Commission accused of using ‘black’ work

Date: 23/01/1997

By Mark Turner

THE European Commission is under fire following claims that it hires people through the black economy and then shirks its responsibilities as an employer.

The accusations have been levelled against the insitution in the run-up to a court case between the institution and a nurse which is due to be heard in April.

Isabelle Dewarichet, 40, claims that despite being promised a fonctionnaire post by the Commission in 1995, she was hired informally, advised not to go through the proper procedures required of an independent employee and then fired without any compensation.

She and her family also claim the use of 'black' work informal and undeclared is widespread within the Commission, flying in the face of employment standards.

If she can convince the Brussels industrial tribunal that she was told not to observe the proper procedures for self-employed workers, and especially if she convinces it that this happens regularly, the insitution which categorically denies her claims could find itself in a very difficult position.

In response to a publicity campaign by Dewarichet's father, Guy, several MEPs from different countries and parties approached the Commission for an explanation.

In a written reply published last month, Personnel Commissioner Erkki Liikanen insisted that Dewarichet was hired from the outset as a prestataire de service (a kind of free-lance appointment) but would say no more because of the pending court case.

“The legal definition of the working relationship between the Commission and the person concerned is at present the object of a case before the Belgian authorities The Commission needs to keep silent while it waits for the tribunal's decision,” he said.

Guy Dewarichet claims that the reply was misleading. He says his daughter was promised a Commission medical service post in August 1994 after passing the exam required for civil servant status (the concours).

But when she started work on 3 January 1995, she was told that until her post was formalised, she should work as a freelance without social security or other Commission benefits.

Dewarichet also claims that she was advised not to register with a Caisse d'Independants legally required of freelance employees as she was to be given an official job within months.

This did not happen, however, and on 21 September 1995 she learned that the post she was to fill had not been approved. On 22 November, she was dismissed.

“The Commission did not pay her social costs, and did not respect its employer's obligations,” said husband Namias Bernard.

The institution categorically denies her claims of misconduct, insisting that “Mrs Dewarichet was offered the opportunity to work as a nurse on a self-employed basis, which she accepted in full knowledge of the conditions applicable to this type of work”.

In a letter to German Christian Democrat MEP Diemut Theato late last year, it also maintained that: “The Commission always informs non-statutory staff of its obligations vis-à-vis the tax authorities,” adding: “We categorically deny Mr Dewarichet's allegations regarding black employment at the Commission.”

But the case is bringing to the fore a whole range of questions about how the insitution goes about fulfilling the tasks it is mandated to carry out by the European Parliament and Council of Ministers.

There is little doubt that the Commission cannot do all it is meant to on its present permanent staffing levels. Many of those working in the institutions rely on an army of outside contractors to keep things running smoothly.

The question is whether the Dewarichets' case will vindicate the Commission's conduct in hiring outside agents, or hold its entire staffing policy up to account.

If the latter happens, new Personnel Director-General Steffen Smidt faces a turbulent first year.