It would be appropriate for us to concern ourselves with this matter and reduce the working hours of those who work with dangerous substances to less than those of the other workers, to enable them to enjoy an average life span.

Are we sufficiently aware that, in 1994, when the Member States came to an agreement on the maximum 48-hour working week, they excluded several million workers, such as transport workers, offshore oil rig workers or junior doctors in training?

We take a favourable view of the points achieved in the Conciliation Committee, and are as one with you on the points you have already mentioned, namely the inclusion of the self-employed, a clear definition of self-employment, clearly-defined work times – in respect of which, of course, more redress can again be demanded of enterprises – and the need to define exceptional circumstances as regards weekly work times and work at night.

This program, particularly the conversion to an hourly rate from a weekly rate, significantly reduces the administration cost to the small business community.

In order specifically to prevent the employer from achieving, by subterfuge or through intimidation, a situation whereby the employee renounces the right for his weekly working time not to exceed the maximum laid down, this express manifestation of consent is surrounded by a series of guarantees to ensure that the interested party suffers no harm if he refuses to work more than 48 hours per week under the terms mentioned, that the employer keeps up-to-date records of employees carrying out such work where hours exceed the weekly maximum that the records in question are made available to the competent authorities, and that the entrepreneur provides to the competent authorities, at their request, information relating to agreements ...[+++] given by the workers".

The flexibility left to the Member States, concerns mainly the frequency of services and timetabling.