Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 18 October 2016
642. Deputy Brendan Howlin asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the action which has been taken to enforce here the ruling of the European Court of Justice which determined that time spent travelling to and from first and last appointments by workers without a fixed office as working time; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30796/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraI assume the Deputy is referring to the judgement of the Court of Justice of the European Union in Case 266/14 Federación de Servicios Privados del sindicato Comisiones obreras (CC.OO.) v Tyco Integrated Security SL, Tyco Integrated Fire & Security Corporation Servicios SA. In that case the CJEU held that Article 2 of Directive 2003/88/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 November 2003 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time (the Working Time Directive) must be interpreted as meaning that, in circumstances such as those at issue in the Tyco case, in which workers do not have a fixed or habitual place of work, the time spent by those workers travelling each day between their homes and the premises of the first and last customers designated by their employer constitutes ‘working time’, within the meaning of that provision.
There is no action required by me as Minister to enforce the ruling of the CJEU in the Tyco case, as the judgement relates to the interpretation of the existing provisions. The Working Time Directive is given effect in Irish law by the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997. Section 2 of that Act defines “working time” as follows:
“… any time that the employee is -
(a ) at his or her place of work or at his or her employer’s disposal, and
(b ) carrying on or performing the activities or duties of his or her work,
and “work” shall be construed accordingly.”
An individual who considers that their rights under the Organisation of Working Time Act have been infringed can seek redress by making a complaint to the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission.
Any persons with questions or complaints regarding their rights under employment law should contact Workplace Relations Customer Service on lo-call 1890 80 80 90 or at www.workplacerelations.ie
