Luxembourg, 09/09/2003 (Agence Europe) - In a ruling of the Court acting in plenary (thirteen judges), the Court of Justice declares that a German doctor on call, Norbert Jaeger, was right in saying that the periods when on-call in the hospital - with the possibility of sleeping while waiting to be called - should be considered as work periods and not rest periods. The Council's Directive 93/104/EC on working hours is opposed to the German regulation which describes on-call times (Bereitschaftsdienst) as rest periods, the Court says. It explains that the Directive does not provide for any grey area and that it describes "working hours" as any period during which the worker is at the place of work available for the employer and for the exercise of his/her activity or functions. Exemptions are possible but Germany had not requested any.
During the hearing of the parties, five Member States - Germany, Denmark, France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom - had warned the Court against the financial impact of its decision. They had also noted the difficulties of an organisational kind that this same ruling will entail for Member States.
The Commission's spokesperson pointed out that it will publish by the end of the year a consultation document on the consequences of this ruling in Member States.