About the project

The central goals of POW-Bridge are to study possible gaps between procedures (legal basis) and practices (experiences) in the rules governing the posting of workers, to identify challenges and to develop and share effective solutions for posting companies and agencies tasked with enforcing posting legislation. Thereby, a particular focus is on the possible challenges resulting from interactions between the revised posting Directive passed in 2018 and other EU and national legislation.

The core activities are

• Transnational cooperation (improving cross-border collaboration between stakeholders and promoting employer involvement in evidence-based policy-making)
• Comparative research (analysing and comparing the situation in different countries)
• Information dissemination (providing policy makers, enforcement agencies, employers and other stakeholders with research results).

Thereby, POW-Bridge supports an inclusive, participatory and transparent implementation process of the 2018 Posting Directive.

Transnational Dimension

POW-Bridge covers eight countries across Europe (Austria, Slovenia, Italy, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, Serbia and North Macedonia). The countries include sending and receiving countries as well as EU member states and candidate countries. The project is carried out by seven project partners and several associated organisations located in these countries.

The partners and invited representatives of public authorities and social partners will participate in Mutual Learning Labs to discuss challenges to enacting the posting legislation and to develop policy recommendations. A final conference in Venice in 2021 will bring together all participating partners and external policy experts to discuss and disseminate the project’s findings.

Main deliverables

• Two Mutual Learning Labs to support knowledge exchange between sending and receiving countries
• Three e-newsletters with information on project activities
• Eight country reports examining national legislation that regulate posting companies in the areas of social security, health insurance, temporary agency work, and company law
• One comparative working paper
• Eight policy briefs aiming to translate knowledge and findings to policy-makers, social partners and the general public
• Eight video podcasts showing the steps that posting companies have to follow in the application of national and EU legislation
• Final international conference

Project partners

Lead partner: European Centre for Social Welfare Policy and Research (Austria)

Ca’ Foscari University of Venice (Italy)

Centre of Social and Psychological Sciences, Slovak Academy of Sciences (Slovakia)

Centre of Migration Research, University of Warsaw (Poland)

Association for Research, Communications and Development “Public” (North Macedonia)

Center for Social Policy (Serbia)

University of Primorska (Slovenia)

Associate organizations

• Kammer für Arbeiter und Angestellte, Wien (Chamber of Labour) – Austria
• Federazione Italiana Lavoratori Legno Edilizia E Affini Cgil (trade union) – Italy
• Federazione Italiana Lavoratori Dei Trasporti Cgil (trade union) – Italy
• Ispettorato Interregionale Del Lavoro Di Emilia Romagna, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Marche, Veneto (labour inspectorate) – Italy
• Odborový zväz KOVO (Metal Workers Union) – Slovakia
• Konfederácia odborových zväzov Slovenskej republiky (Confederation of Trade Unions of Slovak Republic) – Slovakia
• Republiková únia zamestnávateľov (National Union of Employers) – Slovakia
• Slovenská obchodná a priemyselná komor (Slovak Chamber of Commerce and Industry) – Slovakia
• Národný inšpektorát práce (National Labour Inspectorate) – Slovakia
• Sociálna poisťovňa (Social Insurance Agency) – Slovakia
• Ministry of Labour and Social Policy – North Macedonia
• Trade Union of Civil Engineering, Industry and Planning of Republic of Macedonia – North Macedonia
• Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs – Serbia
• Social Inclusion and Poverty Reduction Unit of the Government of the Republic of Serbia – Serbia
• Trade Union Confederation “Nezavisnost” – Serbia
• Confederation of Trade Unions of Slovenia Pergam – Slovenia
• The Association of Free Trade Unions of Slovenia (Zveza Svobodnih Sindikatov Slovenije) – Slovenia
• Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia – Slovenia

Contact

Project coordinator: Sonila Danaj (European Centre for Social Welfare Policy and Research), danaj@euro.centre.org

Local coordinators:

Fabio Perocco (Ca’Foscari University of Venice), fabio.perocco@unive.it

Lucia Mýtna Kureková (Centre of Social and Psychological Sciences, Slovak Academy of Sciences), lucia.mytna-kurekova@savba.sk

Justyna Salamońska (Centre of Migration Research, University of Warsaw), jj.salamonska@uw.edu.pl

Klimentina Ilijevski (Association for Research, Communications and Development “Public”), klimentina@public.org.mk

Žarko Šunderić (Center for Social Policy), zarko.sunderic@csp.org.rs

Elizabeta Zirnstein (University of Primorska), elizabeta.zirnstein@fm-kp.si

Documents

• Bridging the gap between legislation and practice in the posting of  workers: Serbia Country Report (.pdf)
• Bridging the gap between legislation and practice in the posting of  workers: Serbia Country Report - Summary of the study, with conclusions and recommendations in the Serbian language (.pdf)
• Policy Brief: Posting from a candidate country and its implications for the social protection of workers: the case of Serbia (.pdf)
• The gap between legal procedures and practices in posting rule enactment: a comparative working paper (.pdf)
• POW-Bridge flyer (.pdf)
• Practical guide for posting employers in the Republic of Serbia - video
• Practical guide for posting employers in the Republic of Serbia - transcript (.docx)
• POW-Bridge Newsletter 3
• POW-Bridge Newsletter 2
• POW-Bridge Newsletter 1

News

• The gap between legal procedures and practices in posting rule enactment: a comparative working paper
• VIDEO: Practical guide for posting employers in the Republic of Serbia
• Study on the Practice of Posting Workers from Serbia Abroad Published
• POW-BRIDGE Mutual Learning Lab 1: Challenges between procedures & practices
• POW-BRIDGE Online Event: First Strategic Board Meeting Held in Belgrade
• New Project: Bridging the gap between legislation and practice in the posting of workers

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Project funded by EaSI Programme, DG Employment, European Commission

Project duration: 2020/01 – 2021/12