MIL-OSI Europe: Answer to a written question – Ensuring the consistent enforcement of EU law regarding parity of treatment for foreign-language lecturers in Italian universities – P-000286/2025(ASW)

In September 2021, the Commission started an infringement procedure[1] for Italy to comply with judgments of cases C-212/99[2] and C-119/04[3] of the Court of Justice of the EU, to ensure that it reconstructs careers of former lettori in line with Italian Law No 63 of 5 March 2004.

The Court stated in these judgments that Law 63/2004 provides for an adequate framework for the reconstruction of lettori’s careers by applying the parameter of the part-time tenured researcher and that the application of this parameter does not appear to preclude the career of a former assistant from being reconstructed on more advantageous terms.

Such reconstruction, in the Commission’s view, does not necessarily cover the reconstruction of careers in an uninterrupted manner. Neither of the judgments precludes the splitting of a career: they require the retention of the acquired rights from the date of the original recruitment, but they do not require that this is continued after the extinction of the category of lettori by Law No 236 of 21 June 1995.

Italy has the primary responsibility to monitor the application of EU law as interpreted by the Court in its judgments and to take the necessary steps to ensure uniform application across all Italian universities.

In its role as guardian of the Treaties, the Commission continues monitoring the situation and may decide to take appropriate action. In July 2023, the Commission decided to refer Italy to the Court of Justice of the EU for maintaining discrimination of foreign lecturers. Case C-519/23 is currently pending at the Court of Justice of the EU.

Redress in individual cases is to be sought before the competent national courts.

• [1] INFR(2021)4055, https://ec.europa.eu/atwork/applying-eu-law/infringements-proceedings/infringement_decisions/?lang_code=en&langCode=EN
• [2] Judgment of 26 June 2001, Commission of the European Communities v Italian Republic., C-212/99, EU:C:2001:357.
• [3] Judgment of 18 July 2006, Commission of the European Communities v Italian Republic, C-119/04, EU:C:2006:489.