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EFCI News – Issue 14 | February 2021
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EFCI News - Issue 14
EFCI’S SUPPORT TO THE VACCINATION CAMPAIGNS AND CALL FOR THE ESSENTIAL ROLE OF THE SECTOR
On 24 February EFCI’s President sent an official letter to Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, Ms Kyriakides, in order to bring to her attention the need to take into adequate consideration the cleaning and facility sector’s essential role in her function of coordinating national and regional vaccination campaigns.
While congratulating the Commission for its key role and efforts in coordinating the vaccination campaign across Europe, the EFCI underlined the need to take into further consideration our sector’s key role in providing its specialised and essential services, especially in healthcare-related infrastructures, and taking all the appropriate measures to ensure the health and safety of cleaning agents.
Further the EFCI addressed a second letter to Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights, Nicolas Schmit, highlighting the relevance of cleaning agents’ inclusion into the adequate phases of the vaccination campaign to ensure the safety of European workplaces and protect employment in key strategic sectors.
In this regard, the EFCI launched on the same day a social media campaign on Twitter and LinkedIn. The campaign will underline how with the adequate measures to ensure the health and safety of cleaning agents, the European cleaning and facility services sector is ready to continue providing its specialised and essential services, accompanying all sectors of the economy towards the most wished prompt and swift recovery.
BIV, EFCI’S GERMAN MEMBER CALLS FOR MINIJOBS’ REFORM
Mini-jobs are a popular employment modality in Germany for persons willing to earn a little extra, this employment modality remains largely free of tax and contributions for employees. However, the 450 euro limit to their monthly earnings means that, with each wage increase, the number of hours these employees can work is reduced, increasing employee turnover rates and the bureaucratic burden for companies who need to re-adapt all contracts and recruit more staff.
While the CDU/CSU would like to increase the earnings limit to 600 euros per month for mini-jobbers, the SPD is strictly against it as they claim this would deter more mini-jobbers from obtaining jobs subject to better social protection conditions. EFCI’s German member Bundesinnungsverband – Die Gebäudedienstleister is calling for a profound mini-job reform and, in the best case, for the abolition of this type of contract. The BIV reports that this type of employment is more expensive for employers as mini-jobs have an associated 30% tax plus the flat-rate tax (against the 20% of other types of employment). In addition, each wage increase leads to mini-jobbers wanting to work less as exceeding the limit of 450 euros per month would be subject to tax and social security contributions. This ultimately presents an additional challenge to employers in the cleaning industry as they experience higher employee turnover rates, an increased need to recruit more staff to perform the same services and the legal obligation to re-adapt contracts for mini-jobbers after each wage increase.
The BIV is therefore proposing to abolish mini-jobs altogether arguing that it is very difficult to convey to tax-paying employees that mini-job workers performing the same tasks do not pay any significant taxes. Alternatively, the association is proposing to raising the marginal earnings limit to 600 euros per month and linking this limit to any variations in the statutory minimum wage for the sector.
To the article “Why do building cleaners demand a reform?” (in German)
ALMEGA’S SURVEY AND GOOD PRACTICES IN THE SECTOR DURING COVID-19
On 9 February, Almega Serviceföretagen published the results of its latest survey, conducted between 26th January and 1st February 2021, to monitor the Covid-19 pandemic’s impact on its member companies. Results show a clear polarization in the Swedish cleaning industry according to market segments: companies working for healthcare, school and other care sectors are more stable compared to those with customers in the tourism and entertainment industry. While 14 % of companies say they have an increased turnover, compared to 11% percent in the previous survey, the sector foresees a higher need for short-time furlough in the future. Further, nearly two-thirds (64%) of companies report increased sickness leave and ask for flexibility in lifting support measures for employers to cover these costs. To the press release.
On 7 February, with the aim to highlight good practices in the context of the pandemic, Almega Serviceföretagen was interviewed on local tv (Stockholm) regarding the Stockholm region’s initiative to procure ambulances’ sanitation services to professional cleaning companies. Almega’s related article underlines how leaving the decontamination of ambulances to professional cleaning agents allows for more efficiency and accuracy in both medical assistance of infected patients and sanitisation of surfaces and instruments, as well as giving the ambulance nurses a break before the next call-out.