The European Directive which created rights for workers to minimum holidays, was not sufficiently precise to allow it to have direct effect, and so give rise to an individual’s right to sue an employer under its provisions directly. The Directive gave some discretion to a member state, ‘flexibility in the application of certain provisions,’ and … Continue reading East Riding of Yorkshire Council v Lorraine Gibson: CA 21 Jun 2000
The Working Time Directive has direct application in the employment by an emanation of the state – a local authority, and an hourly paid part timer was entitled to four weeks paid holiday by the direct effect application of the Directive, and irrespective of any ambiguity or deficit in the implementing regulations. Times 12-Feb-1999, Gazette … Continue reading Gibson v East Riding of Yorkshire District Council: EAT 3 Feb 1999
Conjoined appeals were considered on the issue of whether holiday pay arrangements met the requirements of the Working Time Regulations, where holiday pay was in some was rolled up with normal pay. Held: Five categories were identified. Those were silent as to holiday pay; contracts excluding entitlement; contracts where holiday pay was included within standard … Continue reading Marshalls Clay Products Ltd Pearce Clarke, Sutton, Hoy v Caulfield and others, Huw Howatson Ltd Frank Studdon Ltd, Potting Constuction Ltd, Hanlin Construction: EAT 25 Jun 2003
The employers used a system of ‘rolled up’ holiday pay, so that staff received a sum equivalent to holiday pay throughout the year. Held: Such a system was not in accordance with the Working Time Directive. The directive required that there should be a specific payment for a particular period during which a worker took … Continue reading Robinson-Steele v RD Retail Services Ltd; Clarke v Frank Staddon Ltd and similar: ECJ 16 Mar 2006
The provisions of the Directive, which excluded from regulation the employment of transport workers, applied to office workers as well as to actual drivers. The phrases used by the Directive in disapplying the Directive to certain employment sectors, made a distinction between those employed in certain industries, and, in other cases, those with certain jobs. … Continue reading Bowden and Others v Tuffnells Parcels Express Ltd: ECJ 4 Oct 2001
The rule in United Kingdom law under which the entitlement to be paid annual leave arose only after an employee had been continuously employed for 13 weeks, did not satisfy European law. Members of the applicant trade union were typically employed on short term repeating contracts and did not receive paid annual holidays. The Directive … Continue reading Regina v Secretary of State for Trade and Industry ex parte Broadcasting, Entertainment, Cinematographic and Theatre Union: ECJ 26 Jun 2001
Upon implementation of the Working Time Directive requiring employers to provide paid holiday, the respondents adjusted the wages of their staff down to balance the new holiday payments. The Regulations provided that the new rights should not affect any other existing contractual right, and accordingly the reduction was unlawful. EAT Unlawful Deduction from Wages – … Continue reading A G Davies and others v M J Wyatt (Decorators) Ltd: EAT 13 Jul 2000
The workers were catering staff. They claimed to be entitled to arrears of holiday pay under the Regulations. In addition to their normal hours they worked some evenings casually. They claimed entitlement to holiday pay for those hours. They appealed a dismissal of their claim. Held: The tribunal had not asked the question of whether … Continue reading Gambau, Jean-Yves Belladoui v Mark Catering Ltd: EAT 19 Nov 2001
Doctors working in primary health care teams are subject to the Working Time Directive. They are not to be assimilated as public service workers alongside emergency services. All time on call was working time and overtime if present at a health centre, but if merely contactable then the rules applied to the time actually spent. … Continue reading Sindicato de Medicos de Asistancia Publica (SIMAP) v Colsilieria de Sanidad y Consumo de la Generalidad Valenciana: ECJ 3 Oct 2000
Concepts of working time and rest period – On Call ECJ Reference for a preliminary ruling: Landesarbeitsgericht Schleswig-Holstein – Germany. Social policy – Protection of the safety and health of workers – Directive 93/104/EC – Concepts of working time and rest period – On-call service (Bereitschaftsdienst) provided by doctors in hospitals. Social policy – Protection … Continue reading Landeshauptstadt Kiel v Norbert Jaeger: ECJ 9 Sep 2003
In each case, the employee had retired after long term sickness. The Employment tribunal had upheld their ability to claim arrears of sickness pay arising under the 1998 Regulations, as an unlawful deduction from their wages. They now appealed . .
The court was asked as to the calculation of annual leave pay for crew members in civil aviation under the Regulations. The company argued that it was based on the fixed annual remuneration, and the pilots argued that it should include other elements of pay. Held: The position was not acte claire, and the case … Continue reading British Airways Plc v Williams and Others: SC 24 Mar 2010
EAT The Tribunal erred in law in holding that the Appellant had received the rest breaks to which she was entitled under reg 12 of the Working Time Regulations 1998. Gallagher v Alpha Catering Services Ltd [2005] IRLR 102 applied.The Tribunal erred in law in holding that the Appellant was not working for the purpose … Continue reading MacCartney v Oversley House Management: EAT 31 Jan 2006
The Claimants were employed to deliver food to aircraft at airports, loading and unloading food from the aircraft. Between loadings, they were on down time – not physically working, but required to remain in radio contact with their employers, and at their disposal. The employers argued that since the employees would get 20 minutes’ rest … Continue reading Gallagher and others v Alpha Catering Services Ltd: CA 8 Nov 2004
The claimant alleged infringement by the defendant of assorted intellectual property rights in its database. It provided systems for recovering materials deleted from Nokia mobile phones. Held: ‘the present case is concerned with a collection of numerical data . . the individual items of data are not protected by copyright. It follows that the collection … Continue reading Forensic Telecommunications Services Ltd v West Yorkshire Police and Another: ChD 9 Nov 2011
The employee security guard appealed against a finding that his employer had allowed rest breaks as allowed under the Regulations. He worked a continuous shift during which he was allowed to use a rest area, but he remained on call. Held: The appeal failed. The break given to the appellant would not satisfy the regulation … Continue reading Hughes v The Corps of Commissionaires Management Ltd: CA 8 Sep 2011
The appellant had worked as a part time judge. He now said that he should be entitled to a judicial pension on retirement by means of the Framework Directive. The Regulations disapplied the provisions protecting part time workers for judicial office holders paid on a daily fee-paid basis. Held: The matter required to be referred … Continue reading O’Brien v Ministry of Justice: SC 28 Jul 2010
Volumes of vodka were transferred from a secure warehouse to a carrier for export. They were diverted, and not exported and the Customs sought the unpaid duty from the warehouse. The Directive provided that duty was payable on the ‘release for consumption’ which in turn included ‘any departure, including irregular departure, from a suspension arrangement.’ … Continue reading Greenalls Management Ltd v Customs and Excise: HL 12 May 2005
The claimant rights holders sought an order to require the defendant broadband internet provider to deny access to its users to websites which were said to facilitate the distribution of infringing copies of their films. An earlier judgment had . .
