Judgment — ECLI:EU:C:2011:751
Date: 2011-11-17
Language of the case: Dutch
Court formation: Fourth Chamber
Subject matter: Social Policy
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling
Origin: Netherlands

Summary of the Judgment Social policy – Approximation of laws – Protection of employees in the event of the insolvency of their employer – Directive 80/987 – Limitation of liability of the guarantee institutions (Council Directive 80/987, as amended by European Parliament and Council Directive 2002/74, Arts 3 and 4) Articles 3 and 4 of Directive 80/987 relating to the protection of employees in the event of the insolvency of their employer, as amended by Directive 2002/74, must be interpreted as precluding a national rule which obliges employees to register as job-seekers in the event of the insolvency of their employer, in order fully to assert their right to payment of wage claims outstanding, uncontested and recognised by the national legislation. It is purely by way of exception that Member States have the option, under Article 4 of Directive 80/987, to limit the payment obligation referred to in Article 3 of that directive. Article 4 of Directive 80/987 must be interpreted strictly and in conformity with its social objective, which is to guarantee a minimum of protection to all employees. To this effect, the cases in which it is permitted to limit the payment obligation of the guarantee institutions are listed exhaustively by Directive 80/987 and the provisions concerned must be interpreted strictly, having regard to their being derogations and to the social objective of that directive. In this respect, it would be contrary to the objective of Directive 80/987 to interpret it, and in particular Articles 3 and 4 thereof, in such a way that an employee is subject – owing to not fulfilling the obligation to register as a job-seeker within a given period – to an automatic and flat-rate reduction of the reimbursement of his salary claims, uncontested and recognised by the national legislation, and is not, therefore, entitled to the guarantee in respect of the salary which he has actually lost during the reference period. (see paras 30-31, 34-35, 39, operative part)