STATUTORY INSTRUMENTS.

S.I. No. 819 of 2004 .

ORGANISATION OF WORKING TIME (INCLUSION OF OFFSHORE WORK) REGULATIONS 2004.

S.I. No. 819 of 2004 .

ORGANISATION OF WORKING TIME (INCLUSION OF OFFSHORE WORK) REGULATIONS 2004.

I, MICHEÁL MARTIN, Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 3 of the European Communities Act 1972 (No. 27 of 1972) and section 4(3) of the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 (No. 20 of 1997) and for the purpose of giving further effect to Council Directive 93/104/EC of 23 November 1993¹ as amended by Directive 2000/34/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 June 2000² , hereby make the following regulations:

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Organisation of Working Time (Inclusion of Offshore Work) Regulations 2004 and shall come into effect on 1 January 2005.

2. In these Regulations--

“the Act” means the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 (No. 20 of 1997);

“the Directive” means Council Directive 93/104/EC of 23 November 1993 as amended by Directive 2000/34/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 June 2000.

3. A word or expression which is used in these Regulations and which is also used in the Directive has, unless the context otherwise requires, the same meaning in these Regulations as it has in the Directive.

4. Subject to Regulation 5, Part II of the Act shall apply to employees engaged in offshore work.

5. The Organisation of Working Time (General Exemptions) Regulations 1998 ( S.I. No. 21 of 1998 ) are amended in paragraph 1 of the Schedule by inserting “including offshore work” after “another workplace”.

6. These Regulations shall apply without prejudice to any legislation that offers a greater level of protection to workers.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

(This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation.)

These Regulations transpose the provisions of Council Directive 2000/34/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 June 2000 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time in relation to offshore work which means work performed mainly on, or from, offshore installations (including drilling rigs), directly or indirectly in connection with the exploration, extraction or exploitation of mineral resources, including hydrocarbons, and diving in connection with such activities, whether performed from an offshore installation or a vessel.

The effect of the transposition of Directive 2000/34/EC is to apply the maximum average working week of 48 hours to offshore workers covered by that Directive.

In addition, these Regulations exempt employees engaged in offshore work from sections 11 12, 13, and 16 of the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 which deal respectively with daily rest, rests and intervals at work, weekly rest, and maximum nightly working hours.

¹ O.J. No. L307, 13.12.1993 p. 18.

² O.J. No. L195, 01.08.2000 p. 41.