Communication from the Commission to the Council - Economic and social impact of the Agreement appended to Directive 2005/47/EC concluded on 27 January 2004 between the social partners on certain aspects of the working conditions of mobile workers engaged in interoperable cross-border services in the railway sector
Date: 2008-12-15
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: collective agreement, cross-border transport, labour law, rail transport, social dialogue (EU), transport staff, working conditions, working time

EN 

EN 

   EN 

 
 
COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 15.12.2008 
COM(2008) 855 final 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL 

Economic and social impact of the Agreement appended to Directive 2005/47/EC 
concluded on 27 January 2004 between the social partners on certain aspects of the 
working conditions of mobile workers engaged in interoperable cross-border services in 
the railway sector 

EN 

   EN 

 
 
 
  
 
 
COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL 

Economic  and  social  impact  of  the  Agreement  appended  to  Directive  2005/47/EC 
concluded  on  27  January  2004  between  the  social  partners  on  certain  aspects  of  the 
working conditions of mobile workers engaged in interoperable cross-border services in 
the railway sector 

1. 

INTRODUCTION 

The EU policy on rail transport, whose share of the transport market is falling, is intended to 
revitalise  it  and  make  it  more  competitive  within  European  transport  policy.  The  EU  has 
therefore adopted three ‘railway packages’ whose objectives include opening up the railway 
freight and passenger transport markets and encouraging interoperability between high-speed 
and conventional railway systems1 .  

This policy must be supported by social measures intended, in particular, to protect the health 
and safety of mobile workers by avoiding competition based solely on differences in working 
conditions.  On  27  January  2004,  the  Community  of  European  Railways  (CER)  and  the 
European Transport Workers' Federation (ETF) therefore concluded an Agreement on certain 
aspects  of  the  working  conditions  of  mobile  workers  engaged  in  interoperable  cross-border 
services  in  the  railway  sector  (hereinafter  referred  to  as  ‘the  Agreement’).  This  Agreement 
provides  for  minimum  standards  concerning  working  conditions,  driving  times,  breaks  and 
daily and weekly rest periods. Because these standards are more specific requirements under 
Article 14 of Directive 2003/88/EC concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working 
time,  that  Directive  does  not  apply  to  these particular  points.  On  18  July  2005,  the  Council 
adopted  Directive  2005/47/EC  (hereinafter  referred  to  as  ‘the  Directive’)  making  the 
Agreement binding in all the EU Member States.  

The Member States were required to bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative 
provisions necessary to comply with the Directive by 27 July 2008, after consulting the social 
partners. 

During the discussions concerning the Directive, particular attention was given to Clause 4 of 
the Agreement, according to which a daily rest period away from home must be followed by 
daily rest at home, with the option for the social partners of negotiating a second consecutive 
rest period away from home at railway company or national level. Some national delegations 
expressed fears that this provision would act as a brake on development in the sector in view 
of the length of certain routes and the time necessary for their operation. Pursuant to Clause 4 
of the Agreement, the social partner organisations which signed the Agreement at European 
level  have  initiated  negotiations  on  the  number  of  consecutive  rests  away  from  home  and 
compensation for rests away from home. 

In order to monitor the impact of the Agreement and Clause 4 thereof on the development of 
the market, the Commission undertook in a declaration made at the time of the adoption of the 
Directive to submit a report to the Council, taking account of the economic and social impact 
of the Agreement on companies and workers and of the discussions between social partners 
on all the relevant topics, including Clause 4. The Commission has declared itself willing to 
take  any  measures  necessitated  by  any  new  agreement  between  the  social  partners,  by 
proposing an amendment to the Directive. 

1 

Train interoperability means their ability to run on all parts of the international network. 

EN 

2 

   EN 

 
                                                 
To support this Communication, the Commission commissioned a study2 from an independent 
expert, who extensively consulted five European organisations in this sector3, and an analysis 
based  on  models  for  anticipating  the  development  of  the  railway  sector.  The  expert  also 
carried out six national case studies4, which made it possible to consult ten railway companies 
and six trade unions involved at a national level. 

This  Communication  to  the  Council  is  intended  to  implement  the  undertaking  given  by  the 
Commission5  when  Directive  2005/47/EC  was  adopted.  It  endeavours  to  describe  the  rail 
transport  market,  its  development,  the  social  issues  facing  mobile  workers  and  current 
practices  in  the  sector.  It  will  also  attempt  to  assess  the  economic  and  social  impact  of  the 
Agreement  on  the  companies  and  mobile  workers  affected  and  report  on  the  negotiations 
under way between the social partners, including with regard to Clause 4 of the Agreement. 
Finally,  the  Communication  sets  out  proposals  for  policy  options  regarding  Directive 
2005/47/EC and the Agreement between the social partners.  

