*Update 25.11.2024 we’re aware of the agreement to simplify hospital access for staff in Luxembourg. We’re waiting to see what it changes in real terms. We’ve already heard many promises of action, such as the 12 actions referenced here, and we’re not seeing any great change from it.*
*Update 14.10.2024 Luxembourg-based colleagues, the maximum reimbursement (‘ceiling’) for cross-border commuter passes has been doubled to €500 from 01.10.2024.*
Original article: We’ve been following the 12 CALux actions to address the interinstitutional difficulties of recruiting (and retaining) staff in Luxembourg since they were announced 30.03.2022. We have revisited them periodically: at 6 months, again at 9 months and at 12 months. Here, on the occasion of the second birthday of that 12-action list, and having met with HR on this very topic (12.04.2024), we still fail to find anything particularly measurable, concrete or visible to show in terms of improvement to justify these 24 months of discussions, in spite of the enthusiastic September 2022 Corporate Management Board (CMB) declaration that ‘progress was made‘. It would seem that the institutions (because this is an interinstitutional issue) are fully aware of the problem and of its many different moving parts. Unfortunately there is very little to show for the many, many very-high-level meetings held going back over two years.
The CMB last provided an update in September 2022 and has made no further mention of the 12 actions (or the cost of living in Luxembourg in general) in its intervening 15 meetings. We asked HR in person (12.04.2024) to detail the declared progress. The answer: discussions are still ongoing on all topics and are nearing completion on medical overcharging[1] (notably not one of the 12 actions, but necessary, nonetheless). So, there you go: nothing concrete to show yet for ostensibly 2 years of progress[2].
The 12 actions: status unchanged
1: Launching site-specific European Personnel Selection Office (EPSO) competitions,
No update, but there is now a Luxembourg-specific clause tying some new recruits to Luxembourg for a minimum period (3 or 4 years). Generation 2004 believes that this might dissuade potential colleagues from even trying Luxembourg.
2: Job shadowing initiatives for career guidance officers,
No mention
3: Creation of a common job platform,
No mention
4: Inter-institutional excellence hubs (e.g. financial, digital, legal),
No mention
5: Housing allowance,
HR (12.04.2024): we’re working on it, but state aid is already a big help in this. There is no possibility of a correction coefficient (CC) for Luxembourg without reopening the staff regulations.
Generation 2004: While the state aid is of help, and can be part of a solution, if it were really a solution we would not be discussing 12 actions for Luxembourg. We agree with the housing allowance option as more feasible and more likely to have an impact for those lower on the salary scales, but where is it and when will it happen (if ever)?
6: Offer of temporary housing,
HR (12.04.2024): we’re working on it.
Generation 2004: While welcome, this risks pushing accommodation costs further down the line, impacting retention of staff. This might be a false economy: recruiting staff (with associated costs) only to lose them to other sites where purchasing power is greater once they realise how difficult it can be to find reasonable accommodation within a reasonable distance. The new ‘prison’ clause is not a solution to that: it risks making Luxembourg even less attractive or augmenting further the numbers of colleagues crossing a border to come to work (c. 1/3 of Luxembourg Commission staff (12.04.2024))
7: Jobs for spouses,
No mention
8: Interinstitutional cooperation of Welcome Desks,
No mention
9: Future of interinstitutional crèches in Luxembourg,
No mention
10: Common communication strategy,
Generation 2004: We find a Youtube channel with at least one dedicated video, is there anything else out there?
11: Collaboration with the national authorities,
No mention
12: Cooperation with top European universities.
Generation 2004: We find Student ambassadors were in Luxembourg in 2023, but the project itself is 10 years old and not specific to Luxembourg; did it make a difference?
So, what now?
We are disappointed to see that progress is far less substantial than the impression given in the September 2022 CMB minutes. We declare ourselves to be underwhelmed. It’s a big problem with many moving parts, nevertheless, it’s been recognised since at least the 2003 ‘Kinnock – Polfer’ agreement. Has anything improved? In January 2021 DG Sante, unable to find staff willing to come to Luxembourg, exceptionally allowed Luxembourg posts to be done from any Commission site: a short-term workaround for a long-standing problem.
Making a bad situation worse?
On the topic of staff moving to Luxembourg (it does happen, yes!) we have brought to the attention of the corresponding authorities the questionable application of the daily subsistence allowance. To enter long-term accommodation in Luxembourg you might need 5 x a monthly rent which is already exceptionally high:
- 1 month’s rent (+ 17%) for the agency
- 3 months’ rent for the deposit (good luck getting that back!)
- 1 month’s rent for the first month you will live there
So, some 5170€ for a one-bedroom flat within the city with a possibility of 200-300€ of state assistance, depending on circumstances (note that it is not made clear there to what extent a flatshare is a household for calculations of income/eligibility).
To say nothing of removal costs which may come long after the event, if they come at all.
Given the known difficulties in recruiting and retaining staff in Luxembourg, why not endeavour to facilitate the move for those willing to take it?
To all Luxembourg-based colleagues, please check the financial aid offered by the state to those on low incomes: many of you will be eligible.
Please let us know if you see or hear of any movement on any of the action items listed above (or any others!), it’s been a whole 24 months, that’s more than enough time to get started on something concrete, right?
For any other questions, do not hesitate to get in touch or leave a comment below.
If you appreciate our work, please consider becoming a member of Generation 2004
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[1] RCAM/JSIS members are charged more for services in Luxembourg than users of the national system. The overcharging was previously set at 15% but this was overturned in court, leaving the overcharge undefined. So far this has resulted in an increase in the administrative burden and uncertainty for colleagues undergoing non-emergency care since they are strongly recommended to first request an estimate (yes, like for work on a car) and submit it to the JSIS who then decide whether the price is acceptable (see ‘special rules: Luxembourg‘. Please consult the Luxembourg CHL price list before paying any medical bill. If you believe there may be overcharging involved, consult the PMO before paying the bill. Note also that the JSIS has limitations (‘ceilings’) for reimbursement, so you might be reimbursed well below 85% of what you paid. Check out the list here, starting on p. 15.
[2] The Plateforme Immigration et Intégration Luxembourg (PiiLux-Asbl) held a round table on the topic of housing in April 2024. It was stated there that housing has been a problem since at least 1920 and will not be solved overnight. Projects such as the habitat participatif (a competition where you find other people with whom to build a house) are interesting, but not enough. Affordable housing (and SNHBM) might still be out of reach for many. The impact of the use of emphyteutic leases (a long-term (normally 99-year) lease on the land) remains to be seen, but does in some way address the issue of the shortage of available land: 0.5% of people own 50% of the available land in Luxembourg.
Older updates
*Update 23.09.2024 the Luxembourg government says that the EU can build housing for staff if it wants.*
*Update 20.09.2024 Luxembourg June LSC plenary minutes: ‘…There was a verbal agreement with Luxembourg authorities to address medical reimbursement issues, but no formal meeting has been set to finalize it. Staff continues to face high medical costs, and solutions are urgently needed.’*
*Update 12.05.2024, HR published an ‘update’ on the ‘progress’ made: Update on progress – Living and working conditions for staff in Luxembourg. Again, if you can find something (anything!) tangible there or elsewhere, get in touch, we’d love to see it!*
