Keywords
Summary

Keywords

1. Social policy — Protection of the safety and health of workers — Directive 93/104 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time — Concepts of working time and rest period — (Council Directive 93/104, Art. 2(1) and (2))

2. Social policy — Protection of the safety and health of workers — Directive 93/104 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time — Working time — Definition — Doctors — On-call service where physical presence in the hospital is required — Included — (Council Directive 93/104, Art. 2(1))

3. Social policy — Protection of the safety and health of workers — Directive 93/104 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time — Doctors — On-call service where physical presence in the hospital is required — National legislation allowing an offset only in respect of periods of activity carried out during the on-call service — Not permissible — (Council Directive 93/104)

4. Social policy — Protection of the safety and health of workers — Directive 93/104 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time — Derogations provided for in Article 17 — On-call service in hospitals and similar establishments — Reduction in the daily rest period — Condition — Equivalent compensating rest periods — Limits — (Council Directive 93/104, Art. 17(2))

Summary

1. The concepts of " working time" and " rest period" within the meaning of Directive 93/104 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time may not be interpreted in accordance with the requirements of the various legislations of the Member States but constitute concepts of Community law which must be defined in accordance with objective characteristics by reference to the scheme and purpose of that directive. Only such an autonomous interpretation is capable of securing for that directive full efficacy and uniform application of those concepts in all the Member States. Accordingly, the fact that the definition of the concept of working time refers to " national law and/or practice" does not mean that the Member States may unilaterally determine the scope of that concept. Thus, those States may not make subject to any condition the right of employees to have working periods and corresponding rest periods duly taken into account since that right stems directly from the provisions of that directive.

see paras 58-59

2. Directive 93/104 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time must be interpreted as meaning that on-call duty performed by a doctor where he is required to be physically present in the hospital must be regarded as constituting in its totality working time for the purposes of that directive, even where the person concerned is permitted to rest at his place of work during the periods when his services are not required, with the result that that directive precludes legislation of a Member State which classifies as rest periods an employee ' s periods of inactivity in the context of such on-call duty.

The decisive factor in considering that the characteristic features of the concept of " working time" within the meaning of Directive 93/104 are present in the case of time spent on call by doctors in the hospital itself is that they are required to be present at the place determined by the employer and to be available to the employer in order to be able to provide their services immediately in case of need. In that regard those obligations, which make it impossible for the doctors concerned to choose the place where they stay during waiting periods, must be regarded as coming within the ambit of the performance of their duties. That conclusion is not altered by the mere fact that the employer makes available to the doctor a rest room in which he can stay for as long as his professional services are not required. That interpretation cannot be called in question by economic and organisational objections.

see paras 63-64, 66, 71, operative part 1

3. Directive 93/104 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time must be interpreted as meaning that it precludes legislation of a Member State which, in the case of on-call duty where physical presence in the hospital is required, has the effect of enabling, in an appropriate case by means of a collective agreement or a works agreement based on a collective agreement, an offset only in respect of periods of on-call duty during which the worker has actually been engaged in professional activities.

see para. 103, operative part 2

4. In order to come within the derogating provisions set out in Article 17(2), subparagraph 2.1(c)(i) of Directive 93/104 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time, a reduction in the daily rest period of 11 consecutive hours by a period of on-call duty performed in addition to normal working time is subject to the condition that equivalent compensating rest periods be accorded to the workers concerned at times immediately following the corresponding periods worked. Furthermore, in no circumstances may such a reduction in the daily rest period lead to the maximum weekly working time laid down in Article 6 of the directive being exceeded.

see para. 103, operative part 2