Judgment — ECLI:EU:F:2009:49
Date: 2009-05-18
Language of the case: French
Court formation: First Chamber
Based on: Merger Treaty (1965)
Subject matter: Staff regulations and employment conditions - EC
Concepts: Hours of work
Procedure: Staff cases - successful

Summary Officials – Working conditions – Allowance for shiftwork (Staff Regulations, Art. 56a) Individual decisions of an institution must be annulled which refuse to grant the allowance for ‘shiftwork’ provided for in Article 56a of the Staff Regulations to officials carrying out such work, required by the ‘exigencies’ of the telephone switchboard to which they are assigned, whereas that shiftwork is ‘a regular and permanent feature’, the institution, in granting that allowance by individual decisions adopted at a later date than the abovementioned decisions, has itself given implied but clear recognition that the applicants satisfy the conditions laid down in Article 56a for granting the allowance, and whereas, lastly, it cannot be disputed that their material working conditions were the same before and after the date on which the individual decisions were adopted granting them that allowance. In that respect, it would be incorrect to claim that Article 56a of the Staff Regulations is not applicable on the ground that the shiftwork performed by the officials does not result from formal decisions by that institution. Similarly, the fact that those officials do not work overtime and work fewer hours per week than the normal working hours for that institution does not call into question their entitlement to the allowance provided for in Article 56a of the Staff Regulations. That provision does not require either that overtime be worked or that the number of hours worked per week should be equal to the normal number for that institution. In any event, in view of the personal and family inconvenience caused by a weekly work schedule organised into shifts, it is not unreasonable for switchboard operators to work 7.5 hours fewer per week than the normal number in that institution. (see paras 21-23)