Judgment of the Court (First Chamber) of 15 September 2011 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom) — Williams and Others v British Airways plc

(Case C-155/10) (1)

(Working conditions - Directive 2003/88/EC - Organisation of working time - Right to annual leave - Airline pilots)

2011/C 319/11

Language of the case: English

Referring court

Supreme Court of the United Kingdom

Parties to the main proceedings

Applicants: Williams and Others

Defendant: British Airways plc

Re:

Reference for a preliminary ruling — Supreme Court of the United Kingdom — Interpretation of Article 7 of Council Directive 93/104/EC of 23 November 1993 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time (OJ 1993 L 307, p. 18) and of Article 7 of Directive 2003/88/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 November 2003 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time (OJ 2003 L 299, p. 9) — Scope of the obligations laid down by the directives as to the nature and level of allowances for paid annual leave — Extent of the Member States’ freedom to lay down the conditions therefor — Paid annual leave granted to airline pilots

Operative part of the judgment

Article 7 of Directive 2003/88/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 November 2003 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time and Clause 3 of the Agreement annexed to Council Directive 2000/79/EC of 27 November 2000 concerning the European Agreement on the Organisation of Working Time of Mobile Workers in Civil Aviation, concluded by the Association of European Airlines (AEA), the European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF), the European Cockpit Association (ECA), the European Regions Airline Association (ERA) and the International Air Carrier Association (IACA), must be interpreted as meaning that an airline pilot is entitled, during his annual leave, not only to the maintenance of his basic salary, but also, first, to all the components intrinsically linked to the performance of the tasks which he is required to carry out under his contract of employment and in respect of which a monetary amount, included in the calculation of his total remuneration, is provided and, second, to all the elements relating to his personal and professional status as an airline pilot.

It is for the national court to assess whether the various components comprising that worker’s total remuneration meet those criteria.

(1)  OJ C 161, 19.6.2010.