2. 

DESCRIPTION OF THE MARKET SITUATION 

A) Economic development 

As at the date of the study carried out by the independent expert (2008), 62 railway companies 
were  operating  in  the  international  railway  sector  in  the  EU,  including  19  transporting 
passengers, 17 carrying rail freight and 23 engaged in both kinds of transport. Rail passenger 
and freight transport have highly specific features that distinguish them from one another. 

Most passenger transport is carried out by state or former state operators. It is difficult for new 
private companies to enter this market because it is necessary to obtain a licence to transport 
passengers.  The  international  passenger  transport  sector  will  not  be  liberalised  until  2010. 
Newly-constructed  high-speed  lines  between  different  European  countries  are  frequently 
operated by joint ventures founded by the state operators of the relevant countries.  

In  2005,  cross-border  passenger  trains  mainly  operated  between  Paris,  London,  Brussels, 
Amsterdam  and  the  Ruhr  region.  There  were  also  a  large  number  of  cross-border  railway 
routes in the Alps between Switzerland, Austria and northern Italy. The busiest railway links 
are  forecast  to  remain  the  busiest  between  2005  and  2020.  However,  journey  times  will  be 
reduced  thanks  to  the  increased  use  of  high-speed  railway  links.  The  number  of  mobile 
workers  (drivers  and  inspectors)  working  in  cross-border  passenger  transport  amounted  to 
5 563 full-time-equivalent (FTE) workers in 2005 and is expected to increase by 8% by 2020. 

There are more private companies operating in the cross-border rail freight transport market 
than  in  the  passenger  transport  market.  There  are  a  large  number  of  new  entrants  to  this 
market, partly as a result of its liberalisation.  

2 

3 

4 
5 

of  Life, 

September 

2008.  The 

‘Economic and social impact of the agreement concluded between social partners on certain aspects of 
the working conditions of mobile workers engaged in interoperable cross-border services in the railway 
sector’,  TNO  Quality 
at: 
http://ec.europa.eu/employment_social/labour_law/docs/2008/final_report_r08678_en.pdf 
Community  of  European  Railway  and  Infrastructure  Companies  (CER  -  Communauté  européenne  du 
rail  et  des  compagnies  d’infrastructure);  European  Transport  Workers’  Federation  (ETF  -  Fédération 
européenne  des  travailleurs des  transports); European  Rail  Infrastructure  Managers  (EIM);  Autonome 
Lokomotivführer-Gewerkschaften  Europa  (ALE);  European  Rail  Freight  Association  (ERFA  - 
Association européenne du fret ferroviaire). 
Germany, Netherlands, Hungary, Romania, United Kingdom and France. 
PV/CONS 46, Addendum to draft minutes, 2676th meeting of the Council of the European Union held 
in Brussels on 18 July 2005. 

available 

report 

is 

EN 

3 

   EN 

 
                                                 
In terms of the routes used, in 2005 most cross-border freight trains operated in the corridor 
comprising the Netherlands, northern Italy and Germany, central Europe and the Baltic States. 
Rail  freight  is  forecast  to  intensify  throughout  Europe  up  to  2020,  especially  between  the 
countries  of  north-western  and  central  Europe.  The  number  of  drivers  working  in  the 
European  freight  sector  in  2005  is  estimated  at  4 677  FTE,  and  this  figure  is  expected  to 
increase by 200%, i.e. by over 14 000 FTE, by 2020. These figures may change as a result of 
the proportion of  working time accounted  for by driving or any productivity gains resulting 
from the development of the rail freight network, corridors and signalling systems. 

B) Prospects for the labour market. 

The total number of people working in the passenger and freight rail transport sector currently 
amounts to 10 240 FTE and is expected to rise by 98% between 2005 and 2020, resulting in a 
need for an additional 10 000 mobile workers. This could produce strains on the market, since 
the work in question requires special qualifications and a long period of training. Nor should 
it  be  forgotten  that  because  of  an  imbalance  in  the  age  pyramid,  many  train  drivers  are 
expected  to  retire  in  the  next  ten  years  with  no  provision  having  been  made  for  their 
replacement, even though traffic is expected to increase. This situation may require employers 
to work harder at making the occupation more attractive, in particular by improving working 
conditions.  

3. 

