A
loophole in European law is being used by unscrupulous bosses to pay migrant
workers much lower wages than their UK colleagues, according to the TUC.
TUC
president Roger Lyons has called on the Government to observe the spirit of the
EU Posted Workers Directive, which seeks to protect the rights of migrant
workers.
Lyons
blamed the decline in collective bargaining across the UK and the increase in
the number of overseas workers for creating an environment in which UK bosses
are able to exploit Portuguese workers.
"European
laws like the Posted Workers Directive are meant to protect against social
dumping and give migrant workers the same rights as nationals of the country in
which they are working," Lyons said.
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"But
in the UK those collective agreements that do exist are not legally enforceable
and many employers are taking advantage of the situation to pay Portuguese
workers as little as they can legally get away with."
