EN Official Journal of the European Union L 367/86

COUNCIL DIRECTIVE 2014/112/EU

of 19 December 2014

implementing the European Agreement concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time in inland waterway transport, concluded by the European Barge Union (EBU), the European Skippers Organisation (ESO) and the European Transport Workers' Federation (ETF)

(Text with EEA relevance)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 155(2) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,

Whereas:

(1) Management and labour, hereinafter referred to as ‘the social partners’, may, in accordance with Article 155(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), jointly request that agreements concluded by them at Union level in matters covered by Article 153 TFEU be implemented by a Council decision on a proposal from the Commission.

(2) By letter of 10 December 2007, the European Barge Union (EBU), the European Skippers Organisation (ESO) and the European Transport Workers' Federation (ETF) informed the Commission of their desire to enter into negotiations in accordance with Article 155(1) TFEU with a view to concluding an agreement at Union level.

(3) On 15 February 2012, EBU, ESO and ETF concluded a European Agreement concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time in inland waterway transport (‘the Agreement’).

(4) The Agreement included a joint request that the Agreement be implemented by means of a Council decision on a proposal from the Commission in accordance with Article 155(2) TFEU.

(5) The appropriate instrument for implementing the Agreement is a directive.

(6) The Commission has informed the European Parliament of its proposal.

(7) The Commission drafted its proposal for a Directive, in accordance with its Communication of 20 May 1998 on adapting and promoting the social dialogue at Community level, taking into account the representative status of the signatory parties and the legality of each paragraph of the Agreement.

(8) In order to contribute to a coherent legal framework with regard to the organisation of working time, the implementation of this Directive should take into account existing Union legislation and, given the content of the Agreement, in particular Directive 2003/88/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (1). That Directive lays down minimum health and safety requirements for the organisation of working time, including that of workers in the inland waterway transport.

(9) It should be possible for the Member States to entrust social partners, at their joint request, with the implementation of this Directive, provided the Member States take all steps necessary to ensure that the objectives of this Directive can be met.

(10) For the purposes of Article 14 of Directive 2003/88/EC, this Directive and the Agreement annexed hereto lay down more specific requirements relating to the organisation of the working time for mobile workers in inland waterway transport than those of that Directive.

(11) This Directive should apply without prejudice to any Union legislation which is more specific or which grants a higher level of protection to mobile workers in inland waterway transport.

(12) This Directive should not be used to justify a reduction in the general level of protection of workers in the fields covered by the Agreement.

(13) This Directive and the Agreement annexed hereto lay down minimum standards. The Member States and the social partners should be able to maintain or introduce more favourable provisions.

(14) This Directive respects the fundamental rights and principles recognised by in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, and in particular Article 31 thereof.

(15) Since the objectives of this Directive, which is intended to protect health and safety of workers in a predominantly cross-border sector, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States, but can rather be better achieved at Union level, the Union may adopt measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union. In accordance with the principle of proportionality, as set out in that Article, this Directive does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve those objectives.

(16) The implementation of the Agreement contributes to achieving the objectives under Article 151 TFEU.

(17) According to the settled case-law of the Court of Justice of the European Union (2), the fact that an activity referred to in a directive does not yet exist in a Member State cannot release that Member State from its obligation to adopt laws or regulations in order to ensure that all the provisions of the directive are properly transposed. Both the principle of legal certainty and the need to secure the full implementation of directives in law and not only in fact require that all Member States reproduce the rules of the directive concerned within a clear, precise and transparent framework providing for mandatory legal provisions. Such an obligation applies to Member States in order to anticipate any change in the situation existing in them at a given point in time and in order to ensure that all legal persons in the Community, including those in Member States in which a particular activity referred to in a directive does not exist, may know with clarity and precision, what are, in all circumstances, their rights and obligations. According to case-law, it is only where transposition of a directive is pointless for reasons of geography that it is not mandatory. Member States should in such cases inform the Commission thereof.

(18) In accordance with the Joint Political Declaration of 28 September 2011 of Member States and the Commission on explanatory documents (3), Member States have undertaken to accompany, in justified cases, the notification of their transposition measures with one or more documents explaining the relationship between the components of a directive and the corresponding parts of national transposition instruments. With regard to this Directive, the legislator considers the transmission of such documents to be justified,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:

Article 1

This Directive implements the European Agreement concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time in inland waterway transport, concluded on 15 February 2012 by the European Barge Union (EBU), the European Skippers Organisation (ESO) and the European Transport Workers' Federation (ETF), as set out in the Annex hereto.

Article 2

1. Member States may maintain or introduce provisions more favourable than those laid down in this Directive.

2. The implementation of this Directive shall under no circumstances constitute sufficient grounds for justifying a reduction in the general level of protection of workers in the fields covered by this Directive. This shall be without prejudice to the rights of Member States and social partners to lay down, in the light of changing circumstances, legislative, regulatory or contractual arrangements different from those prevailing at the time of the adoption of this Directive, provided that the minimum requirements laid down in this Directive are complied with.

3. The application and interpretation of this Directive shall be without prejudice to any Union or national provision, custom or practice providing for more favourable conditions for the workers concerned.

Article 3

Member States shall determine what penalties are applicable when national provisions enacted pursuant to this Directive are infringed. The penalties shall be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.

Article 4

1. Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive by 31 December 2016 at the latest. They shall forthwith inform the Commission thereof.

When Member States adopt those provisions, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or shall be accompanied by such reference on the occasion of their official publication. The methods of making such reference shall be laid down by Member States.

2. Member States shall communicate to the Commission the text of the main provisions of national law which they adopt in the field covered by this Directive.

Article 5

This Directive shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Article 6

This Directive is addressed to the Member States.

Done at Brussels, 19 December 2014. For the Council The President S. GOZI

(1) Directive 2003/88/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 November 2003 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time (OJ L 299, 18.11.2003, p. 9).

(2) See, inter alia, the Judgment of the Court of Justice of 14 January 2010 in Case C-343/08, Commission v Czech Republic ([2010] ECR I-275).

(3) OJ C 369, 17.12.2011, p. 14.