In a ruling handed down on Tuesday 14 April (Case C-418/24), the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled that Spain’s measures to penalise the misuse of successive fixed-term contracts in the public sector are not in line with EU law.
A worker who has performed childcare duties since March 2016 at a public educational establishment under the responsibility of the Autonomous Community of Madrid has requested that her employment relationship be declared as permanent. Her employment relationship is based on six successive fixed-term contracts, all intended to cover a vacant post or replace an employee.
In light of a February 2024 ruling by the CJEU aimed at preventing abuses resulting from the use of successive fixed-term contracts (cases C-59/22, C-110/22 and C-159/22), the Spanish Supreme Court is asking the CJEU whether national measures comply with the framework agreement between the European social partners on fixed-term work (annex to Directive 1999/70).
The CJEU is of the opinion that it is for the court which referred the case to indicate whether the following Spanish measures make it possible to erase the consequences of the breach of EU law: - the conversion of the contracts in question into a ‘non-permanent employment relationship of indefinite duration’; - the compensation provided for to the employee on termination of the employment relationship; - the liability of public administrations; - the organisation of selection procedures that take into account the employee’s previous experience and length of service.
However, the European Court of Justice considers that the conversion of successive fixed-term contracts into a ‘non-permanent employment relationship of indefinite duration’ does not allow abuses to be adequately penalised. In its view, this measure amounts to maintaining a temporary employment relationship and therefore the precariousness of the worker concerned.
In addition, the Court adds, subject to a double ceiling, the financial compensation provided for and paid at the end of the employment relationship does not nullify the consequences of the infringement of EU law in all situations of abusive of successive fixed-term contracts. This is the case when employees retire, resign or are made redundant before the end of the selection procedure.
For the CJEU, the Spanish system of liability of public authorities is also ambiguous, abstract and unforeseeable where it is not accompanied by other effective, foreseeable and dissuasive measures.
Finally, the Court found that, although the selection procedures take into account the previous experience of the worker concerned and his or her length of service, they do not limit this consideration to candidates who are victims of such abuses.
To see the judgment of the Court of Justice: https://aeur.eu/f/lju (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)