Joined Cases C-396/05, C-419/05 and C-450/05: Judgment of the Court (Grand Chamber) of 18 December 2007 (Reference for a preliminary ruling from the Sozialgericht Berlin and Landessozialgericht Berlin-Brandenburg — Germany) — Doris Habelt (C-396/05), Martha Möser (C-419/05) and Peter Wachter (C-450/05) v Deutsche Rentenversicherung Bund (Social security — Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 — Annexes III and VI — Freedom of movement for persons — Articles 18 EC, 39 EC and 42 EC — Old-age benefits — Periods of contribution completed outside the Federal Republic of Germany — Not exportable)
Date: 2007-12-18
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: Austria, Germany, disability insurance, free movement of workers, interpretation of the law, pension scheme, social security, social-security benefit, wage earner

C 51/10

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

23.2.2008

Operative part of the judgment

Defendant: Deutsche Rentenversicherung Bund

1) Article 49 EC and Article 3 of Directive 96/71/EC of

the
European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 1996
concerning the posting of workers in the framework of the provision
of services are to be interpreted as precluding a trade union, in a
Member State in which the terms and conditions of employment
covering the matters referred to in Article 3(1), first subparagraph,
(a) to (g) of that directive are contained in legislative provisions,
save for minimum rates of pay,
from attempting, by means of
collective action in the form of a blockade ('blockad') of sites such
as that at issue in the main proceedings, to force a provider of
services established in another Member State to enter into negotia-
tions with it on the rates of pay for posted workers and to sign a
collective agreement the terms of which lay down, as regards some
of those matters, more favourable conditions than those resulting
from the relevant legislative provisions, while other terms relate to
matters not referred to in Article 3 of the directive;

2) Where there is a prohibition in a Member State against trade
unions undertaking collective action with the aim of having a
collective agreement between other parties set aside or amended,
Articles 49 EC and 50 EC preclude that prohibition from being
subject to the condition that such action must relate to terms and
conditions of employment
law applies
directly.

to which the national

(1) OJ C 281, 12.11.2005.

Judgment of the Court (Grand Chamber) of 18 Decem-
ber 2007 (Reference for a preliminary ruling from
the Sozialgericht Berlin and Landessozialgericht Berlin-
Brandenburg — Germany) — Doris Habelt (C-396/05),
Martha Möser (C-419/05) and Peter Wachter (C-450/05) v
Deutsche Rentenversicherung Bund

(Joined Cases C-396/05, C-419/05 and C-450/05) (1)

(Social security — Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 — Annexes
III and VI — Freedom of movement
for persons —
Articles 18 EC, 39 EC and 42 EC — Old-age benefits —
Periods of contribution completed outside the Federal Republic
of Germany — Not exportable)

(2008/C 51/16)

Language of the case: German

Referring courts

Sozialgericht Berlin and Landessozialgericht Berlin-Brandenburg

Parties to the main proceedings

Applicants: Doris Habelt (C-396/05), Martha Möser (C-419/05)
and Peter Wachter (C-450/05)

Re:

Reference for a preliminary ruling — Sozialgericht Berlin —
Interpretation of Article 42 of the EC Treaty — Validity of
Annex VI D. (Germany), No 1, to Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71
on the application of social security schemes to employed
persons, to self-employed persons and to members of
their
families moving within the Community (OJ, English special
to pay
edition, 1971 (II), p. 416), as amended — Refusal
German old-age benefits in respect of periods of employment
completed between 1939 and 1945 in the Sudetenland to a
German national who has taken up residence in Belgium

Operative part of the judgment

1) The provisions of Annex VI, Part C, headed ‘Germany’, point 1, to
Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 of the Council of 14 June 1971
on the application of social security schemes to employed persons,
to self-employed persons and to members of their families moving
in the version amended and updated by
within the Community,
Council Regulation (EC) No 118/97 of 2 December 1996, are
incompatible with freedom of movement for persons, and, in par-
ticular, with Article 42 EC,
in
circumstances such as those in the main proceedings, to make the
inclusion, for the purposes of the payment of old-age benefits, of
contribution periods completed between 1937 and 1945 on the
parts of the territory where the social security legislation of the
German Reich was applicable, but which are outside the territory of
the Federal Republic of Germany, subject to the condition that the
recipient reside in the territory of that Member State.

in that they make it possible,

(e),

2) The provisions of Annex III, Parts A and B, point 35, headed
‘Germany-Austria’, under
to Regulation No 1408/71, as
amended, are incompatible with Article 39 EC and Article 42 EC
in that they make it possible, in circumstances such as those in the
main proceedings, where the recipient resides in Austria, to make
the inclusion, for the purposes of the payment of old-age benefits,
of contribution periods completed under the law on pension rights
acquired by contribution abroad (Fremdrentengesetz) between 1953
and 1970 in Romania subject to the condition that the recipient
reside in the territory of the Federal Republic of Germany.

for persons and,

3) The provisions of Annex VI, Part C, headed ‘Germany’, point 1, to
Regulation No 1408/71, as amended, are incompatible with
freedom of movement
in particular, with
Article 42 EC, in that they make it possible, in circumstances such
as those in the main proceedings, to make the inclusion, for the
purposes of the payment of old-age benefits, of contribution periods
completed under the law on pension rights acquired by contribution
abroad between 1953 and 1970 in Romania subject to the condi-
tion that the recipient reside in the territory of the Federal Republic
of Germany.

(1) OJ C 22, 28.1.2006.
OJ C 22, 25.3.2006.