Brussels, 20/11/2013 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 20 November, the European Commission referred Greece and Ireland to the European Court of Justice for the same reason - failure to meet EU rules restricting the working week of doctors in public health services. The Commission says the accusation is the same, but the degree of non-compliance differs in the two countries.
The Commission says that, in Greece, doctors working in public hospitals and health centres often have to work a minimum average of 64 hours per week and over 90 hours in some cases, with no legal maximum limit. There is no legal ceiling to how many continuous hours they can be required to work at the workplace, and they often have to work without adequate intervals for rest or sleep.
The situation is similar in Ireland, where there are still numerous cases where junior doctors are regularly required to work continuous 36-hour shifts, to work over 100 hours in a single week and 70-75 hours per week on average, and to continue working without adequate breaks for rest or sleep. Under EU rules (the working time directive) there is a 48-hour limit on working time for doctors (including overtime).
Exemptions are possible to the 48-hour rule, but the Commission says the Greek and Irish authorities do not make use of the exemption. (JK/transl.fl)