An ambulance worker finishing a twelve-hour shift has not necessarily worked twelve hours in the legal sense. The difference between the span of the working day and actual working time is governed by specific rules set out in the framework agreement of 16 June 2016, extended by order of 19 July 2018. Understanding how this works helps prevent payroll errors and employment tribunal disputes.
Ambulance workers’ shift span and actual working time: two concepts not to confuse
The shift span is the period between the start and end of the working day, including rest periods. It covers everything: assignments, breaks, split shifts and waiting time. Actual working time for ambulance workers refers only to periods when the employee is at the employer’s disposal, follows their instructions and cannot freely pursue personal activities.
An example makes the distinction clearer. Take a day with a shift span of 9 hours. The ambulance worker has a one-hour break and a 30-minute rest period. Actual working time is the shift span minus breaks and rest periods: 9 h – 1 h – 0 h 30 = 7 h 30 of actual working time.
This formula, set out in Article 4 B of the agreement of 16 June 2016, seems straightforward. The difficulty arises when each period of the day has to be classified.
Ambulance workers’ breaks and rest periods: when can they be deducted?
Not all breaks can automatically be deducted. The framework agreement sets a condition: during a break or rest period, the employee must be free to pursue personal activities. If that freedom does not genuinely exist, the period remains actual working time.
Criteria for excluding a break from the calculation
Three conditions must all be met for a break or rest period to be deducted from the shift span:
- The employee is no longer at the employer’s disposal during this period, receives no instructions and is not required to remain available for a dispatch
- They can leave their vehicle or workstation and use the time as they wish (eat freely, run a personal errand or rest wherever they choose)
- The break or rest period is clearly identified and scheduled, rather than simply recorded after the fact on the route sheet
Are you waiting between two patient transfers in a car park, with your phone on and ready to leave as soon as the dispatcher calls? This waiting time under constraint is not a deductible break. The employer cannot deduct it from your actual working time, even if it is listed as a “break” on the schedule.
A shared burden of proof
In the event of a dispute, the employee must provide sufficiently detailed evidence of their actual hours. However, the burden of proof does not rest on them alone. The employer must respond with their own records (route sheets, tachograph data and schedules). Accounting for working hours is a matter of shared proof between employee and employer.
Calculating actual working time over a week and a quarter
The calculation is not limited to the working day. The framework agreement provides for working time to be averaged over a longer period, generally a quarter. This means overtime is not necessarily calculated week by week.
The statutory reference period remains set by the Labour Code. The agreement of 16 June 2016 governs the maximum working hours applicable to full-time ambulance staff who work on the road. The maximum daily shift span is scheduled on the basis of a minimum shift span of 10 hours.
Periods treated as actual working time
Some periods when no work is performed are nevertheless counted as actual working time. The agreement lists them:
- The pre-employment medical examination and mandatory medical examinations required under the Labour Code
- Hours spent on duties as an employee representative within the company
- Training arranged by the employer as part of the training plan, provided it is not scheduled during the employee’s statutory rest periods or leave
These periods are included in the calculation, even if the ambulance worker did not carry out any patient transport during those hours.
Limits of the framework agreement in relation to the Labour Code
The agreement of 16 June 2016 establishes a collective bargaining framework, but it cannot override mandatory legal protections. The Court of Cassation reiterated this on 23 September 2020 in a ruling concerning the maintenance of work uniforms. A provision in a collective agreement is not sufficient if it conflicts with a mandatory legal rule.
For working time calculations, this hierarchy of rules has a direct consequence. If the framework agreement contains provisions that are less favourable than the Labour Code or the Transport Code on a specific point, the statutory rule applies.
The employer must also distinguish between commuting time, which does not automatically count as actual working time, and travel time between assignments, which is included in the calculation. Confusing the two distorts the calculation over the reference period.
Checking your payslips: practical points to look for
Ambulance staff who work on the road must have access to mandatory timekeeping documents: a daily route sheet and a weekly or monthly summary. These documents must detail the shift span, rest periods, breaks and the actual working time recorded.
Always compare the route sheet with your payslip. If waiting time under constraint is recorded as a break on the route sheet, it artificially reduces the number of overtime hours. This is the most common type of dispute in patient transport.
The framework agreement’s formula (shift span minus breaks and rest periods) is not mathematically complicated. The real question is whether each deducted break was genuinely a break, in the sense that the employee was actually free to use the time as they wished. Accurate calculations depend on correctly classifying each period of the day.
