‘Shall I Compare Thee To...?’ On Article 141 EC and Lawrence

Abstract

For a ruling which is of considerable significance, the judgment of the European Court of Justice in Lawrence v Regent Office Care Ltd, Commercial Catering Group and Mitie Secure Services Ltd (Case C-320/00 [2002] ECR I-7325) has to date remained somewhat curiously unremarked upon. The case involved, in effect, an attempt to supplement the rights enjoyed by workers in a transferred undertaking under the Acquired Rights Directive (Council Directive 2001/23/EC of 12 March 2001 (OJ L 82, 22.3.2001, p 16)) by invoking Article 141 EC as the basis of an asserted right of equal pay on the part of employees in a transferred undertaking with comparators still working for the transferor. The implications of the ruling for equality law are considerable, something subsequent case-law has by now had the opportunity to confirm. Lawrence concerned the contracting out by North Yorkshire County Council of compulsory competitive tendering of cleaning and catering...