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Working Time Directive

Policy Position

One of the successes of the UK economy over recent years has been its flexible labour market and the FDF considers that it is vital that this is maintained in order for companies in the UK food and drink sector to be competitive. However, FDF does not encourage long hours working by employees in the sector as it feels there are many advantages for them having the right work-life balance for their health and wellbeing.

The demand for many products in the food and drink sector can be seasonal with fluctuating peaks and troughs of demand at certain times of the year. Employers therefore need to have the flexibility to be able to respond quickly and efficiently to changes in customer demand in order to remain competitive. In the current difficult and uncertain economic climate, many employees is the food and drink sector also welcome the opportunity to work additional hours at times of peak demand and therefore increase their earnings.

FDF believes that it is therefore vital for both employers in the UK food and drink sector and their employees that any changes made to the Working Time Directive retain the opportunity for them to agree hours of work that suit them and, in particular, that the individual opt out from the average 48 hour working week is retained.

Background

In March 2010, the European Commission issued a first stage consultation document seeking the views of the European social partners on revising the Working Time Directive. This consultation document focused on how the European labour market and the world of work has changed since this Directive had first been discussed in the mid-1980s rather than only addressing difficult ‘political’ issues such as the future of the individual opt out from the average 48 hour working week and the definition of on call time.

FDF supported the response of BusinessEurope to this consultation document. This strongly endorsed the Commission’s recognition of the changing nature of the European labour market and the need for both employers and employees to have flexibility in determining working time arrangements including the retention of the individual opt out.

In early 2011, the Commission published its second stage consultation document which asked whether the European social partners were prepared to try to negotiate an agreement to revise this Directive. On 14 November 2011, BusinessEurope and the ETUC wrote to the Commission stating that they were prepared to negotiate although their negotiating mandates are very different.

Whilst BusinessEurope has indicated that it is only prepared to discuss changes to the Directive which would resolve the legal and practical problems that have been created by some recent ECJ decisions about on call time and accrued annual leave, the ETUC wants these negotiations to cover a much wider range of issues including the individual opt out from the average 48 hour week which is wants to have abolished.

BusinessEurope and the ETUC held their first negotiating meeting in December 2011 and they now have 9 months in which to try to reach an agreement. If they fail to reach a European social partner agreement during this period or the negotiations break down before then, the Commission will publish its own legislative proposal for revising this Directive which will have to be approved by both Member States (through the Council of Ministers) and the European Parliament.

However these bodies currently appear to have very different views on some key issues with the Council of Ministers, led by the UK Government, supporting the retention of the individual opt out from the average 48 hour working week and the European Parliament maintaining its view that the individual opt out should be abolished.