HEALTH AND SAFETY ISSUES FOR MOBILE WORKERS  

A) Health and safety issues 

The  working  conditions  of  mobile  workers  (drivers  and  inspectors)  in  the  cross-border  rail 
transport sector may give rise to a number of occupational health and safety risks. This sector 
is  characterised  by  long  shifts  ,  night  work  and  irregular  working  hours.  The  risks  incurred 
include  disruption  of  the  biological  clock  and  social  life,  and  many  other  physical  and 
psychological illnesses described in the specialist literature6.  

A large number of factors must be taken into account, in addition to driving and working time 
and rests, in order to organise working time in such a way as to avoid placing the health and 
safety of mobile workers at risk.  

A number of factors directly relating to working time are covered by the Agreement between 
the  social  partners:  length  of  shifts,  weekly  working  time,  break  time  during  a  shift,  the 
amount  and  quality  of  sleep  before  a  shift,  day  or  night  work,  the  starting  time  of  a  shift, 
working  time  regularity  and  predictability,  the  number  of  consecutive  shifts  and  the  way  in 
which working time is organised.  

Other features of working conditions include monotony of tasks, physical and psychological 
stress and environmental factors (noise, light, weather). It is also necessary to take account of 
workers' scope for organising their own working time (use of time and breaks). Finally, the 
characteristics of the workers themselves (age, sex, lifestyle, etc.) are a crucial factor. 

The  following  occupational  risks  are  most  frequently  cited  in  existing  studies  and  the  field 
quality survey (interviews with employers and trade unions)7: long driving times followed by 
long  working  hours;  lack  of  breaks  during  and  between  shifts;  unpredictable  rostering;  and 
working during the night, early in the morning and at weekends. In addition, the cross-border 

6 
7 

See TNO Report, Annex 6 p. 49. 
See TNO Report, Annex 8, p. 73 et seq. 

EN 

4 

   EN 

 
                                                 
transport sector in particular also has poor working conditions, severe time pressure to meet 
deadlines and monotony of tasks.  

B) Summary of working time practices in rail transport companies 

Interviews conducted at a national level suggest that the driving time and rest time practices 
of companies in the European railway sector already comply with the main provisions of the 
Agreement. 

The national collective rules and agreements in force before the Agreement was concluded in 
some cases provide better protection than the European Agreement. This conclusion will, of 
course, not be confirmed or disproven until the Commission has carried out a detailed analysis 
of  the  way  in  which  Directive  2005/47  is  implemented  in  the  Member  States.  Since  the 
deadline for implementation was 27 July 2008, assessment of implementation is already under 
way. 

The  information  obtained  from  railway  companies  concerning  their  actual  working  time 
arrangements  has  revealed  an  average  working  week  of  between  35  and  40  hours  for  both 
passenger and freight transport. The Agreement limits driving time to nine hours per day shift 
and  eight  hours  per  night  shift.  The  average  length  of  shifts  is  between  8  and  10  hours  of 
working time and between 6.5 and 10 hours of driving time. Most railway companies observe 
the rules concerning minimum average daily rest (eight out of ten respondents).  

Five out of ten companies think that it is not always possible to observe the rule obliging them 
to  grant  workers  a  daily  rest  at  home  after  a  daily  rest  away  from  home  (Clause  4  of  the 
European Agreement), one company considering it to be impossible. Companies follow three 
different strategies in order to comply with this rule: 

• transporting staff home after a work period; 

• reorganising rosters to ensure that staff always finish shifts at their place of residence; 

•  allocating  staff  to  different  regions  or  countries  (in  order  to  ensure  shorter  journeys  for 
workers).  It  should  be  noted  that  this  solution  may  also  be  applied  by  necessity,  because 
drivers do not have all the authorisations needed to work in all the countries covered by the 
network. 

The observance of this part of the Agreement seems to be more difficult for freight transport, 
which  is  less  regular  and  more  vulnerable  to  the  unexpected  than  passenger  transport,  and 
does not have priority, which may cause numerous delays.  

The  companies  seem  to  provide  sufficient  breaks  during  shifts  to  comply  with  Clause  5. 
However, workers do not always seem able to take their breaks at the exact time necessary or 
to leave their workstations to rest. 

4. 

IMPACT OF THE AGREEMENT 

A) Social impact of the Agreement 

The social impact of the Agreement first of all depends on its effect on the quality of work 
(intrinsic job quality) and health and safety at work, which are the two main areas targeted. 
Other aspects, such as the balance between work and family life, equal of opportunities and 
the creation of employment in the sector, must also be examined. 

