Do the “categories” of labour law still exist? An Italian and European perspective

Abstract

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has clarified the applicability of European Union law to collective redundancies. In a recent case, the ECJ ruled that the concept of “collective redundancies” should be interpreted broadly to cover both direct and indirect terminations. The Court emphasized that national legislation must include assimilated terminations into the definition of collective redundancies provided by EU law to ensure effective protection for workers. The contribution underlines the existing contrast between the above-mentioned European category and the one built by the Italian legal order with respect to the domestic jurisprudential interpretation.