European Court of Justice Holds Firefighter Standby Time Is Not Working Time
A recent ECJ case has determined that 'standby time', during which a firefighter could do other work but could be recalled to his fire duties within ten minutes, did not constitute working time.
Case
In the case of MG v Dublin City Council, the firefighter Claimant was required to be on standby 24 hours a day, seven days a week (save for annual leave). He could perform other work (in his case as a taxi driver), but was required to return to the station within 10 minutes when recalled for emergency duties. He was not required to remain in a particular place when on standby. He was required to participate in at least 75% of the fire brigade's interventions, but if he failed to return to the station within the allotted time, the only consequence was that he would not be paid.
Decision
The Claimant argued this requirement breached the rules on daily and weekly rest, and maximum weekly working time, under the Working Time Directive (2003/88/EC) (WTD), and that it also interfered with his family and social life. However, the ECJ determined that the requirements imposed on the Claimant did not significantly affect his ability to manage his own time whilst on standby, and for this reason the time was held not to be working time.
Comment
This decision demonstrates the fact that context is everything when it comes to determining whether time is working or rest time for the purposes of the WTD. In this case, the deciding factors were the Claimant's freedom to carry out another professional activity during the standby time, the fact that he was not 'obliged' to participate in emergency call-outs, and the fact he was not required to remain at a designated place during standby time.
Whilst the focus of this case was on the WTD, it is worth also noting the potential link to National Minimum Wage issues. Time spent on call or on standby outside normal working hours is subject to special rules under the National Minimum Wage Regulations, which deal with how this time should be remunerated, depending on where the individual is required to be, and whether they must be 'available' to work.
In the UK this decision will not be binding on domestic courts. However, under section 6(2) European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, courts and tribunals may still have regard to ECJ case law where it is relevant to the issue they are considering.
Case: MG v Dublin City Council
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