Since  the  current  rules  already  seem  to  comply  with  the  provisions  of  the  Agreement,  its 
short-term social impact should be limited. Under the Agreement, maximum driving time is 
limited to nine hours for a daytime shift, eight hours for a night shift and 80 hours over a two-

EN 

5 

   EN 

 
week period. There is no specific limit on weekly working time, however. It is necessary to 
ensure  that  Member  States  do  not  tend  to  use  minimum  driving  time  rules  as  a  basis  for 
implementation of the Agreement, since this would lengthen the weekly working time, which 
is not limited. The non-regression clause (Clause 9 of the Agreement and Article 2(2) of the 
Directive)  should  prevent  such  a  ‘perverse  effect’  in  principle.  The  limits  imposed  by  the 
Agreement on night shifts and the minimum break periods to be observed should be beneficial 
for mobile workers. 

Opinions  differ  concerning  the  social  impact  of  Clause  4  and  the  obligation  for  a  daily  rest 
away from home to be followed by a daily rest at home. This provision of the Agreement is 
clearly beneficial in terms of the balance between work and family life. However, the benefit 
in terms of health and safety is less clear, since the literature on this subject seems to indicate 
that the quality of rest is more important than where it is taken: Even at home, workers may 
experience problems concerning the quality of rest if the environment is insufficiently quiet. 
Some trade unions also would like the Agreement to be more specific about the quality of the 
place of rest. Employees would seem to want to be able to choose the compensation offered 
(payment, additional days of leave) if the number of consecutive rest days away from home is 
increased. This is also the wish of most of the responding companies. In this particular case, 
the  Agreement  limits  the  possible  ways  of  responding  to  any  requirement  for  employment 
relationships to be more diverse and tailored to individual needs. Finally, there is a risk that 
mobile workers may be allocated to fewer different routes because of the need for them not to 
be far from home for a long period.  

Increasing the scope for employees to organise their own working time may reduce the impact 
of  working  time  on  the  balance  between  work  and  family  life.  Social  dialogue  within 
companies and taking account of personal wishes regarding rostering may be beneficial in this 
respect.  

Half  of  the  responding  trade  unions  and  company  representatives  seem  to  consider  the 
Agreement to have a positive impact on both the quality of work and the health and safety of 
mobile workers. Most of the others do not think that it has any impact. Most of the responding 
trade  unions  do  not  consider  the  Agreement  to  have  any  particular  impact  on  the  balance 
between work and family life. 

Most of the respondents consider that it will have a positive impact or no impact at all on the 
creation  of  employment  in  the  railway  sector.  Some  companies  think  that  they  will  need  to 
recruit  more  staff  following  implementation  of  the  Agreement.  The  need  for  companies  to 
recruit more staff and/or raise productivity would appear to be due to the growth expected in 
the sector, however. 

B) Economic impact of the Agreement 

Growth is expected in the rail freight sector throughout Europe in the period up to 2020. It is 
therefore  interesting  to  look  at  whether  the  Agreement  might  have  an  impact  on  this 
development, in particular on operating costs, corporate management and innovation. 

According to an estimate based on an economic projection model specialising in the railway 
sector,  human  resources  account  for  8.5%  of  the  total  operating  costs  of  a  cross-border  rail 
freight  business.  Other  more  significant  expenses  are  motive  power,  wagons,  infrastructure, 
energy,  administration  and  insurance.  Because  the  cost  of  labour  is  relatively  small  in 
comparison with the other operating costs, the Agreement seems unlikely to have any future 
impact on the operation of routes.  

The  sector  is  experiencing  a  number  of  trends  affecting  the  development  of  routes,  such  as 
new  technologies,  increased  infrastructural  capacity,  greater  interoperability,  etc.  Fixing 

EN 

6 

   EN 

 
driving time limits per person is only a minor aspect of the sector's overall development. It is 
important  to  note  that  a  mobile  worker  must  have  the  necessary  authorisations  to  provide  a 
cross-border interoperability service. Furthermore, the fact that the rules on driving time and 
break  time  already  seem  to  be  compliant  with  the  provisions  of  the  Directive  at  a  national 
level  or  provide  better  protection  also  makes  it  likely  that  the  economic  impact  of  the 
Agreement will be limited.  

The various organisations in the sector take a generally positive view of the overall economic 
impact  of  the  Agreement.  National  stakeholders  approve  of  the  fact  that  the  Agreement 
defines a common framework and clear rules for all the parties in question. 

The interviews conducted with employers and trade unions indicate that the rule for rest away 
from  home  to  be  followed  by  rest  at  home  (Clause  4)  creates  more  problems  for  freight 
transport  companies.  Five  out  of  six  of  the  responding  freight  transport  companies  are  still 
unable to take their staff home after a rest away from home. Companies sometimes organise 
rosters by requiring drivers to work for a whole week and then letting them return home only 
at the weekend. It is difficult to determine the extent to which such cases are representative, 
however.  Freight  transport  companies  mention  periods  away  from  home  of  between  three 
days and two or three weeks. It should be noted, however, that no trade union mentions being 
aware of periods away from home in excess of two days. 

