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In Short

The Situation: On May 14, 2019, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Justice ("ECJ") issued a Judgment mandating that EU Member States require employers to register the daily working time of their employees.

The Result: In some European countries, the ECJ's Judgment will require legislative changes. Moreover, employers will need to modify their practices to monitor employee working time on a daily basis.

Looking Ahead: Employers should consider various options to assist them in registering their employees' working time on daily basis. Employers should evaluate these options in light of rapidly evolving employee work styles, which may make it increasingly more difficult to monitor employee working time each day.

The Context

On May 14, 2019, the Grand Chamber of the ECJ issued a Judgment declaring that EU Member States must require employers to register the daily working time of their employees (ECJ Judgment, Case C-55/18Deutsche Bank S.A.E.). The Judgment resolves a controversial legal debate that originated five years ago in Spain. In short, the ECJ declared: "Member States must require employers to set up an objective, reliable and accessible system enabling the duration of time worked each day by each worker to be measured." For further information about this decision, please refer to Jones Day's White Paper (June 2019), "European Court of Justice: Employers Must Implement a Daily Working Hours Registry."

On September 26, 2019, labor and employment lawyers from seven of Jones Day's European offices and our Dallas Office conducted a webinar titled, "Practical Consequences of the ECJ Decision on the Daily Registration of Working Time in Europe." A thorough review of legislation throughout the European Union led us to conclude that EU Member States fall into three groups with respect to the ECJ's decision: those countries that are currently in compliance with the ECJ's Judgment (i.e., Spain, France, and the Netherlands), those that are not in compliance (i.e., Germany, United Kingdom, and Italy), and those in which compliance is unclear (e.g., Belgium). If employers are not already complying with the ECJ's Judgment, they should soon begin taking steps toward compliance if they want to be on the safe side, given that existing law may be interpreted consistent with the ECJ's Judgment and countries that are not in compliance may pass legislation to align existing law to the ECJ's Judgment.

Practical Recommendations for EU Employers

We offered various practical recommendations in our webinar to assist EU employers with compliance with the ECJ's Judgment, including several recommendations based on practices used by employers in the United States, where employers routinely monitor daily employee working time. Such recommendations included:

Obviously, employers must ensure that all mandatory and conventional legal restrictions in their country are followed prior to implementing any of these measures.

Given the costs of employee working time litigation, employers should work to maintain compliance and stay abreast of legal developments. Legal requirements undoubtedly will evolve, given recent trends reflecting an increase in remote work by employees and the wide availability of technology that facilitates remote work.

Two Key Takeaways

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Daily Registration of Employee Working Time in the European Union: Practical Recommendations for Employers - Lexology

BRUSSELS European Union foreign ministers agreed on Monday economic sanctions over Turkey's drilling off the coast of Cyprus, setting up the legal framework for travel bans and asset freezes but leaving names until a later date.

The decision, reflecting a broader deterioration in EU ties with Turkey, aims to punish Ankara for violating Cyprus' maritime economic zone by drilling off the divided island. It follows a separate decision to stop new arms sales by EU governments to Turkey over Ankara's Oct. 9 incursion into Syria.

Turkey, which is a formal candidate to join the EU, says it is operating in waters on its own continental shelf or areas where Turkish Cypriots have rights.

EU ministers said in a statement that Monday's decision: "will make it possible to sanction individuals or entities responsible for or involved in unauthorized drilling activities of hydrocarbons in the Eastern Mediterranean."

Two EU diplomats said the staggered approach gives Turkey a chance to end what the EU says are "illegal" drilling activities before any measures enter into force.

If sanctions are imposed, the asset freezes and travel bans are likely to target the Turkish military and captains of the drilling ships, the diplomats said.

Cyprus was divided in 1974 after a Turkish invasion triggered by a brief Greek-inspired coup. Several peacemaking efforts have failed and the discovery of offshore resources has complicated the negotiations.

EU ties with NATO-ally Turkey have meanwhile worsened after years of stalemate on Ankara's bid to join the world's biggest trading bloc.

With Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan's crackdown on dissidents and his sweeping new presidential powers that the EU says lack checks and balances, many EU states say Turkey no longer meets the democratic criteria to be a candidate, let alone an EU member.

(Reporting by Robin Emmott; Editing by Toby Chopra)

Original post:
EU Agrees Sanctions on Turkey Over Cyprus Drilling, to Add Names Later - The New York Times

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Jeremy Corbyn has refused to say whether or not he wants Britain to leave the European Union, saying its up to the public to decide.

The Labour leader told the BBCs Andrew Marr show his party will hold another referendum on Brexit if they win the General Election.

He said: Were going to put that choice to the British people, and they will make their decision.

Well negotiate within three months a credible, sensible option of Leave, and put that alongside Remain in a referendum.

He added that he wants a close relationship with the EU in the future when pressed on his personal view on whether or not the UK should leave.

Mr Corbyn said a Labour government will negotiate a sensible leave deal within three months of taking power and then voters will get the chance to decide again on Brexit.

He added: The answer is, as Ive explained to you, that we will negotiate a credible option of leaving, put that alongside Remain, and the British people would make their mind up on that basis, and we will discuss this obviously when weve concluded those initial negotiations which will start immediately we take office.

He denied suggestions he was unable to say whether or not he would prefer for the UK to be in or out.

He responded: Jeremy Corbyn can say this that we have to have a close trading relationship with Europe, we wont crash out into the arms of Donald Trump, we wont be doing sweetheart trade deals with the USA, and we wont be wrecking our National Health Service in the process as the Prime Minister is planning to do.

He announced that the partys manifesto will be published on Thursday after being pressed on the partys position on the free movement of people.

Youll have to wait until Thursday to see the wording of it, Mr Corbyn said.

Earlier on the programme, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab told Mr Marr he does not think it is remotely likely that the UK will leave the EU without a deal.

Mr Raab insisted the UK is not going to align ourselves to EU rules, adding: Theres going to be a negotiation, of course there are going to be compromises on all sides.

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Jeremy Corbyn refuses to say whether he wants the UK to leave the EU - Metro.co.uk

By Rachel Urbano

As Spain navigates itself through a deadlock election, it seems coalition governments have become the new normal within the European Union. Prime examples are neighboring Portugal and not too distant Italy, all within Southern Europe.

Upon the conclusion of Spains 10N elections, bringing Spaniards to the polls for the fourth time in four years, the Spanish Socialist Workers Party (PSOE) has won the most seats (120) followed by the Peoples Party (PP); 88, Vox; 52, United We Can (UP); 35, the Citizens Party (Cs); 10, and the More Country Party (MP); 2. An additional ten lesser known parties took a collected 43 seats among them. No party has gained enough seats to reach a majority (176 seats of the 350 in Spanish parliament) which will necessitate a coalition government. But neither the left (PSOE, UP, MP) nor the right (PP, Vox, Cs) block has enough seats to reach a majority, with 157 and 149 respectively.

Last month in Portugal, Antonio Costa was re-elected Prime Minister but his Socialist Party (PS) did not achieve the majority needed to control the Portuguese parliament (116 seats of 230). What differentiates Portugal from Spain is Costa won 108 seats putting PS just below the majority, but in an advantageous position. Rather than create an official coalition government, Costa was able to negotiate with the Left Bloc Party (BE) and the Portuguese Communist Party (PCP) that are similar in political leanings and won 17 and 19 seats respectively. Known for his negotiating skills, Costa was also able to emphasize that while the parties may have their divergences in certain policies, they all agree it is better for them to work together than to allow the right wing to gain control.

This agreement to work together but not in an official coalition government is referred to as the geringona or contraption. Originally criticized by Costas opponents back in 2015, it has proven to hold up and is considered a key element to the success of Portugals government. Before the October election, Costa was interviewed about the future should PS be re-elected and when asked about whether he would opt to enter a more traditional coalition government, he stated Why ruin a good friendship with a bad marriage?

