Judgment — ECLI:EU:C:2011:326
Date: 2011-05-19
Language of the case: Spanish
Court formation: Seventh Chamber
Subject matter: Social Policy
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling
Origin: Spain

Summary of the Judgment 1. Social policy – Protection of the safety and health of workers – Directive 2003/10 on the minimum health and safety requirements regarding the exposure of workers to the risks arising from physical agents (noise) (European Parliament and Council Directive 2003/10, Arts 3 and 5 to 7) 2. Social policy – Protection of the safety and health of workers – Directive 2003/10 on the minimum health and safety requirements regarding the exposure of workers to the risks arising from physical agents (noise) (European parliament and Council Directive 2003/10, Art. 5) 1. Directive 2003/10 on the minimum health and safety requirements regarding the exposure of workers to the risks arising from physical agents (noise), as amended by Directive 2007/30, must be interpreted as meaning that an employer in a company in which the workers’ daily noise exposure level is above 85 dB(A), measured without taking account of the effect of individual hearing protectors, fails to fulfil the obligations resulting from that directive by simply providing the workers with such hearing protectors so that the daily noise exposure level is reduced to less than 80 dB(A), that employer being obliged to put in hand a programme of technical or organisational measures intended to reduce such noise exposure to a level of less than 85 dB(A), measured without taking into account the effect of the individual hearing protectors. (see para. 34, operative part 1) 2. Directive 2003/10 on the minimum health and safety requirements regarding the exposure of workers to the risks arising from physical agents (noise), as amended by Directive 2007/30, must be interpreted as meaning that it does not require an employer to make an extra payment to workers who are exposed to a noise level above 85 dB(A), measured without taking into account the effect of the individual hearing protectors on the sole ground that it has not put in hand a programme of technical or organisational measures intended to reduce the daily noise exposure level. However, national law must provide appropriate mechanisms to ensure that a worker who is exposed to a noise level above 85 dB(A), measured without taking into account the effect of the individual hearing protectors, can require the employer to fulfil the preventive obligations set out in Article 5(2) of that directive. (see para. 43, operative part 2)