THE DOCUMENTS BEFORE THE COURT THAT FOR SEVERAL YEARS BILKA , WHICH BELONGS TO A GROUP OF DEPARTMENT STORES IN THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY EMPLOYING SEVERAL THOUSAND PERSONS , HAS HAD A SUPPLEMENTARY ( OCCUPATIONAL ) PENSION SCHEME FOR ITS EMPLOYEES . THIS SCHEME , WHICH HAS BEEN MODIFIED ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS , IS REGARDED AS AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE CONTRACTS OF EMPLOYMENT BETWEEN BILKA AND ITS EMPLOYEES .
4 ACCORDING TO THE VERSION IN FORCE SINCE 26 OCTOBER 1973 , PART-TIME EMPLOYEES MAY OBTAIN PENSIONS UNDER THE SCHEME ONLY IF THEY HAVE WORKED FULL TIME FOR AT LEAST 15 YEARS OVER A TOTAL PERIOD OF 20 YEARS .
5 MRS WEBER WAS EMPLOYED BY BILKA AS A SALES ASSISTANT FROM 1961 TO 1976 . AFTER INITIALLY WORKING FULL TIME , SHE CHOSE TO WORK PART TIME FROM 1 OCTOBER 1972 UNTIL HER EMPLOYMENT CAME TO AN END . SINCE SHE HAD NOT WORKED FULL TIME FOR THE MINIMUM PERIOD OF 15 YEARS , BILKA REFUSED TO PAY HER AN OCCUPATIONAL PENSION UNDER ITS SCHEME .
6 MRS WEBER BROUGHT PROCEEDINGS BEFORE THE GERMAN LABOUR COURTS CHALLENGING THE LEGALITY OF BILKA ' S REFUSAL TO PAY HER A PENSION . SHE ARGUED INTER ALIA THAT THE OCCUPATIONAL PENSION SCHEME WAS CONTRARY TO THE PRINCIPLE OF EQUAL PAY FOR MEN AND WOMEN LAID DOWN IN ARTICLE 119 OF THE EEC TREATY . SHE ASSERTED THAT THE REQUIREMENT OF A MINIMUM PERIOD OF FULL-TIME EMPLOYMENT FOR THE PAYMENT OF AN OCCUPATIONAL PENSION PLACED WOMEN WORKERS AT A DISADVANTAGE , SINCE THEY WERE MORE LIKELY THAN THEIR MALE COLLEAGUES TO TAKE PART-TIME WORK SO AS TO BE ABLE TO CARE FOR THEIR FAMILY AND CHILDREN .
7 BILKA , ON THE OTHER HAND , ARGUED THAT IT WAS NOT GUILTY OF ANY BREACH OF THE PRINCIPLE OF EQUAL PAY SINCE THERE WERE OBJECTIVELY JUSTIFIED ECONOMIC GROUNDS FOR ITS DECISION TO EXCLUDE PART-TIME EMPLOYEES FROM THE OCCUPATIONAL PENSION SCHEME . IT EMPHASIZED IN THAT REGARD THAT IN COMPARISON WITH THE EMPLOYMENT OF PART-TIME WORKERS THE EMPLOYMENT OF FULL-TIME WORKERS ENTAILS LOWER ANCILLARY COSTS AND PERMITS THE USE OF STAFF THROUGHOUT OPENING HOURS . RELYING ON STATISTICS CONCERNING THE GROUP TO WHICH IT BELONGS , BILKA STATED THAT UP TO 1980 81.3% OF ALL OCCUPATIONAL PENSIONS WERE PAID TO WOMEN , ALTHOUGH ONLY 72% OF EMPLOYEES WERE WOMEN . THOSE FIGURES , IT SAID , SHOWED THAT THE SCHEME IN QUESTION DOES NOT ENTAIL DISCRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF SEX .
8 ON APPEAL THE PROCEEDINGS BETWEEN MRS WEBER AND BILKA CAME BEFORE THE BUNDESARBEITSGERICHT ; THAT COURT DECIDED TO STAY THE PROCEEDINGS AND REFER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS TO THE COURT :
( 1 ) MAY THERE BE AN INFRINGEMENT OF ARTICLE 119 OF THE EEC TREATY IN THE FORM OF ' INDIRECT DISCRIMINATION ' WHERE A DEPARTMENT STORE WHICH EMPLOYS PREDOMINANTLY WOMEN EXCLUDES PART-TIME EMPLOYEES FROM BENEFITS UNDER ITS OCCUPATIONAL PENSION SCHEME ALTHOUGH SUCH EXCLUSION AFFECTS DISPROPORTIONATELY MORE WOMEN THAN MEN?
(