Self-employed workers (Directive 2010/41/EU and some relevant provisions of the Recast Directive)
| Author | Nicole Kerschen |
| Pages | 46-49 |
46
8 Self-employed workers (Directive 2010/41/EU and some relevant
provisions of the Recast Directive)
8.1 General (legal) context
8.1.1 Surveys and reports on the specific difficulties o f self-employed workers
No surveys or reports addressing the specific d ifficulties of self-empl oyed work ers have
been published. Nevertheless, i n the National Plan on Gender Equality 2015-2018, it was
stated that a study on the advan tages and d isadvantages of the self-employed status in
relation to the status of employees would be conducted by the Ministry for Economy.
8.1.2 Other issues
Information regarding the status of self-employed workers is on the Website of the House
of Entrep reneurship powered by the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce.89 There is no
special section on female entrepreneurship or on gender equality.
8.1.3 Overview of national acts
According to the Law of 2 September 2011, which regulates the access to the professions
of craftsman, merchant, businessman and to some liberal professions,90 each person who
wants to perform an activity as a craftsman, merchant, businessman, or to practise a
liberal profession in Luxembourg, must be in possession of an establishment permit issued
by the Ministry of Economy. Gender equality is not addressed in this law.
8.1.4 Political and societal debate and pending legislative proposals
In its response to the consultation organised by MEGA f or the preparat ion of the Gender
Equality Plan 2019-2022, the Chamber of Crafts (CMD) denounced the difference of
treatment between self-employed workers and employees regarding old age pensions, and
more precisely the social security status of spouses and life-partners assisting the activities
of self-employed workers in their personal capacit y.91 Assisting spouses and life-partners
are c ompulsorily insured and contributions have to be pai d up to a ceiling of t wice th e
minimum social wage, whereas the ceiling for contributions of employees is five times the
minimum social wage. As a consequence, the pension rights will also be very limited (CMD
2019).
Moreover, the Luxembourg legislation provides for opt-outs regarding assisting -spouses
and -life-partners, which does not ensure equal treatment between women an d men.
8.2 Implementation of Directive 2010/41/EU
the application of the principle of equal t reatment between men and women engag ed in
an activity in a self-employed capacity and repealing Directive 86/613/E EC.
Regarding social security, self-employed workers have the same rights and duties as
employees. There are no specific laws or social security regimes for self-employed
workers. Self-empl oyed persons are required to affiliate themselves to the social
protection system and they have to pay the contributions wh ich are normally due from
both the employer and employee.
89 Website: https://www.houseofentrepreneurship.lu/.
90 Memorial A No. 198 of 22 September 2011. Website: http://data.legilux.public.lu/file/eli-etat-leg-memorial-
2011-198-fr-pdf.pdf.
91 CMD, Opinion of 24 July 2019.
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