However, it does not require them to provide for the conversion of fixed-term contracts into contracts of indefinite duration and does not specify the conditions in which contracts of indefinite duration may be used, provided that national law – whatever measure is chosen – is effective in preventing the misuse of fixed-term employment contracts.

The Corte di Cassazione (Court of Cassation, Italy), hearing the case on appeal, has asked the Court of Justice whether the Framework Agreement applies to maritime labour and whether it permits national legislation which (i) provides that fixed-term employment contracts have to specify the duration of the contract (but not its termination date), (ii) considers that the mere indication of the voyage(s) to be made constitutes objective justification and (iii) provides for the conversion of successive fixed-term contracts into an employment relationship of indefinite duration where a worker has been employed continuously for a period exceed ...[+++]ing one year (the employment relationship being deemed continuous when the time elapsing between contracts is less than or equal to 60 days).

However, in the assessment in a specific case of the issue whether the renewal of a fixed-term contract is justified by an objective reason, such as temporary replacement of staff, the national authorities must take account of all the circumstances of the case, including the number and cumulative duration of the fixed-term contracts concluded in the past with the same employer.

The Court further holds that, in so far as a Member State’s domestic law does not include, in the sector under consideration, any other effective measure to prevent and, where relevant, punish the misuse of successive fixed-term contracts, the framework agreement precludes the application of national legislation which, in the public sector alone, prohibits absolutely the conversion into an employment contract of indefinite duration of a succession of fixed-term contracts that, in fact, have been intended to cover fixed and permanent needs of the employer and must therefore be regarded as constituting an abuse.

Council Directive 1999/70/EC of 28 June 1999 concerning the framework agreement on fixed-term work concluded by ETUC, UNICE and CEEP (OJ L 175, 10.7.1999, p. 43), which aims to prevent fixed-term employees from being treated less favourably than similar permanent employees, to prevent abuse arising from the use of successive fixed-term contracts, to improve access to training for fixed-term employees and to ensure that fixed-term employees are informed about available permanent jobs.

It may be governed by a contract of definite or indefinite duration; - temporary employment: may be defined in contrast to employment of indefinite duration and take the following forms : a) employment governed by a fixed-duration contract entered into directly by the employer and the employee, where the term of the contract is defined by objective conditions such as : reaching a specific date, the completion of a certain task, the occurrence of a specific event, the term of seasonal work (agriculture, tourism) which is characterized by the regular cycle of the seasons and repeated every year; fixed duration may also cover the period r ...[+++]equired to replace an employee who is absent in the short term.