CELEX: C1999/048/01
Language: en
Date: 1999-02-20 00:00:00
Title: JUDGMENT OF THE COURT (Fifth Chamber) of 10 December 1998 in Joined Cases C-173/96 and C-247/96 (references for a preliminary ruling from the Tribunal Superior de Justicia de Castilla-La Mancha and from the Arbeitsgericht Lörrach): Francisca Sánchez Hidalgo and Others v. Asociación de Servicios Aser and Sociedad Cooperativa Minerva (C-173/96), and Horst Ziemann v. Ziemann Sicherheit GmbH and Horst Bohn Sicherheitsdienst (C-247/96) (Safeguarding of employees' rights in the event of transfers of undertakings)

20.2.1999            EN                  Official Journal of the European Communities                                        C 48/1
                                                                 I
                                                           (Information)
                                             COURT OF JUSTICE
                                                       COURT OF JUSTICE
              JUDGMENT OF THE COURT                                  Member States relating to the safeguarding of employees'
                       (Fifth Chamber)                               rights in the event of transfers of undertakings, businesses
                                                                     or parts of businesses is to be interpreted as meaning that
                   of 10 December 1998
                                                                     the directive applies to a situation in which a public body
in Joined Cases C-173/96 and C-247/96 (references for a              which had contracted out its home-help service for
preliminary ruling from the Tribunal Superior de Justicia            persons in need or awarded a contract for maintaining
de Castilla-La Mancha and from the Arbeitsgericht                    surveillance of some of its premises to a first undertaking
Lörrach): Francisca SaÂnchez Hidalgo and Others v.                   decides, upon expiry of or after termination of the
Asociación de Servicios Aser and Sociedad Cooperativa                contract which it had with that first undertaking, to
Minerva (C-173/96), and Horst Ziemann v. Ziemann                     contract out that service or award that contract to a
Sicherheit GmbH and Horst Bohn Sicherheitsdienst                     second undertaking, provided that the operation is
                         (C-247/96) (1)                              accompanied by the transfer of an economic entity
(Safeguarding of employees' rights in the event of transfers         between the two undertakings. The term economic entity'
                      of undertakings)                               refers to an organised grouping of persons and assets
                                                                     enabling an economic activity which pursues a specific
                        (1999/C 48/01)                               objective to be exercised. The mere fact that the service
       (Languages of the cases: Spanish and German)                  successively provided by the old and the new undertaking
                                                                     to which the service is contracted out or the contract is
 (Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be        awarded is similar does not justify the conclusion that a
         published in the European Court Reports)                    transfer of such an entity has occurred.
In Joined Cases C-173/96 and C-247/96: references to the             (1) OJ C 197, 6.7.1996 and OJ C 294, 5.10.1996.
Court under Article 177 of the EC Treaty from the
Tribunal Superior de Justicia de Castilla-La Mancha
(Spain) (C-173/96) and by the Arbeitsgericht Lörrach
(Germany) (C-247/96) for a preliminary ruling in the
proceedings pending before those courts between
Francisca SaÂnchez Hidalgo and Others and Asociación de                            JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
Servicios Aser and Sociedad Cooperativa Minerva                                             (Fifth Chamber)
(C-173/96), and between Horst Ziemann and Ziemann
Sicherheit GmbH and Horst Bohn Sicherheitsdienst                                         of 10 December 1998
(C-247/96) Ð on the interpretation of Council Directive              in Case C-221/97 P: Aloys Schröder, Jan Thamann and
77/187/EEC of 14 February 1977 on the approximation of               Karl-Julius Thamann v. Commission of the European
the laws of the Member States relating to the safeguarding                                  Communities (1)
of employees' rights in the event of transfers of
                                                                     (Non-contractual liability of the Community Ð Control of
undertakings, businesses or parts of businesses (OJ L 61,
                                                                      classical swine fever in the Federal Republic of Germany)
5.3.1977, p. 26) Ð the Court (Fifth Chamber), composed
of: J.-P. Puissochet (Rapporteur), President of the                                          (1999/C 48/02)
Chamber, P. Jann, J. C. Moitinho de Almeida, C.
Gulmann and D. A. O. Edward, Judges; G. Cosmas,                                     (Language of the case: German)
Advocate-General; H. von Holstein, Deputy Registrar, for
the Registrar, has given a judgment on 10 December 1998,               (Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be
in which it has ruled:                                                        published in the European Court Reports)
Article 1(1) of Council Directive 77/187/EEC of                      In Case C-221/97 P: Aloys Schröder, Jan Thamann and
14 February 1977 on the approximation of the laws of the             Karl-Julius Thamann, acting in the capacity of partners in