Due diligence and subcontracting

Brussels, 23rd September 2025 European Parliament Committee on Employment and Social Affairs Dear Members of the Employment and Social Affairs Committee,  On behalf of ETUC, CIDSE, Ver.di, Misereor, FIAN, ETUI and Arbeiterkammer Wien, we are pleased to invite you to the presentation of the upcoming joint publication authored by Professor Johannes Jäger (Austria).

The General Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) today challenged labour ministers to stop the ‘organised exploitation’ of migrant workers taking place across Europe. At the meeting of employment ministers held in Alborg as part of the Danish EU presidency, Esther Lynch told how workers are threatened with reprisals if they speak out against stolen wages, dangerous work and appalling living conditions.

The ETUC and the EFBWW (European Federation of Building and Woodworkers) have urged the European Union to take decisive action to simplify subcontracting practices by limiting their use and promoting direct employment.

Following the decision to open the ‘stop the clock’ urgency procedure on the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CS3D) and the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), the ETUC is calling on all MEPs to vote down the postponement of the directives. 

The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) and the European Trade Union Federations (ETUFs) jointly condemn the European Commission’s Omnibus proposal, which constitutes a direct assault on corporate accountability, workers’ and trade union rights, and environmental protections. The European Parliament must reject this disastrous package and ensure that the core objectives of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) as well as the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CS3D) and the protections provided therein are safeguarded from this deregulation agenda.

Brussels, 20th February 2025 Dear Colleagues,  This is just to remind you the symbolic protest action on 25 February from 10:00 to 11:00 CET at Rue Archimède in Brussels.  more information in the circular below  with best regards,  Brussels, 19 February 2025 To: National Officers,  Member Organisations,  European Trade Union Federations   Dear colleagues,

Joint European Trade Union Statement for  EU REGULATION TO DELIVER FOR ALL  No to Deregulation!    Deregulation for companies and attacks on EU law protecting workers and trade union rights are not the answer to stop human and environmental rights violations by companies! 

Today marks a historic day for workers' rights and corporate accountability as the European Parliament adopts the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive. This directive is a historic breakthrough, heralding a new era of accountability and liability for businesses operating within the EU. The milestones include:

Brussels 19th April 2024 To MEPs Dear Members of the European Parliament, As the Deputy General Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), I write to you today urgently prompting you to support the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDD Directive) during the upcoming plenary vote on April 24th.

Brussels 18 April 2024 Members of the European Parliament Dear Members of the European Parliament,  Dear friends,  Next week the plenary votes on the Directive to improve working conditions in the platform economy and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence directive will cement our joint commitment to workers’ rights protection and mark an important step in the process of regulation of the ever-growing global supply chains and platform economy.

Brussels 19th April 2024 To MEPs We are sending  you a reminder for the below event.

Today, many companies use legal loopholes, making human rights violations the norm rather than the exception in supply chains around the world. It leaves the victims of crimes committed by these companies – workers and communities – trapped in a legal maze seeking justice. Workers are raising their voices, demanding a role in securing supply chains. 

Today's vote by Member States in the Council unblocks the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, paving the way for a dramatic improvement in respect for the human rights of millions of workers in the supply chains of businesses operating in the EU.

European Trade Union Confederation, Indewo & Centre Vidéo de Bruxelles are pleased to invite you to the screening of A Chained

The ETUC is increasingly concerned about the inability of the Council to agree political compromises. The latest example is the failure by governments to adopt the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive.  Governments still have a two-week window to show political courage. The ETUC is calling for a vote in favour before the end of the European Parliament’s current mandate. 

The political agreement found today on the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence directive is a step in the right direction on the path to securing decent and safe working conditions around the world. The measures will help in holding businesses accountable for standards in their supply chains, both inside and outside the EU, and for the impact of their operations on human rights and the environment. A full text is not yet available but the agreement is reported to include measures that:

Brussels, 6th December 2023 To Permanent Representatives Dear Excellency, I hope this letter finds you well. As you may be aware, the inter-institutional trialogue negotiations on the Corporate Sustainable Due Diligence Directive are entering their final and decisive round.

The European Parliament has today voted to make EU businesses accountable for their conduct – but stronger measures will be needed to prevent unions and workers’ rights violations. The vote of the Parliament’s report on the proposal for a Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive represents an important step forward in putting people and planet before the profits at all costs, and making businesses accountable.

Today, the Competitiveness Council adopted its “general approach” for the trialogue negotiations on the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDD). “The position taken by the Council is very disappointing to say the least”, says Isabelle Schömann, ETUC Confederal Secretary. “The Council position waters down an already unambitious proposal by the Commission.

Tomorrow - 1 December – at the EU Competitiveness Council, Ministers will try to reach a general approach to the directive on corporate sustainability due diligence (CSDD), which introduces an obligation on companies to identify and prevent, end or mitigate the impact of their activities on human rights, including trade union and workers’ rights, and the environment.

Proposal for a Directive on Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence (CSDD) - Updated Roadmap to mobilise ahead of the EU trialogue Discussed at the Executive Committee meeting of 27-28 October 2022 Summary of key messages Based on the ETUC key demands as adopted by the Executive Committee in December 2019 in the ETUC Position calling for a European Directive on mandatory Human Rights Due Diligence and responsible business conduct[1], the ETUC position ‘Towards an EU law on mandatory Human Rights Due Diligence: indicative roadmap for ETUC actions in 2021-2022’ (December 2021)[2] as well as the ETUC Position ‘ETUC initial analysis of the Commission’s proposal for a Directive on Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence and updated roadmap for ETUC actions in 2022-2023” (March 2022)[3], the ETUC Executive Committee is asked to discuss and take note of this (updated) position paper which provides in particular a summary of the main amendments the ETUC intends to put forward to the European Parliament and Member States and other stakeholders as well as an overview and update of the actions undertaken March 2022 and some suggestions for further actions in view of the EU trialogue which is likely to start in Q2 in 2023 at the earliest.

Today, activists set up ‘scales of justice’ in front of the Justus Lipsius building in Brussels to ask EU diplomats to guarantee justice for people harmed by companies’ human rights and environmental abuses, ahead of the Council meeting on draft due diligence rules. The action launched the ‘Justice is Everybody’s Business’ campaign by over 100+ civil society and trade union organisations for a strong EU law to hold business accountable for human rights and environmental violations. [1]

We are happy to announce to you that European Commissioner Didier Reynders has agreed to meet trade unions and NGOs for a public Q&A session. Together with affiliated trade unions and NGOs (AK Europa, ÖGB, Friends of the Earth Europe, European Coalition for Corporate Justice, European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights, CCFD-Terre Solidaire), we have long called for a meeting with the Commissioner

We would like to remind you to join us on 1 June to discuss the importance of human rights due diligence, and how trade unions can influence company strategies for the benefit of workers and the environment. 

9 years after the Rana Plaza disaster, workers in Europe and in the world cannot wait any longer: the ETUC calls for zero tolerance for doing business in breach of human rights  Why? Because labour is not a commodity: workers’ life and security should not be negotiated nor put at risk by business models!