Loophole in EC drivers plan
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in by Karen Miles
European Commission plans to ban the use of East European drivers could be thwarted if these drivers apply to the European Union countries with the slackest controls over driver licences and work permits, according to transport employers.
The International Road Transport Union warns that low-paid non-EU drivers could bypass plans for tougher enforcement of employment laws by getting a driving licence from one member state for use in another where work permits are available.
The UK is said to be a likely source of driving licences. While it is almost impossible for non-EU drivers to obtain UK work permits, East European drivers could take UK licences across the Channel to obtain work permits on the Continent. This can already be done legally by Polish, Bulgarian and Hungarian drivers, for example, who are looking for work with Continental operators.
The IRU says it has raised the issue because it fears any EC moves to introduce a panEuropean "drivers' employment card" would do nothing to stop many EU hauliers legally employing East Europeans who have EU driving licences.
Wim Smolderf, social affairs manager at the IRU. says: "Do we really need employment cards for the EU's six million drivers to address the problem of 15,000 illegal East Europeans? We are asking the European Commission to show whether this largescale scheme would work or whether a smaller scale measure would suffice."
He suggests the use of social security documents as an alternative.
An East European truck driver should be able to pass the UK CE (HGV Class 1) test fairly quickly by proving UK residency in passing the car, rigid and artic truck tests. It is a process delayed only by administration and test waiting times.