Night work
As night work work is at night 23-6 PM. In Germany it does not require a permit, while in Switzerland a proof of need and proof of health care is required for the permit.
Germany
In Germany, every employer is in principle free to order his adult employees - regardless of age and gender - to work at night without official approval and without any mandatory requirement. This very liberal regulation is in contrast to the Sunday rest , which is rigidly regulated by law in Germany. The only restrictions are the collective bargaining agreement , the approval of the works council , the Maternity Protection Act , the Youth Labor Protection Act and the few occupational health regulations of the Working Hours Act . Until 1992, women were not allowed to work at night, based on the Working Hours Ordinance of 1891. It forbade female workers to be employed between 8 pm and 6 am, in multi-shift operations between 11 pm and 5 am, for moral and health reasons.
Regulations of the Working Hours Act
Night work is regulated in § 2 and § 6 of the Working Hours Act:
- Definition: Night work is from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m., in bakeries from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. If an employee works more than two hours during this time window, all of his work is considered night work.
- Employee rights: In the case of night work, an employee under 50 has the right to medical examinations every three years, and an employee over 50 annually, which must be paid for by the employer. Alternatively, however, the employer can arrange for the occupational medical examinations to be carried out by an in-house doctor.
An employee can apply for a switch from night work to normal working hours if his health is endangered by night work. Furthermore, a change can take place if the employee has a child under the age of twelve without care or someone in the family who is in need of care.
Switzerland
In Switzerland, the labor law ( Art. 16 ff.) Prohibits night work. Exceptions are subject to approval unless they are explicitly mentioned by law (e.g. hospitals, circuses, etc.). An economic or technical need must be proven for regular night work, an urgent need for temporary night work.
Austria
In Austria, the night work ban for women from 1885 was lifted in 2002 because it contradicted the principle of equality of the European Union . A corresponding transition period expired at the end of 2001.
definition
- Night work occurs between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m.
- Night workers are people who work at least three hours a night for at least 48 nights a year.
Right to examinations free of charge
- You are entitled to work between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. if these are carried out 30 nights a year.
- There is a right to an examination before the start of work and every two years thereafter.
- The examination must be carried out annually after the age of 50 or after 10 years of night work.
There is a legal right to transfer to the day shift,
- when the night worker's health deteriorates.
- if the person concerned has a child under the age of twelve or a person to look after.
Dislocation protection
- The transfer from a day to a night job is only possible with the consent of the employee.
Night work bans
In 1906, 13 European countries signed the Bernese "Agreement on the Prohibition of Night Work by Commercial Women Workers", after some countries had already adopted corresponding regulations (see dates in brackets): Belgium , Denmark , Germany , Greece , Great Britain (1844), France (1892 ), Ireland , Italy , Luxembourg , the Netherlands (1892), Austria-Hungary (1885), Sweden and Switzerland (1877). Even Russia banned female night work in 1897. In Sweden, however, the reaction was carried out until 1909. From the 1980s, the laws repealed.
Health risks
The latest research shows evidence of a positive correlation between night work and cancer. Greater importance is attached to the melatonin levels that are changed during night and shift work . The disturbance of the physiological circadian rhythm leads, among other things, to a restricted melatonin production and consequently lowered levels. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has included night work and shift work on the official list of probably carcinogenic agents (“probably carcinogenic to humans”) since December 5, 2007 .
See also
literature
- Wolfgang Ayaß : “The greatest evil.” The ban on night work for women workers in Germany (1891–1992). In: Zeitschrift für Sozialreform , Volume 46, Issue 3, March 2000, pp. 189–220 (PDF) .
- Zeitbüro NRW (Ed.): Working hours at night. in: Tempora - Journal for modern working hours , 11/2006 (PDF) .
- Walter Kaskel : Labor Law Springer Verlag, Berlin 1925. [5. Edition 1957 / Walter Kaskel; Hermann Dersch].
Individual evidence
- ↑ Night work ban for female workers is lifted , WDR.de. January 28, 1992, p. 1. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
- ^ Government adopts Night Work Act , Der Standard. June 12, 2002, p. 1. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
- ↑ Night work ( Memento of the original from September 1, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Labor inspection website. Retrieved September 4, 2013.
- ↑ Announcement on the scope of the international agreement on the prohibition of night work for industrial workers Federal Law Gazette 1969 I p. 2280
- ↑ IARC Press Release 180 (December 5, 2007) ( Memento of the original from July 21, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
