Note on the latest Presidency text on the proposal for a Directive on the conditions of entry and residence of third-country nationals for the purposes of sesonal employment (COM(210)379)

The Meijers Committee would like to draw your attention to an amendment in Council document 12186/12
of 4 July 2012 on the proposal for a Directive on seasonal employment.
In this document a new ground has been added to refuse, withdraw or not extend the authorization to work as a seasonal worker (Article 6(3), jo. Article 7(1)). On the basis of this new ground the Member State may reject an application for admission:
“if the employer within the 12 months immediately preceding the date of the application, has eliminated by means of a null or unfair dismissal, the positions he is trying to fill through the new application”.

In our view this ground for refusal should be deleted. In case it is not deleted, the exception provided for in Article 7(3 a) must at least apply to this situation: if the seasonal worker has an opportunity to be employed by a different employer, the authorization to work should not be withdrawn but changed into a seasonal worker permit for this other employer. Thus, Article 7(3a) should be extended to include situations where the withdrawal or non-extension of the authorization is based on Article 6 (3 c).