Amicus Wins Working Time Ruling For Offshore Workers

Offshore union Amicus has won a test case ruling that the Working Time Directive should be applied to UK oil employees working offshore.

Amicus has campaigned over many years for its members in the offshore industry not to be exempted from the Working Time Directive and today heard that an employment tribunal brought by the union has ruled in favour of offshore workers by ruling that the Working Time Directive applies beyond the territorial waters (12 miles) and includes offshore workers.

Employers had argued that the Directive only applied to the United Kingdom and waters within a 12 mile radius of the coastline.

Amicus' Regional Officer for offshore workers, Graham Tran, said: "This is a wonderful victory and all the sweeter that it has come on the day that BP has announced £6n profit for just the first six months of this year.

"We hope that the rich oil companies will now recognise their responsibility to give their employees four weeks paid annual leave a year and will not appeal the employment tribunal decision given today."

Aberdeen South MP, Anne Begg, said: "I have been working closely with Amicus on this matter and have all along been of the opinion that when government legislated for the Working Time Directive to include offshore workers that it meant all offshore workers in the Continental Shelf, not those still in UK territory. The decision adopted by the companies to challenge this ruling can only be described as perverse. Given the ruling I am now prepared to work with companies and unions to ensure that the full entitlement is afforded to all offshore workers and hopefully this can be achieved without further litigation."

The Chairman's findings were to reject the employer's position and find in favour of Amicus. Amicus has campaigned over many years for it's members in the offshore industry not to be exempted from the Working Time Directive. It has never waived from its goal of achieving a working environment in the oil and gas fields that is safe and with the same working time directive as other workers throughout the country. There will now be a full hearing to examine the interpretation of four weeks.

The European Commission has previously upheld Amicus's claim on application of the Working Time Directive for offshore workers, ruling that they, like other professions, are entitled to four weeks paid annual leave.

The judgement stated that the offshore workers pattern of one week on and one week off cannot be considered as a period of paid annual leave, and that offshore workers should be entitled to a full four weeks annual leave.

Find out more about:
European Working Time Regulations

Search for more News

Posted 02/08/05

Back