EU: the Court of Justice of the European Union clarifies arrangements pertaining to mandatory weekly rest periods

In a ruling handed down on 09 November, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) agreed with the opinion of the Advocate General who did not challenge working arrangements that involve twelve consecutive days of work (Case C-306/16). The court did confirm that all workers have the right to mandatory rest times ‘within each seven day period’. However the court clarified that this minimum period does not necessarily have to be granted the day following six consecutive working days.
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The CJEU judgment follows in line with the opinion of the Advocate General Henrik Saugmandsgaard Øe delivered on 21 June 2017 (c.f. article No. 10274). With this case, which has given risen to observations by the governments of Portugal, Hungary, Poland, Finland, and Sweden as well as the European Commission, a citizen of Portugal, employed in a casino between 1991 and 2014 had from time to time been obliged to work for periods of six consecutive days and believed that as such his rights had be

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