Zero tolerance for undeclared work: new ELA report puts private security in focus
CoESS welcomes the publication of the new report commissioned by the European Labour Authority (ELA) on undeclared work and bogus self-employment in private security. The report reflects close cooperation with CoESS and UNI Europa, including a dedicated workshop in Bratislava earlier this year bringing together labour inspectorates, public authorities and social partners from across Europe. For a sector entrusted with protecting citizens, public spaces and critical infrastructure, CoESS is clear that there can be zero tolerance for undeclared work.
The report highlights the important preventive role of strong sector-specific regulation and licensing, alongside effective enforcement. It also confirms the importance of quality-driven public procurement, warning that excessive reliance on lowest price can create incentives for non-compliance and stressing the need for stronger compliance monitoring throughout contract implementation.
Another important message is the need for enforcement authorities and labour inspectorates to work closely with sectoral Social Partners, whose sector-specific knowledge can strengthen prevention, enforcement and awareness-raising. The report points to good practices across countries including Belgium, the Netherlands and Spain, where Social Partners already contribute through cooperation with authorities, quality standards and the monitoring of procurement and labour practices.
Such cooperation is particularly valuable where enforcement authorities face limited resources and sector-specific expertise. As a member of the European Platform tackling undeclared work, CoESS looks forward to continuing its cooperation with ELA, UNI Europa and national authorities to promote fair competition, quality employment and high standards across the European private security sector.
The full report is available on the ELA website here.