Pilots challenge age rule

Case 8: The facts

German airline Lufthansa was party to a collective agreement which required commercial airline pilots to retire at 60. Two German pilots challenged this term, arguing that it was age discrimination, contrary to the Equal Treatment Directive. The case was referred to the European Court (ECJ).

The ECJ decided that as a matter of principle, it is possible to justify a term in a collective agreement containing a compulsory retirement age for pilots, on the ground that it is a measure aimed at “ensuring public security and protecting health”.

However, in this case, German national law already allows pilots to fly between the ages of 60 and 65 as long as they comply with some specific restrictions. Given that German national law allows pilots to continue flying up to age 65 in some circumstances, a term in a collective agreement that imposes a blanket ban on all commercial pilots flying once over 60 is “disproportionate” and a breach of European law.

This case (and the one above) is an interesting example of the ECJ’s approach to the question of when a compulsory retirement age can be justified.

Prigge v Lufthansa ECJ Case C-447/09