No entitlement to paid smoking breaks based on company practice (Higher Labor Court Nuremberg, decision of August 05, 2015 – 2 Sa 132/15) In many firms employers allow for working time to be broken up without requiring employees to work extra hours or reducing the claim to remuneration accordingly. No ... Read More »

Secret conversation recording as retrospective grounds for termination without notice (Higher Labor Court Hamburg, decision dated July 22, 2015 – 6 Sa 77/14) If at the point of receiving notification of extraordinary termination there are other objective reasons for termination, which do not come to the attention of the employer ... Read More »

Obligation to offer continued employment to part-time staff on fixed-term full-time jobs (Federal Labor Court, decision dated March 26, 2015 – 2 AZR 417/14) The plaintiff had been in the employment of the defendant since 2008, most recently as Head of “Public and Media Relations”, on a 75 % working time ... Read More »

No typist without necessity (Higher Labor Court of Berlin-Brandenburg, decision dated August 14, 2015 – 3 TaBV 417/15) Under Section 40 (2) of the Works Council Constitution Act (BetrVG) the works council is entitled to receive from the employer office staff for meetings, consultation hours and day-to-day managements – but ... Read More »

Managing directors and interns are considered employees according to § 17 of the German Protection Against Dismissal Act (KSchG) (European Court of Justice, decision dated July 9, 2015 – C 229/14) In the case pending before the Labor Court Verden, the parties disagree about operationally-related terminations. Including the plaintiff, the ... Read More »

The Federal Labor Court (BAG) has brought forward two questions to the European Court of Justice (ECJ): First, whether a rejected applicant must be compensated for discriminatory treatment based on European Union law, although he never intended to be employed in a permanent position. And second, whether such proceedings is ... Read More »

Federal Labor Court, decision dated January 20, 2015 – 9 AZR 860/13 Employees are increasingly making use of their right to demand the reduction of their working hours in accordance with the part-time and temporary employment law (TzBfG). What at first often looks like the beginning of a non-binding discussion ... Read More »

Requirements for the official hearing of an employee Federal Labor Court, decision dated February 12, 2015 – 6 AZR 845/13 High demands have always been placed on terminating an employment relationship by an employer. This is especially true for so-called termination due to suspicion. Even the suspicion of a serious ... Read More »