Implementation of EU labour law directives by way of national collective agreements

Abstract

Collective agreements are among the panoply of national legal instruments deemed appropriate mechanisms for the implementation of EU directives in the fields of social and employment policy and industrial relations. The role of collective agreements in implementing EU directives is further prescribed by Article 153 (3) TFEU, which states that a Member State may entrust management and labour, at their joint request, with the implementation of directives adopted pursuant to paragraph 2. Article 153 (3) TFEU further states that, in that case, it shall ensure that, no later than the date on which a directive must be transposed, management and labour should have introduced the necessary measures by agreement, the Member State concerned being required to take any necessary measure enabling it to be in a position to guarantee the results imposed by that directive. The vast majority of scholars and practitioners agree that “so long as the basic requirements of Community law are met, a Directive in principle I.