Working time - on call

Workers on call at their employers' premises have the right to have their hours counted in the calculation of working time.

The facts

Norbert Jaeger is a doctor working in Germany. His contract with the hospital required him to be on call on six occasions each month. Jaeger had a room in the hospital and in periods when his services were not required he could sleep. It was rare that he spent more than half of the time on call actually working. Under the collective agreement Jaeger could get compensatory time off but only for the periods when he was actually working. Jaeger argued that all of the time on call had to be calculated as part of his working time. He also argued that the on-call provisions conflicted with his right to a maximum length of the working day/week.

The ruling

The ECJ upheld his claim. Time on the employers' premises on call is included within the definition of working time. Jaeger had the right to compensatory periods of time off immediately following the period he had worked and taking account of all of the time he was on call.

* Landeshauptstadt Kiel v Jaeger, ECJ C0151/02