The Federal Labor Court and paid working time
Employers must pay employees for providing the services promised pursuant to their employment contract.
But what counts as promised services or agreed work? How much time must be remunerated? The long walk through factory halls? The time to put on the prescribed work clothes or even having to take a shower after work?
In principle, every activity which the employer can demand from the employee must be remunerated. This includes activities which are not directly part of the work duties itself.
For this reason, the Federal Labor Court reached a ruling several years ago: Time spent preparing or time needed after the actual work constitutes working time and must be remunerated as such. This applies, for example, to traveling within the company or putting on and taking off work clothes which must be worn at work.
Showering after work: Working time?
However, changing after work is not enough, especially when doing heavy physical work. In cases like these, a shower is a simple necessity before heading home.
A container mechanic who was regularly so dirty at the end of his shift that he could not put on his personal clothing to go home without showering first shared the same view. He had to hand in his dirty uniforms for cleaning.
From the man’s point of view, the shower time thus represented paid working time. However, his employer took a different stance and the time spent changing and showering was not recorded as working time and was not remunerated.
Showering is working time – at least sometimes
The employee demanded remuneration for 55 minutes of additional working time per working day (approx. 18,000 euros!). The labor court awarded him 20 minutes a day with the correspondingly lower pay, while the Higher Labor Court awarded him 21 minutes: The time spent showering and the time needed to get from the changing room to the workplace were to be paid.
The Federal Labor Court shared the same opinion: Any activity required by the employer that is directly related to the actual work and exclusively serves to satisfy an external need is considered to be work that is subject to remuneration.
Consequently, time spent cleaning the body, such as showering, could also represent paid working time.
This definitely applies if showering after work is ordered or required by hygiene regulations, for example.
In addition, the time spent cleaning the body also constitutes paid working time if
- the employee would get his personal clothes dirty if he did not wash himself after taking off his work clothes, or
- the employee could not reasonably be expected to travel home dirty in public without showering first, regardless of whether they made the journey home in their own car or by public transport, for example.
However, only the minimum time required for bodily cleaning must be remunerated and not the time spent on elaborate personal hygiene “rituals”.
What can we do for you?
Do you have questions about what counts as working time subject to remuneration or do you want to establish binding rules for your company? Do not hesitate to contact us!
Summary of the key facts:
- Employers must compensate employees for the time they spend performing their contractual duties.
- In addition, activities that are required by the employer and are directly related to the actual activity or its performance also constitute working time subject to remuneration.
- If employees cannot reasonably be expected to travel home dirty, the time required to clean themselves (e.g. showering) is then working time subject to remuneration.
