The Advocate General of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has published an opinion that Ireland is in breach of the European Working Time Directive in relation to Non-Consultant Hospital Doctors (NCHDs). A complaint has been brought by the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) to the European Commission on excessive working hours faced by NCHDs in Ireland.
The opinion looked at the exclusion of training hours from the calculation of doctors’ working time, which it concluded is intrinsically linked to the provision of medical care and encroaches on minimum rest period requirements. It is estimated that 20-27 hours a month training time for 4,500 junior doctors is not counted as ‘working time’. The Advocate General rejected the Government’s case that there was “a fundamental distinction between protected training time which involves physical presence in the workplace and, on the other hand, time spent on-call, requiring physical presence in the workplace”.
The Advocate General’s opinion is not binding on the Court, which has yet to rule on the issue. However such opinions lead to a final judgement in 80% of cases that come before the ECJ. Ireland risks financial punitive measures, with the IMO estimating fines as high as €100 million.