A woman had worked as a substitute teacher for more than three years and claimed entitlement to a permanent position with the Municipality of Nord-Fron.
Under Section 14-9 of the Norwegian Working Environment Act, employees who have been temporarily employed for more than three years to perform work in place of others are generally entitled to permanent employment. The issue before the Supreme Court was whether this rule also applies to substitute teachers who do not possess approved teaching qualifications.
The Supreme Court concluded that the right to permanent employment does not apply to temporary appointments made pursuant to the Norwegian Education Act. Referring to the legislative history, the Court noted that the legislature had chosen, in the interest of maintaining the quality of education, to reserve permanent teaching positions for formally qualified teachers. The Supreme Court further held that this arrangement is not contrary to the EU rules governing fixed-term employment and that EEA law does not require a different outcome from that supported by Norwegian domestic legal sources.
The judgment clarifies that temporary employment pursuant to Section 10-6 of the Norwegian Education Act does not confer a right to permanent employment under Section 14-9 of the Norwegian Working Environment Act.
Source: Supreme Court
Martin Edelsteen Woll
mwoll@melo.no
+47 414 87 832
