Company Practice

Micro vacation – a gigantic problem?

By Dr. Henriette Norda LL.M. / 24 May 2019 11 June 2019 / Company Practice, Holidays, Vacation

On March, 6 2019 the State Labour Court Baden Wurttemberg (docket number 4 Sa 73/18) decided that half day vacation does not fulfil the legal requirements where employees don’t have an entitlement to request such micro vacation. In the case at issue, the plaintiff filed legal cause against his employer demanding his right to be granted a half day vacation at least 8 times a year. The employer withdraw this request, arguing there was no entitlement to half day vacations but only to vacation for a longer period. Furthermore the expenses resulting out of granting half day vacation were not …

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No codetermination regarding a customer feedback function within a smartphone app

By Miriam Hendrich / 22 September 2017 11 June 2019 / Company Practice, Social networks, Works Council

On 8 June 2017 the Labour Court of Heilbronn decided that a smartphone application, provided and operated by an employer, allowing customers to share their feedback including statements about the performance and the behaviour of certain employees is not a surveillance tool according to § 87 I Nr. 6 BetrVG, if the employer does not ask for this kind of feedback and does not process the information further (judgement of the Heilbronn Labour Court dated 8 June 2017, docket number 8 BV 6/16). The employer, a company operating in the food retail business, runs an application that offers the possibility …

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Employees exempted from their duties are allowed to take part in a corporate event

By Nils Grunicke / 23 August 2017 11 June 2019 / Company Practice, Equal Treatment, Termination

On 22 June 2017 (docket number 8 CA 5233/16) the labour court in Cologne found that an employee is allowed to take part in company outings and events although he is on garden leave. The employee and subsequently plaintiff had been working for the employer, an association that operates retirement homes, for almost three decades. Triggered by a change in the employer’s executive board, the employee agreed to be on garden leave for the last two years prior to his pension start date. Although on garden leave, he was still initially invited to the employer’s events, e.g. the Christmas party. …

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Sick is sick

By Pascal Kremp LL.M. / 4 November 2016 11 June 2019 / Company Practice, Health, Sickness

The Federal Labour Court (Bundesarbeitsgericht, BAG) ruled on 2 November 2016 (docket number: 10 AZR 596/15) that an employee who is incapable of work for health reasons does not need to come into the office for a personnel meeting requested by the employer. In this case the employer called the sick employee into the office twice for meetings to talk about future potential for employment after the period of illness. The employee refused both times, referring to his medically certified incapacity. As a consequence, the employer served a written warning. The employee filed action for the removal of the warning from …

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The Ins and Outs of German Vacation Time and Vacation Pay

By Dr. Bernd Borgmann LL.M. / 6 June 2014 11 June 2019 / Benefits, Company Practice, Equal Treatment, Holidays, Remuneration, Temporary Workers, Works Council

As we approach summer many employers start to intensify their staff’s vacation planning. Vacation regulations in Germany are not as straightforward as many employers might think. Today’s blog therefore aims to provide a basic overview on German vacation rules for employers. How much vacation pay and time are employees entitled to? Starting off with the basics, German employment legislation already entitles an employee to a minimum vacation time after only one full month of employment. Surprisingly, the full annual vacation entitlement is gained after six consecutive months of employment. The statutory minimum amount of time off an employer must grant …

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