EMPLOYERS ARE OBLIGED TO IMPLEMENT A SYSTEM ENABLING THE MEASUREMENT OF THE LENGTH OF DAILY WORKING HOURS

#138Employers are obliged to implement a system enabling the measurement of the length of daily working hours

Employers who employ domestic workers are obliged to implement a system enabling the measurement of the length of daily working hours worked by each domestic worker.

The Court of Justice ruled in its judgment in case C-531/23 of 19.12.2024 that employers who employ domestic workers are obliged to establish a system allowing the measurement of the length of daily working time worked by each domestic worker.

A domestic worker who was employed full-time challenged the invalidity of the termination of her employment before a Spanish court. The Spanish court ruled on the application that the termination of the domestic worker’s employment was invalid and ordered her employer to pay certain amounts in compensation for unused vacation and extraordinary bonuses. The court also stated in its decision that the worker had not proven the working hours and wages she claimed. According to the court, these claims could not be based on the fact that her employer had not submitted daily records of working hours, since, according to the law, the employer is not obliged to record the actual working hours of the employee.

The worker appealed against that decision to the Spanish court, which, having doubts as to the compatibility of the national legislation with EU law, referred a question to the Court of Justice for a preliminary ruling.

In its judgment, the Court of Justice found that the Spanish legislation in force at the time and its interpretation by the national courts were contrary to the Working Time Directive. The Court also recalled that all the authorities of the Member States, including the courts, have an obligation to contribute to the achievement of the objectives of the Directive.

According to the court, the above interpretation of the legislation or practice, under which employers are granted an exemption from the obligation to introduce a system for measuring the actual working time of domestic workers, is not in accordance with the provisions of the directive. The court stated that these workers are deprived of the possibility of objectively and reliably determining the number of hours worked and their time distribution.

The Court further stated that, in the present case, indirect discrimination on grounds of sex is not excluded if that situation is not objectively justified, since domestic workers are a group characterised by a high level of feminisation.