CELEX: C1998/055/04
Language: en
Date: 1998-02-20 00:00:00
Title: JUDGMENT OF THE COURT (Fifth Chamber) of 4 December 1997 in Joined Cases C-253/96 to C-258/96 (references for a preliminary ruling from the Landesarbeitsgericht Hamm): Helmut Kampelmann and Others v. Landschaftsverband Westfalen-Lippe (Cases C-253/96 to C-256/96), Stadtwerke Witten GmbH v. Andreas Schade (Case C-257/96) and Klaus Haseley v. Stadtwerke Altena GmbH (Case C-258/96) (Obligation to inform employees - Directive 91/533/EEC - Article 2(2)(c))

20.2.98               EN                  Official Journal of the European Communities                                     C 55/3
1. Ð By failing to designate waters needing protection               (Case C-258/96) Ð on the interpretation of Article 2(2)(c)
        or improvement in order to support shellfish life            of Council Directive 91/533/EEC of 14 October 1991 on
        and growth in accordance with Article 4 of                   an employer's obligation to inform employees of the
        Council Directive 79/923/EEC of 30 October                   conditions applicable to the contract or employment
        1979 on the quality required of shellfish waters,            relationship (OJ L 288, 18.10.1991, p. 32) Ð the Court
                                                                     (Fifth Chamber), composed of: M. Wathelet (Rapporteur),
                                                                     President of the First Chamber, acting as President of the
     Ð by failing to establish programmes in order to                Fifth Chamber, J. C. Moitinho de Almeida, D. A. O.
        reduce pollution in accordance with Article 5 of             Edward, P. Jann and L. Sevón, Judges; G. Tesauro,
        Directive 79/923/EEC, and                                    Advocate-General; H. A. Rühl, Principal Administrator,
                                                                     for the Registrar, has given a judgment on 4 December
                                                                     1997, in which it has ruled:
     Ð by failing to set values for the parameters listed at
        points 8 and 9 of the Annex to Directive 79/923/
        EEC other than for mercury and lead, in
        accordance with Article 3 of Directive 79/923/               1. The notification referred to in Article 2(1) of Council
        EEC, the Italian Republic has failed to fulfil its               Directive 91/533/EEC of 14 October 1991 on an
        obligations under Directive 79/923.                              employer's obligation to inform employees of the
                                                                         conditions applicable to the contract or employment
                                                                         relationship, in so far as it informs an employee of the
2. The Italian Republic is ordered to pay the costs.                     essential aspects of the contract or employment
                                                                         relationship and, in particular, of the points listed in
                                                                         Article 2(2)(c), enjoys the same presumption as to its
(1) OJ C 247, 24.8.1996.
                                                                         correctness as would attach, in domestic law, to any
                                                                         similar document drawn up by the employer and
                                                                         communicated to the employee. The employer must
                                                                         none the less be allowed to bring any evidence to the
                                                                         contrary, by showing that the information in the
                                                                         notification is either inherently incorrect or has been
                                                                         shown to be so in fact.
              JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
                       (Fifth Chamber)
                     of 4 December 1997                              2. Individuals may rely on Article 2(2)(c) of Directive 91/
                                                                         533/EEC directly before the national courts as against
in Joined Cases C-253/96 to C-258/96 (references for a                   the State and any organisations or bodies which are
preliminary ruling from the Landesarbeitsgericht Hamm):                  subject to the authority or control of the State or have
Helmut Kampelmann and Others v. Landschafts-                             special powers beyond those which result from the
verband Westfalen-Lippe (Cases C-253/96 to C-256/96),                    normal rules applicable to relations between
Stadtwerke Witten GmbH v. Andreas Schade (Case                           individuals, either where the State has failed to
C-257/96) and Klaus Haseley v. Stadtwerke Altena GmbH                    transpose the Directive into national law within the
                     (Case C-258/96) (1)                                 prescribed period or where it has not done so
                                                                         correctly. It is not open to a Member State to
(Obligation to inform employees Ð Directive 91/533/EEC                   transpose Article 2(2)(c)(ii) of the Directive in such a
                      Ð Article 2(2)(c))                                 way as to allow the employer, in every case, to confine
                         (98/C 55/04)                                    the information to be notified to the employee to a
                                                                         mere job designation.
               (Language of the case: German)
                                                                     3. Article 9(2) of the Directive, properly construed, does
                                                                         not preclude the Member States from exempting an
                                                                         employer from the obligation to give an employee
  (Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be
                                                                         written notification of the essential aspects of the
         published in the European Court Reports)
                                                                         contract or employment relationship, even at the
                                                                         employee's request, when those aspects are already set
                                                                         out in a document or contract of employment drawn
In Joined Cases C-253/96 to C-258/96: references to the                  up before the measures transposing the Directive
Court under Article 177 of the EC Treaty from the                        entered into force.
Landesarbeitsgericht (Regional Labour Court), Hamm,
Germany, for a preliminary ruling in the proceedings
pending before that court between Helmut Kampelmann                  (1) OJ C 294, 5.10.1996.
and Others and Landschaftsverband Westfalen-Lippe
(Cases C-253/96 to C-256/96), between Stadtwerke
Witten GmbH and Andreas Schade (Case C-257/96) and
between Klaus Haseley and Stadtwerke Altena GmbH