In the interest of safety and security, EU law allows for special rules limiting who can load and unload ships in member-state ports.
Shipping containers are seen at Belgium’s Port of Antwerp. (Photo by Hessel Visser from Pixabay via Courthouse News)
LUXEMBOURG (CN) The EU’s top court found Thursday that European law allows countries to require specialist training for dockworkers, but such national rules cannot violate the freedom of movement for workers from other member states.
In a case involving several port companies in Belgium, the European Court of Justice ruled that nations in the European Union can set qualification requirements on dockworkers in the interest of safety and security. However, the court found a Belgian requirement that trade unions bestow official status on them violates the bloc’s principle of free movement of goods and services.