TAO-AFI, together with more and more colleagues, looks with anxiety at the value of Luxembourg as a home for the Commission. The recent relocation of CHAFFEA is yet another blow, confirming a worrying trend we have seen over the years.

We are all equal, but not for spending power!

And our Luxembourg-based friends say it again and again: with often extortionate accommodation costs, it can be hard recruiting competent staff to Luxembourg. Even HR’s campaign to raise the site’s attractiveness doesn’t work well. Managers regret that staff are reluctant to come.

A great advertisement for the EU’s free movement of persons it may be, but Luxembourg is also a bad advertisement for quality of life. Many Commission staff recruited from the surrounding Greater Region of Luxembourg (Belgium, France and Germany) can never hope to live in Luxembourg and have to commute daily on saturated motorways and rail services. Their children will almost never benefit from the European school or other advantages. 

We are all equal, but not for vaccinations!

Our friends in Luxembourg have been very worried about vaccination rollout, especially younger staff, as they have had the all-age rollout given to staff in Brussels. They have to contend with the general rollout to Luxembourg’s residents and cross-border workers (but not their families!). Some welcome news: Luxembourg has announced that anybody over 30 can now register for vaccination.

We are all equal, but not for hospital fees!

Again, our friends in Luxembourg have a hard time when it comes to much higher, if not extortionate, hospital fees, charged just because they work for the Commission! Staff have to pay, from their own pocket, hospital fees in excess of JSIS ceilings. An agreement between Luxembourg’s hospitals and the JSIS still has to be found to avoid this. (Cross-border workers are not affected, if they use hospitals where they live.)

We stress the urgent need for the Commission to react and reinforce the strategic site of Luxembourg! Let’s make it attractive again!