"If Muhammad doesn't go to the mountain, the mountain goes to Muhammad": let's learn from the Court of Justice of the European Union's judicial decisions on the application of the principle of equality between men and women in social security matters

Commentary to the Court of Justice of the European Union of April 10, 2025 (Case C-584/23)

Abstract

The Court of Justice of the European Union understands that the rule for calculating permanent disability pensions resulting from an occupational accident, regulated in Article 60 of the Employment Accident Regulations (1956), which takes into account the actual wages received by the worker at the time of the accident, is not contrary to the principle of equality between men and women in social security matters, enshrined in Article 4.1 of Directive 79/7/EEC, in cases of reduced working hours to care for a child, even taking into account that the majority of those who benefit from this reduction in working hours are women. This ruling is consistent with the spirit of the rule, which covers all types of reduced working hours without differentiating the motivating cause. It is necessary to adapt the rule to the current reality, including elements to guarantee compliance with the objectives of reducing the gender gap in pensions.