Judgment of the Court (Second Chamber) of 13 February 2014 — Commission v Italy

(Case C‑596/12)

‛Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Collective redundancies — Concept of ‘workers’ — Exclusion of ‘dirigenti’ — Directive 98/59/EC — Article 1(1) and (2) — Infringement’

Social policy — Approximation of laws — Collective redundancies — Directive 98/59 — Employee information and consultation procedures — Concept of ‘workers’ — National legislation which excludes ‘dirigenti’ from the scope of the consultation procedure — Unlawful (Council Directive 98/59, Arts 1(1) and (2), and 2) (see paras 16, 17, 21-24, operative part)

Re:

Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Infringement of Article 1(1) and (2) of Council Directive 98/59/EC of 20 July 1998 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to collective redundancies (OJ 1998 L 225, p. 16) — Scope — Concept of workers — Inclusion of managers in that concept.

Operative part

The Court:

1. Declares that, by excluding, in Article 4(9) of Law No 223 relating to provisions on technical lay-offs, mobility, unemployment benefit, implementation of Community directives, employment services and other provisions relating to the employment market (legge n. 223 — Norme in materia di cassa integrazione, mobilita’, trattamenti di disoccupazione, attuazione di direttive della Comunita’ europea, avviamento al lavoro ed altre disposizioni in materia di mercato del lavoro), of 23 July 1991, the category of ‘dirigenti’ from the scope of Article 2 of Council Directive 98/59/EC of 20 July 1998 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to collective redundancies, the Republic of Italy has failed to fulfil its obligation under Article 1(1) and (2) of that Directive;

2. Orders the Republic of Italy to pay the costs.

Judgment of the Court (Second Chamber) of 13 February 2014 — Commission v Italy

(Case C‑596/12)

‛Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Collective redundancies — Concept of ‘workers’ — Exclusion of ‘dirigenti’ — Directive 98/59/EC — Article 1(1) and (2) — Infringement’

Social policy — Approximation of laws — Collective redundancies — Directive 98/59 — Employee information and consultation procedures — Concept of ‘workers’ — National legislation which excludes ‘dirigenti’ from the scope of the consultation procedure — Unlawful (Council Directive 98/59, Arts 1(1) and (2), and 2) (see paras 16, 17, 21-24, operative part)

Re:

Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Infringement of Article 1(1) and (2) of Council Directive 98/59/EC of 20 July 1998 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to collective redundancies (OJ 1998 L 225, p. 16) — Scope — Concept of workers — Inclusion of managers in that concept.

Operative part

The Court:

1. Declares that, by excluding, in Article 4(9) of Law No 223 relating to provisions on technical lay-offs, mobility, unemployment benefit, implementation of Community directives, employment services and other provisions relating to the employment market (legge n. 223 — Norme in materia di cassa integrazione, mobilita’, trattamenti di disoccupazione, attuazione di direttive della Comunita’ europea, avviamento al lavoro ed altre disposizioni in materia di mercato del lavoro), of 23 July 1991, the category of ‘dirigenti’ from the scope of Article 2 of Council Directive 98/59/EC of 20 July 1998 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to collective redundancies, the Republic of Italy has failed to fulfil its obligation under Article 1(1) and (2) of that Directive;