Inge Nolte v Landesversicherungsanstalt Hannover: ECJ 14 Dec 1995

Europa Directive 79/7 on the progressive implementation of the principle of equal treatment for men and women in matters of social security must be interpreted as meaning that persons in employment which is regarded as minor because it regularly consists of fewer than 15 hours’ work a week and regularly attracts remuneration of up to one-seventh of the average monthly salary form part of the working population within the meaning of Article 2 of that directive and therefore fall within its scope ratione personae. The fact that a person’ s earnings from employment do not cover all his needs cannot prevent him from being under Community law a worker or a member of the working population. 2. Article 4(1) of Directive 79/7 on the progressive implementation of the principle of equal treatment for men and women in matters of social security must be interpreted as not precluding national provisions under which employment regularly consisting of fewer than 15 hours’ work a week and regularly attracting remuneration of up to one-seventh of the average monthly salary is excluded from the statutory old-age insurance scheme, even where they affect considerably more women than men, since the national legislature was reasonably entitled to consider that the legislation in question was necessary in order to achieve a social policy aim unrelated to any discrimination on grounds of sex. That will be the case where the exclusion of such employment from compulsory insurance corresponds to a structural principle of a contributory social security scheme, is the only means of satisfying a social demand for such employment and is designed to avoid an increase in unlawful employment and devices circumventing social legislation.

C-317/93, [1995] ECR I-4625, [1995] EUECJ C-317/93
Bailii
Cited by:
CitedSeymour-Smith and Perez; Regina v Secretary of State for Employment, Ex Parte Seymour-Smith and Another ECJ 9-Feb-1999
Awards made by an industrial tribunal for unfair dismissal are equivalent to pay for equal pay purposes. A system which produced a differential effect between sexes was not indirect discrimination unless the difference in treatment between men and . .
CitedRegina (Amicus etc) v Secretary of State for Trade and Industry Admn 26-Apr-2004
The claimants sought a declaration that part of the Regulations were invalid, and an infringement of their human rights. The Regulations sought to exempt church schools from an obligation not to discriminate against homosexual teachers.
Held: . .
CitedHockenjos v Secretary of State for Social Security (No 2) CA 21-Dec-2004
The claimant shared child care with his former partner, but claimed that the system which gave the job-seeker’s child care supplement to one party only was discriminatory.
Held: In such cases the supplement usually went to the mother, and this . .
CitedAge UK, Regina (On the Application of) v Attorney General Admn 25-Sep-2009
Age UK challenged the implementation by the UK of the Directive insofar as it established a default retirement age (DRA) at 65.
Held: The claim failed. The decision to adopt a DRA was not a disproportionate way of giving effect to the social . .

Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

European, Discrimination

Updated: 16 December 2021; Ref: scu.161154