EU Takes Germany and Italy to Court Over Mobile Worker Discrimination

The European Commission has referred Germany and Italy to the European Court of Justice for discriminatory practices against mobile workers, specifically regarding unequal family allowances. Both nations introduced schemes that created inconsistent benefits for different groups of workers, violating an EU principle of equal treatment without national distinction.

The European Commission announced on Thursday its decision to refer Germany and Italy to the European Court of Justice over practices it deemed discriminatory against mobile workers.

In recent years, both countries introduced schemes for family allowances that provided smaller benefits for certain groups of workers. Specifically, Italy required a minimum residency of two years for eligibility, while Germany offered smaller allowances for workers whose children resided in EU countries with lower costs of living.

"One of the fundamental principles of the EU is that people are treated equally without any distinction based on nationality," the European Commission stated. "Following this basic principle, EU mobile workers who contribute in the same way to the social security system and pay the same taxes as local workers are entitled to the same social security benefits," it added.

(With inputs from agencies.)