Freight companies protested in Brussels
16:44
Around 50 representatives of freight companies from Poland and other EU countries protested against the German minimum wage law introduced in January.
The manifestation took place before a debate on the matter was carried out in the EU parliament. Jan Buczek, leader of the protest, said that the action aims to put pressure on EU bodies.
"In our opinion, the European Commission should be aware that there are countries who feel cheated. We have joined the European Union under certain conditions that we have met, however, we see significant protectionism from the 'old EU' countries, which try to push us out of the market," Buczek said.
According to a law that came into force on January 1, 2015 in Germany, all employees working on German territory regardless of where their employer is based have to be paid a minimum wage of €8.5 an hour. The law would decrease the competitiveness of Polish freight and transport companies, once applied to Polish drivers. The law was temporarily suspended at the beginning of February, after negotiations between the Polish Minister of Labor and his German counterpart.
