§1 The average limit on night work

The Directive limits the average working time of all night workers to 8 hours per 24-hour period. The limit on ‘working time’ This limit applies to the hours of work of ‘night workers’. It therefore refers to all working time, not only ‘night time’ (see Chapter IV). In addition, although Article 8 refers to ‘normal hours of work’, the definitions of ‘working time’ and ‘rest periods’ in Chapter IV, and Recital 8 of the Directive, imply that all ‘working time’, including overtime, should be counted towards this limit on night work. Since this limit is an average, Member States can decide on the reference period. Under Article 16(c), the reference period must be defined after consulting the two sides of industry or directly by collective agreements or agreements at national or regional level. The average over a ‘reference period’ The original proposal to establish a reference period of maximum 14 days (352) does not appear in the Directive as adopted. The reference period is determined by Member States and/or social partners without any express limit. However, in light of the Directive’s objective of laying down minimum safety and health requirements, and of the need to maintain the effectiveness of the provision concerning night work, the reference period for night work should be substantially shorter than that used for the maximum working week. Indeed, setting the same reference periods for both would de facto render the night work provision pointless, since compliance with the average 48-hour working week and the weekly rest period would automatically ensure daily working time of 8 hours on average. Under Article 16(c), if the minimum weekly rest period falls within the reference period for calculating night work, it is not included when calculating the average. Recitals 5 and 7 of the Directive state that ‘all workers should have adequate rest periods’ and ‘long periods of night work can be detrimental to the health of workers’. By contrast, the daily rest period, which naturally limits the working time of the workers concerned and ensures that they benefit from regular periods of rest, is included in calculating the average.

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Source: EUR-Lex (Cellar) · retrieved 2026-09-07