EJD Motion on Training Time as Working Time

The European Junior Doctors’ Permanent Working Group (EJD) wishes to reiterate its position, that training time should be considered as working time for the purposes of the implementation of the EU Working Time Directive across the continent.

EJD Motion on Training Time as Working Time

The European Junior Doctors’ Permanent Working Group (EJD) wishes to reiterate its position, that training time should be considered as working time for the purposes of the implementation of the EU Working Time Directive across the continent.

Training time and working time are intrinsically linked. Junior doctors work while they train, and train while they work. Arguing that training should not be regarded as work represents an attempt to create an artificial distinction between these terms that does not exist in practice. While training, doctors provide work for their employers, are required to be present in their places of work, and are under the managerial supervision and disposal of their employers at all times.

The EJD welcomes the Opinion delivered by Advocate-General Bot of the European Court of Justice, delivered in March of this year, which related to Ireland’s failure to correctly and fully implement the Working Time Directive for doctors in training. The EJD notes that the Opinion affirms the EJD’s stance on training time, however is adamant that time allocated for training must be protected.

The EJD calls on governments and healthcare management bodies across Europe to ensure that training time is appropriately counted as working time for the purposes of compliance with the Working Time Directive, and to prioritise the health and well-being of junior doctors by ensuring that all statutory working time limits are wholly applied.