labour shortages, accessibility and availability of information on the rules on posting of workers and on supporting cross-border enforcement activities.

FIEC and its member federations have been very much involved in all these activities and will continue to collaborate closely with the Authority.

The European Commission published a revised version of the “EU Construction & Demolition Waste (CDW) Management Protocol”. At the moment it is available in English only, but it should also be available in all the official EU languages by the end of the year.The Protocol aims at enhancing confidence in CDW management processes and at increasing trust in re-used products and recycled materials.

The new version updates and mergers the previous document of 2016 and the 2018 “Guidelines for Waste Audits before Demolition and Renovation of Buildings” into one new comprehensive guidance.

Since 2018, in Romania 14th September is celbrated as the National Builder’s Day on 14 September.
This day was officially dedicated to the construction industry by Law No. 350, which established this important recurrence as a recognition of the vital role that – construction teams, from unskilled workers to engineers – play in developing the economy and contributing to Romania’s GDP.
The chosen date also holds historical significance and is a milestone in the activity and consciousness of Romanian builders, as it marks the day, back in 1895, when the Danube Bridge at Fetești-Cernavodă – a landmark project in Europe at that time – was inaugurated in the presence of the King of Romania and the exceptional engineer Anghel Saligny.

FIEC President Piero Petrucco and Director-General Domenico Campogrande, are seizing this unique opportunity to share their messages on this key initiative.”In order to be representative and efficient, a European organisation needs the active participation of its affiliates. At FIEC, we therefore welcome the dedication shown by our Romanian member federations. I am convinced that this will even be reinforced now that in the current mandate Romania has a seat in the FIEC Steering Committee.” – stated President Petrucco in his wish for a Happy National Builder’s Day 2024.