These  different  practices  will  no  longer  be  permitted  when  the  Agreement  has  been 
implemented. Some railway companies will need to change their staff management in order to 
be able to continue to operate on certain routes. There will certainly be additional costs as a 
result of the recruitment of new staff and improvement of the quality of rest facilities along 
routes,  unless  they  are  offset  by  productivity  gains.  Very  few  companies  have  entered  into 
negotiations,  at  company  level,  for  a  second  consecutive  day  of  rest  away  from  home  as 
permitted by the Agreement. They appear to be waiting for clearer European rules to make the 
way in which work is organised more predictable.  

Companies have an interest in developing new future recruitment strategies in collaboration 
with  their  staff  in  order  to  determine  measures  to  improve  the  quality  of  employment  in  an 
increasingly strained labour market. 

5. 

OUTCOME OF NEGOTIATIONS 

Under  Clause  4  of  the  Agreement,  the  social  partners  at  European  level  have  initiated 
negotiations  on  the  number  of  consecutive  rests  away  from  home  and  on  compensation  for 
rests away from home. 

To improve representation of the interests of private freight companies during negotiation of 
the  Agreement,  the  CER  has  decided  to  include  a  representative  from  the  European  Rail 
Freight Association (ERFA) in the CER delegation. 

The negotiations are still under way. One of the problems raised by the social partners is the 
lack  of  information  concerning  interoperable  cross-border  transport  operations.  The 
signatories had agreed to evaluate the provisions of the Agreement two years after it had been 
signed  (Clause  11  of  the  Agreement)  in  the  light  of  initial  experience  in  developing 
interoperable cross-border transport, but the evaluation has not yet been completed. 

6. 

STATUS OF TRANSPOSITION OF THE DIRECTIVE IN THE MEMBER STATES 

Article  5  of  the  Directive  requires  the  Member  States  to  bring  into  force  the  national  laws, 
regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with the Directive by 27 July 

EN 

7 

   EN 

 
2008, after having consulted the social partners. Alternatively, they may ensure that the social 
partners  have  adopted  the  necessary  provisions  in  an  Agreement  by  that  date.  The  Member 
States must immediately forward the text of such provisions to the Commission. 

The Commission is currently monitoring implementation of the Directive. At this stage, it is 
checking whether the implementing provisions have been forwarded by the Member States as 
required  and  whether  full  transposition  into  national  law  has  been  achieved.  To  date,  eight 
Member  States  (BU,  RO,  DK,  NL,  PL,  SI,  SK  and  SE)  have  fully  transposed  the  Directive 
and sent the Commission their national implementing measures. Thirteen Member States (BE, 
DE, EE, IE, EL, ES, FR, IT, LT, LV, HU, PT and FI) have not yet sent the Commission their 
national implementing measures, and four Member States (CZ, LU, AT and UK) have only 
partly and to an insufficient extent communicated their measures to implement the Directive. 
Under Article 226 of the EC Treaty, the Commission has sent letters of formal notice to the 
17 Member States in question. 

7. 

CONCLUSION 

The  Commission  is  closely  monitoring  developments  in  the  rail  transport  market  and  in 
particular the negotiations currently under way between the social partners in order to adapt 
the rest conditions of workers to the developing needs of this sector while at the same time 
ensuring a high level of health and safety for workers. 

To support this development, the Commission will: 

- encourage the social partners to continue with their negotiations on Clause 4 and to achieve 
a  well-balanced  result  that  reflects  companies’  need  for  flexibility  in  the  running  of 
operations, particularly in the freight market, and the need to protect the health and safety of 
mobile workers and respect the balance between work and private life; 

- draw the attention of the social partners to the importance of taking an integrated approach 
which  incorporates  all  aspects  of  significance  to  the  health  and  safety  of  mobile  workers, 
including the quality of rest away from home, and which can encourage workers to be more 
involved  and  more  independent  in  the  organisation  of  their  working  time,  whether  at 
collective or individual level; 

-  carefully  monitor  how  the  Member  States  implement  the  European  Agreement  under 
national law. Special attention must be given to monitoring the length of shifts and the length 
of the working week;  

-  take  care  to  encourage  an  improvement  in  the  conditions  and  quality  of  work  for  mobile 
workers in the rail sector, which can help to preserve the appeal of the profession in a labour 
market context which is likely to be strained in the coming years. 

EN 

8 

   EN