Company collective agreements apply to all company workers, even if they are not members of the union(s) signing same, with the exception of those workers who, by joining a different trade union, explicitly demonstrate their dissent to the agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Court of Cassation, employment section, judgment no. 26509 of 20 November 2020<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n With this ruling, the Court of Cassation returns to the issue of the applicability of company collective bargaining agreements. I contratti collettivi aziendali sono applicabili a tutti i lavoratori dell’azienda, ancorch\u00e9 non iscritti alle organizzazioni sindacali stipulanti, con l’unica eccezione di quei lavoratori che, aderendo ad una organizzazione sindacale diversa, ne condividono l’esplicito dissenso dall’accordo. Corte di Cassazione, sezione lavoro, sentenza n. 26509 del 20 novembre 2020 Con la sentenza n. 26509 del 20 […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1891,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[44],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n
\nIn the case in point, some employees (drivers) raised court action claiming differences in pay for overtime, to be calculated according to the increases established by the national collective bargaining agreement for that category of workers.
\nIn fact, the employees complained about the inapplicability of the provisions on flat-rate overtime contained in the company-level agreements, given their express disagreement with these agreements.
\nThe Court of Appeal of Brescia rejected the appeal, observing that the provisions of the company agreements applied, on the basis of express contract, to all the employees, including the plaintiffs, since they did not claim to be members of a different trade union from those who were a party to the agreement.
\nThe Court of Appeal noted, in fact, that the company agreement \u201cafter clarifying that the forfeiture of travel and overtime payments has the nature and effectiveness of a collective agreement\u201d expressly stated that \u201ccollective agreements apply to all employees of companies that fall within the scope of the agreements\u201d.
\nPrecisely with reference to the issue of the general effectiveness of company-level agreements, the Court of Appeal comments \u201cthe proper purpose of the company agreements stipulated in the specific matter of overtime work performed by drivers assigned to discontinuous tasks: since it may be objectively difficult to define, case by case, what should be considered actual work, with such agreements it is easier to pay the related compensation, adopting, through uniform criteria to be applied to the workers, a lump sum payment\u201d.\n
\nThe Court of Cassation, with the judgment in question, has confirmed the decision of the court of first instance, reaffirming its orientation according to which \u201ccompany collective agreements are applicable to all workers of the company, even if they are not members of the trade unions signing, with the sole exception of those workers who, by joining a different trade union, explicitly dissent from the agreement\u201d.
\nThe principle follows an orientation now consolidated within the Supreme Court (Cass. Civ. Sez. Lav. n. 10353\/2004; Cass. Civ. Sez. Lav. n. 6044\/2012).
\nThe Supreme Court also cites that \u201cthe protection of collective interests of the corporate working community and, sometimes, the inseparability of the resulting rules, contribute to justify the subjective effectiveness erga omnes of the company collective agreements, ie towards all workers of the company, even if not members of trade unions (see, among others, Cass. n. 12272\/2013, cit.)\u201d.
\nTherefore, concludes the Supreme Court \u201cthe lower court has correctly found that since the applicants were not members of a trade union different from those stipulating the company agreement, then such company-level agreements should apply to them\u201d.
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