The new Standardisation Regulation - the first major legislative proposal of the Single Market Act - was adopted at the European Parliament on 11 September 2012.

The ETUC reiterates its opposition to highly political move to increasingly use standardisation in the internal market to replace legislation to by-pass difficult legislative processes.

Many of the areas being increasingly subjected to standardisation are political in nature and European policy should be channelled through democratic decision-making procedures rather than technical committees.

Furthermore, the ETUC insists on the autonomy of social partners and respect of collective bargaining and collective agreements, which are potentially challenged by the development of standards, particularly in the service sectors and in the field of human resources management. The ETUC reiterates that the ILO is the international organisation responsible for creating and interpreting labour standards.

However, the ETUC recognises the role of standardisation as key tool in industrial policy, in driving innovation and product policy. The ETUC reiterates its long held demand that such standards ensure a high level of public and occupational health and safety in Europe. Standards are part of pushing forward a quality agenda in Europe in terms of international competitiveness and ensuring the quality of the internal market. They should integrate requirements contributing to a sustainable development by greening products and production processes.

The new Regulation includes a key step forwards for workers representatives through 3 key elements:

• Trade unions are recognised as players in European standardisation activities (Recital 17), while workers’ safety and working conditions are included in the major societal challenges that Standards can help address (Recital 19), by means of a reinforced support of organisation representing Trade Unions (social interests, Recital 22).

• Trade Unions (social stakeholders) will be granted an appropriate representation and effective participation in the European standardisation organisations (Article 5)

• A European stakeholder organisation representing Trade Unions (social interests) in European standardisation activities is eligible for Union financing (Article 16 + Annex III) for the functioning of this Organisation and its activities relating to European and International standardisation.

The ETUC welcomes these provisions, but reiterates the importance of worker participation in national level arenas. Provisions in the Regulation at the European level on resources and capacity building should be reflected at the national level too.

This resolution sets out the main points of the ETUC’s proposed model to implement the Regulation’s provisions on worker participation effectively.