25/04/2013

Govt Loses Waterford Crystal Pension Case

Waterford Crystal workers have won their European Court of Justice challenge against the State for the loss of their pensions when the company went bankrupt.

When the company collapsed in 2009 1,500 workers were told they would receive only between 18% and 28% of their full pension entitlements.

Under EU law the State had an obligation to protect the pension entitlements of workers in the event of a company becoming insolvent, a ruling issued in Luxembourg this morning found.

The court said the protection is enshrined in the 2008 Insolvency Directive.

The governments argument that the State contributory pension should be taken into account when assessing how much of the lost pensions should be made up, was rejected by the court.

Thursday morning’s ruling was a preliminary finding and the judges were not expected to spell out how much of their pension entitlements the Waterford employees should get.

The case will now go back to the High Court where it will be decided by how much the State will be liable for the lost pensions of the Waterford workers.

(H/CD)


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