ECJ – Judgment of 16.10.2007, Palacios de la Villa, C-411/05 – Compulsory retirement provided for collective agreement and age discrimination

Abstract

This article places the ruling by the European Court of Justice in Palacios de la Villa case in the context of the European Case-law for age discrimination. Though the competence conferred of the Members States to determine the retirement age does not meet affected by the Directive 2000/78/CE, the community norm can be applied to the national measures governing the termination of employment contracts when the normal retirement age has been reached. The prohibition of any discrimination on grounds of age not precluding the clauses contained in collective agreements protected for the single transitional provision of the Law 14/2005 because the regulation was adopted in the context of a national policy destined to promote the access to the employment. The measure cannot be regarded as unduly prejudicing the legitimate claims of workers, the relevant legislation is not based only on a specific age, but also takes account of the fact that the persons concerned are entitled to financial compensation by way of a retirement pension at end of their working life, the level of which cannot be regarded as unreasonable.