Purpose
The Directive on the Transfer of Undertakings has gradually reached maturity. Originally adopted in 1977, adjusted and clarified in 1998, before a consolidated version saw the light of the day in 2001. 48 years have passed. In other words, the Directive is in its prime. When Norway joined the EEA-agreement in 1994 the directive was implemented into Norwegian law as well. In this seminar we will be focusing on three main topics, with will be discussed in a comparative perspective.
The first topic will give a general overview of legal development in legislation and case law from 1977 until present day. What has been the main changes, how has the evolution been and what lies ahead?
The second topic will focus on the purpose of the Directive. It follows from the preamble that the Directive aims to safeguard employees' rights in the event of transfers of undertakings, businesses, or parts of businesses. However, the European Court of Justice has in a series of cases also underlined that the Directive also aims at protecting the employer's need. In this section we will discuss the legal basis, origin, and history of the Directive, and considers the implications of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights on its interpretation.
The third topic will dive into art. 3 nr. 3 of the Directive. According to the wording of the article, a transferee shall continue to observe the terms and conditions in a collective agreement on the same terms applicable to the transferor under that agreement, until the date of termination or expiry of the collective agreement or the entry into force or application of another collective agreement. This raises the question of time limited after effect of a collective agreement. This is a particularly practical – and theoretical – question that has raised a lot of discussion in Norway. Is this a Norwegian specialty or does similar questions arise in other countries?