A captain demanded more than €100,000 for alleged standby time – arguing that he was prohibited from consuming alcohol during his off-duty time on board. However, both the Hamburg Labor Court and the Hamburg Regional Labor Court rejected his claim. The judges reasoned that a ban on alcohol does not constitute a sufficient restriction to legally classify off-duty time as compensated on-call duty. This clear ruling sends a clear message – because not every private restriction automatically leads to a claim for compensation under labor law.
What awaits you:
- LAG Hamburg: Alcohol ban on board is not a basis for standby pay
- LAG Hamburg: No entitlement to compensation for alcohol-free leisure time on board
- LAG Hamburg: Alcohol ban is not an order for on-call duty
- Seafarers as a special case under labor law: No entitlement to remuneration for standby time
- European Working Time Directive: No advantage for seafarers on call
- Hamburg Labor Court: EU Working Time Directive does not apply to seafarers – no obligation to pay if alcohol is prohibited
LAG Hamburg: Alcohol ban on board is not a basis for standby pay
In its ruling of November 13, 2024 (case no. 7 SLa 16/24), the Hamburg Regional Labor Court ruled: A blanket alcohol ban on ships does not justify a claim to compensation for alleged standby time. According to the court, a shipping company's safety-related zero-alcohol policy does not constitute such a significant restriction that leisure time would legally be considered working time.
The court also emphasized that European case law on the Working Time Directive is not directly applicable to seafarers.
The ruling provides clarity in maritime labor law – and offers important guidance for shipping companies, human resources departments, and labor law advisors.
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LAG Hamburg: No entitlement to compensation for alcohol-free leisure time on board
A captain employed since 2007 demanded over €108,000 from his shipping company, arguing that his alcohol-free leisure time on board was considered paid standby duty. The reason for this was an internal memo from 2022 in which the international shipping company reiterated its alcohol ban on board. This ban was intended to ensure the crew's operational readiness in an emergency and was permissible under labor law, even without a legal basis.
The captain then demanded the statutory minimum wage for more than 11,000 hours of on-call time. The Hamburg Labor Court rejected the claim – as did the Hamburg Regional Labor Court in the second instance. Both courts made it clear that a general ban on alcohol consumption during off-call time does not constitute such a significant restriction that it justifies a claim to compensation for on-call duty.
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LAG Hamburg: Alcohol ban is not an order for on-call duty
The Hamburg Regional Labor Court made it unequivocally clear in its ruling: The reference to the existing alcohol ban on board does not constitute a new labor law instruction, but merely the confirmation of an existing internal company policy. The human resources department had merely suggested to the captain that the zero alcohol limit be explicitly incorporated into his employment contract in the future. The judges did not consider this a new labor law order. While the court acknowledged that an alcohol ban can certainly influence leisure activities on board, this restriction does not constitute a claim to remuneration in the sense of on-call duty.
Permanent presence on board is a typical aspect of a seafaring job. Furthermore, the alcohol ban primarily serves general safety on board—not the captain's constant availability.
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Seafarers as a special case under labor law: No entitlement to remuneration for standby time
According to the Hamburg Regional Labor Court, even an explicit order for on-call duty by the human resources department would not have given rise to any entitlement to compensation. Neither the individual employment contract nor the relevant collective wage agreement (HTV-See) contain corresponding provisions regarding remunerated on-call time.
The court also points out that the collective agreement already takes into account the fact that seafarers typically spend their leisure time on board. This special feature of the maritime employment relationship is taken into account in the collective agreement and does not automatically lead to a claim for additional remuneration.
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European Working Time Directive: No advantage for seafarers on call
The Hamburg Regional Labor Court clarified that the European Working Time Directive (Directive 2003/88/EC) also does not establish a captain's right to compensation for alleged standby time. The directive does explicitly distinguish between genuine rest time and standby duty, during which employees must be available to the employer at the workplace.
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled several times that on-call duty is generally to be classified as working time – especially when employees are outside their usual living environment and have only limited access to leisure time.
However, this case law does not apply in this specific case. Seafarers are expressly excluded from the scope of the Directive, according to Article 1(3).
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Hamburg Labor Court: EU Working Time Directive does not apply to seafarers – no obligation to pay if alcohol is prohibited
The Hamburg Regional Labor Court clarified: According to Article 1, paragraph 3, the European Working Time Directive (Directive 2003/88/EC) expressly does not apply to seafarers. Instead, a special agreement between the European Community Shipowners' Associations (ECSA) and the Federation of Transport Workers' Unions in the EU (FST) from 1998 applies in the maritime sector, which has determined working time regulations for seafarers at the European level since 1999.
This so-called social partner agreement does not contain any general provisions regarding the remuneration of standby time. Only in the event that a seafarer is called to work during their rest period—for example, because the engine room is unoccupied—does the agreement provide for a right to appropriate compensatory rest periods.
A general claim to compensation for mere restrictions on leisure time – such as a ban on alcohol on board – cannot be derived from this.
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