This is a far different approach than that of PSOE leader Pedro Sanchez. Sanchez became Prime Minister of Spain in June of 2018 after a motion of no confidencewas placed against his predecessor Mariano Rajoy of the PP. His initial government consisted of ten ministers from the PSOE, two from the Socialists Party of Catalonia (PSC), and five independent. For the first time, women outnumbered men as leaders of the cabinet. In his first one hundred days in office, two ministers resigned after publicized scandals with fiscal and educational fraud. Catalonias desire to separate itself from Spain, the trial of Catalonias independent leaders (known as the Procs) and whether or not former dictator Francisco Francos remains would be exhumed divided the political parties, making coalition difficult.

After Spains budget failed to pass in April of 2019, Sanchez called for a snap election in which the PSOE took the most seats but fell short of the majority. Months of talks between party leaders failed to create a minority alliance, prompting the recent elections which Sanchez had hoped would get Spain out of the deadlock and put him in a better position to create a lasting government.

In contrast to both Portugal and Spain, the driving force of the Italian coalition government was initially the far right League Party, headed by former Prime Minister Matteo Salvini. He was ousted after a controversial tenure as Prime Minister, often feuding with the then deputy prime minister Luigi Di Maio of the 5 Star Party. What is remarkable is the rise of the 5 star party, a populist movement started by comedian Beppe Grillo and spearheaded by Di Maio.

Touting themselves as an alternative to the bureaucracy, they gained enough seats to become second fiddle in the initial coalition. The League then gained more power aligning with the Democratic Party (PD), the center left government that had controlled Italian parliament prior to the first coalition. The rise of Spains far right Vox, while less arbitrary in scope definitely aims to shock in a manner not unlike populist 5 star. If Vox continues to gain seats it is possible they could be part of a coalition government in the next two years, if not the party at its helm.

So what is to become of these future coalition governments? Should voters and parties alike come to expect the prevalence of minority alliances? Are majorities in Parliament slowly becoming a thing of the past? Time will tell as Spain scrambles to find a way forward after the latest election. However, one thing is imminent. Party lines will need to be crossed in order to move forward and Sanchez may benefit from taking a page out of Costas playbook and agree to disagree. Maybe what Spain needs after all is not a bad marriage but a good friendship.

Rachel Urbano is an author, activist, and poet interested in languages, international relations, and politics. Particular areas of interest include Italy, LGBT+ rights, and global migrations. She resides in the Philadelphia area.

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The Rise of Coalition Governments in the European Union - Pressenza, International Press Agency

On Monday, the European Union (EU) gave official permission for the "conditional marketing authorization" of the first-ever Ebola vaccine. A pharmaceutical company, Merck, is developing the vaccine known as 'Ervebo.'

Ervebo has been approved for "individuals aged 18 years and older" and has already been used in critical situations with emergency guidelines in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

RELATED: NEW EBOLA DRUG BREAKTHROUGH HAS PROMISING '90% SURVIVAL RATE'

The vaccine 'Ervebo' was first developed by the Public Health Agency of Canada and the U.S. Army approximately ten years ago. It was in 2014 that Merck bought the rights to develop the vaccine, following the Ebola outbreak in West Africa.

The E.U.'s "conditional marketing authorization" is an approval exclusively for medicine that focuses on unmet medical needs, such as Ebola.

It permits the development of medicine to move forward with less comprehensive data than is usually required, only if the benefits outweigh the risks.

Ervebo has been 100% effective during its trials in Guinea, and Merck has already offered over 250,000 doses to the World Health Organization (WHO).

Even though this news is incredibly promising, patience is still required. Merck's plan is to start manufacturing the vaccine in Germany in2020, at the start of the third quarter.

In the U.S., the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) still has the vaccine under "priority review," with an answer expected next year.

The decision by the E.U. is indeed a promising one, especially given the European Commission's records that state over 11,000 people have died in West Africa since the outbreak began in 2014.

The DRC has shown a 67% fatality rate once people contract the virus, andbetween August 2018 and October 2019, there were over 3,000 confirmed cases of the virus and 2,123 documented deaths.

The Ebola crisis is not over yet and is still considered an international public health emergency.

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Ebola Vaccine Approved for the First Time Ever by the European Union - Interesting Engineering