Keywords
Summary

Keywords

1. Social policy - Approximation of laws - Transfers of undertakings - Safeguarding of employees' rights - Directive 77/187 - Scope - Situation where an undertaking terminates a cleaning contract with another undertaking which had the contract performed by a subcontractor - Contract awarded to another undertaking - Re-engagement by that other undertaking of part of the staff of the subcontractor - Covered - Conditions

(Council Directive 77/187, Art. 1(1))

2. Social policy - Approximation of laws - Transfers of undertakings - Directive 77/187 - Employee opposed to the transfer of his contract to the transferee - Whether permissible

(Council Directive 77/187, Art. 3(1))

Summary

1. Article 1(1) of Directive 77/187 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the safeguarding of employees' rights in the event of transfers of undertakings, businesses or parts of businesses must be interpreted as applying to a situation in which a contractor which has entrusted the contract for cleaning its premises to a first undertaking, which has that contract performed by a subcontractor, terminates that contract and enters into a new contract for the performance of the same work with a second undertaking, where the transaction does not involve any transfer of tangible or intangible assets between the first undertaking or the subcontractor and the second undertaking, but the second undertaking has taken on, under a collective labour agreement, part of the staff of the subcontractor, provided that the staff thus taken on are an essential part, in terms of their number and their skills, of the staff assigned by the subcontractor to the performance of the subcontract.

( see para. 33 and operative part 1 )

2. Article 3(1) of Directive 77/187 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the safeguarding of employees' rights in the event of transfers of undertakings, businesses or parts of businesses must be interpreted as meaning that it does not preclude the contract or employment relationship of a worker employed by the transferor on the date of the transfer of the undertaking within the meaning of Article 1(1) of that directive from continuing with the transferor where that worker objects to the transfer of his employment contract or employment relationship to the transferee.

( see para. 37 and operative part 2 )