Internal market and euro crisis: labour law under the gun of the European Union?

Abstract

The European Union has become the battle ground for a growing conflict between labour protection in the member states and the economic rules of the internal market. This paper traces the emergence and development of that conflict through the case-law of the European Court of Justice. It structures the case-law in varying models of conflict resolution: labour is not a commodity; labour is exempted from market law; labour and market in balance; and market primacy and labour subordination. It offers a critical assessment of the foundations and internal contradictions of a case-law that is still developing and presents an alternative model for equilibrium between equal principles. The paper also addresses the increasing legal ramifications of the euro crisis. It sketches how labour market reforms that have been adopted at state level under the pressure of the crisis are increasingly the target of legal contestation from the perspective of European and international labour law principles.