Proposition 53K2227

Projet de loi portant assentiment à la Convention n° 177 de l'Organisation internationale du travail concernant le travail à domicile, adoptée à Genève le 20 juin 1996.

General information ¶

Submitted by

The Senate

Submission date

March 19, 2012

Official page

Visit

Status

Adopted

Requirement

Simple

Subjects

International Labour Organisation international agreement home working

Voting ¶

Voted to adopt

Groen CD&V Vooruit Ecolo LE PS | SP Open Vld LDD MR VB

Abstained from voting

N-VA

Party dissidents ¶

• Peter Luykx (CD&V) abstained from voting.

Contact form ¶

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Discussion ¶

July 13, 2012 | Plenary session (Chamber of representatives)

Full source

Mr. Speaker, I would like to draw the attention of the Chamber to the report of Mr. Mathias De Clercq of the Committee on Social Affairs, which is attached to the report. This is not happening in the Senate, but in the House. With this comment, I refer to the rest of my report. The draft was adopted in our committee.

Mr. De Coninck was present during the discussions in the Social Affairs Committee. I assume that she is now absent. We discussed the dossier in the Foreign Affairs Committee but the Minister in question is also absent, as is the rapporteur Mathias De Clercq. So I will keep it very short.

The International Labour Organization’s convention was signed on 20 June 1996. Sixteen years later, this government approves the treaty. The Flemish Parliament approved this treaty a few years ago.

Yet we will abstain, not because we are against homework or remote work. On the contrary, everyone knows that the labour market has changed. In the past, people worked from nine to five, now there is more need for flexibility and flexible working hours. Today, 20% of workers work at home, up from 13% ten years ago.

Homeworkers need specific measures. Working at home is completely different from working in a company. Belgium should first adjust its welfare legislation. In the Social Affairs Committee, we asked the Minister of Labour when the Royal Decree will come. Of course, it makes no sense to approve a treaty that aims to promote homework, without a royal decree, a legal basis. Minister De Coninck said that this was not necessary and that the welfare legislation was sufficient. However, the State Council states that homework needs a royal decree, a legal basis, to create a specific framework for it.

Minister De Coninck did not give a real answer to this. In the Foreign Affairs Committee, we identified the same question to Minister Reynders. He has said that there must indeed be a royal decision, but that he is not competent to do so, but Minister De Coninck.

It is a pity that she is not present now, because I want to know when she will make that royal decision. After all, it makes no sense that this treaty is now approved by this government if the national legal basis is not there.

I hope that Minister De Coninck’s colleague, Secretary of State Crombez, can answer this question, which, by the way, was also asked by the Council of State.

Mr. Crombez is a polyvalent secretary of state.

Mr. President, Mrs. Demir, Minister De Coninck has been apologized today. She is abroad and I will replace her.

You ask when a royal decision will come. I cannot answer that question. If a legal basis is necessary to implement it, the necessary time will be allocated. To the question of when the royal decision will come, there is currently no answer.

Mr. Secretary of State, thank you for the answer.

I hope that it will not take sixteen years before a royal decision is made and a specific framework for homeworkers is created.

I do not understand. In the government agreement it is very clear that we must promote homework. We must absolutely do that, but the royal decree is not there. There is a contradiction. It makes no sense to approve the treaty now if there is no royal decision yet.

At the beginning of the session, I did not mention the absence of each other.

by Mr. Philippe Blanchart and Ms. Delacroix will not be there for health reasons. by Mr. Clerfayt is abroad and the minister was apologized.