27First of all, as regards the protection of women in connection with pregnancy and maternity, the Court has repeatedly held that, by reserving to Member States the right to retain or introduce provisions which are intended to ensure that protection, Article 2(3) of Directive 76/207 recognises the legitimacy, in terms of the principle of equal treatment of the sexes, first, of protecting a woman’s biological condition during and after pregnancy and, second, of protecting the special relationship between a woman and her child over the period which follows childbirth (see Case 184/83Hofmann [1984] ECR 3047, paragraph 25; Case C-32/93Webb [1994] ECR I-3567, paragraph 20; Case C-394/96Brown [1998] ECR I-4185, paragraph 17; and Case C-203/03Commission v Austria [2005] ECR I-935, paragraph 43).