Redundancy processes must protect pregnant women - EU Court

Accra, Sept. 14 - (dpa/GNA) - Pregnant women cannot be routinely dismissed as part of a redundancy process, according to a legal opinion issued by the advocate general of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) on Thursday.

"The dismissal of pregnant workers may only occur in exceptional cases not connected to the pregnancy, and when there is no plausible possibility of reassigning them to another suitable post," the court said in a statement.

The opinion referred to a case in Spain. In 2013, following an agreement to dismiss staff as part of a collective redundancy process, a pregnant worker, Porras Guisado, was given notice of her dismissal.

Guisado challenged the dismissal in two courts in Spain, of which the latter sought clarification from the ECJ as to how EU law regarding the dismissal of pregnant workers should be interpreted.

According to the opinion, Spanish law might not have fully implemented EU legislation regarding the so-called "preventative protection," of pregnant women.

The verdict in the case is expected later in the year.

While ECJ judges are not obliged to follow legal opinions from the advocate general, they usually do.

GNA