Pearson Hinchliffe Solicitors - Professional Understanding - Advising - Supporting - Delivering

E-mail: enquiries@pearson-hinchliffe.co.uk | Telephone: 0161 785 3500

Government defeats EU on Working Time Directive

The UK has retained its right to allow workers to opt out of a maximum 48-hour working week for the foreseeable future after attempts to reach agreement between the European Parliament and Member States failed. 

The EU has for fifteen years demanded a deadline for scrapping the opt-out, while governments have been offering to accept an absolute working hour ceiling of 65 hours a week in return for keeping the right to exceed 48 hours.

Support for the Opt-Out

The European Parliament had insisted that the opt-out be phased out as it believed that workers should not be able to opt out of health and safety legislation.

”Unfortunately, after five years of negotiations, it was not possible to reach an agreement. The EP negotiation team made several proposals on the opt-out so that it would become ‘exceptional and temporary’. The opt-out cannot be forever. On the Council side, any attempt to put an end to the opt-out was not acceptable”, said Mechtild Rothe (PES, DE), leading the EP delegation.

The unions were not contented either. TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber said: "We are disappointed that another opportunity has been missed to end the UK's dangerous long hours culture. Long hours cause stress, illness and lowers productivity. And when many employers are moving to short-time working, the need for an opt-out of the 48 hour week is even more out of date.The UK Government still needs to tighten the law on working time, otherwise the EU could take it to court in order to protect UK workers from abuse of the 48 hour week.

The UK Government's Position

However, certain Member States, including the United Kingdom, were adamant that the opt-out was of vital importance to business.

The UK's employment relations minister, Pat McFadden, said: "We refused to be pushed into a bad deal for Britain. We have said consistently that we will not give up the opt-out and we have delivered on that pledge.

"Everyone has the right to basic protections surrounding the hours that they work, but it is also important that they have the right to choose those hours."

McFadden said the opt-out had worked successfully in the UK and other member states. He added: "The current economic climate makes it more important than ever that people continue to have the right to put more money in their pockets by working longer hours if they choose to do so."

The business secretary, Lord Mandelson, said: "Millions of people are better off because of the opt-out and I am relieved we have been able to resist its removal."

The Liberal Democrat MEP Liz Lynne, vice president of the European parliament's employment and social affairs committee, has long campaigned to keep the opt-out. She argued that its removal would push people into illegal work where they would no longer be covered by health and safety legislation.

"I have always argued that the opt out of the 48-hour limit in the working time directive should be retained so long as it is truly voluntary. Workers should be allowed to earn overtime if they wish to."

She added: "My hope now is that we will see a far more sensible proposal in the future that deals with the health sector alone – it was only ever in this area that we needed changes following rulings from the European courts."

It also proved impossible to reach agreement on the treatment of on-call time and those working under multiple contracts.

Pearson Hinchliffe Commercial Law can help you with employment legislation. Click here to speak to a specialist employment lawyer.

Pearson Hinchliffe Commercial Law | Hollinwood Business Centre, Albert Street, Hollinwood, Gtr Manchester, OL8 3QL
Telephone: +44 (0)161 785 3500, Fax: +44 (0)161 624 2589, Email: enquiries@pearson-hinchliffe.co.uk