Brussels, 06/01/2010 (Agence Europe) - As expected, the European Commission formally decided on Wednesday 6 January to go to war with the Council over the 2009 wage increase for EU civil servants. As proposed by its President José Manuel Barroso, the Commission decided unanimously and without debate to ask the Court of Justice of the European Communities to annul the Council regulation increasing pre-tax salaries by 1.85%, half the 3.7% rise due according to the agreed system of calculation.
The Commission, then, is bringing an appeal before the Court of Justice under the terms of Article 263 of the Lisbon Treaty (the Court has jurisdiction in actions brought by a member state, the European Parliament, the Council or the Commission on grounds of incompetence, infringement of an essential procedural requirement, infringement of the Treaties or any rule of law relating to their application, or misuse of powers).
The Commission is challenging the regulation adopted by the Council on 23 December 2009 on the 1.85% salary increase (see EUROPE 10047) and is calling for the annulment of this regulation. The Commission believes that the Council regulation failed correctly to apply the methodology for the calculation of wage increases set out in Appendix XI of the Staff Regulations and Conditions of Employment of Officials of the European Communities. The Commission called for a 3.7% salary increase, applying Article 3 of Appendix XI of the Regulations. This provides for salary and pension increases to be worked out in relation to: 1) increases in after-tax remuneration (during the previous year) of national civil servants in member states' central administrations (using information provided by eight member states; 2) increases in the cost of living in Brussels where most EU officials work.
“We have merely done what we had to do in the face of what we consider to be an infringement of the rules,” said a Commission spokeswoman, explaining the decision to take legal action. The Commission hopes that the judges will find for it, since there is case law relating to a similar case in 1972. The Commission has, furthermore, called for the action to be heard under the fast track procedure, so that the Court can deliver its verdict more quickly than in usual proceedings (it takes on average 16 months to make a ruling). In the meantime, officials will receive only a 1.85% increase, backdated until 1 July 2009. (L.C./transl.rt)