Managing workforce in the relatively strict and extensive jungle of Germany's employment law provisions can be difficult, especially for multinationals and US inhouse counsel who are used to at-will terminations and are not...more
On June 23, 2022, the German Bundestag passed a bill to transpose the EU Directive on Transparent and Predictable Working Conditions into German law. By August 1, 2022, companies will have to comply with a comprehensive...more
Here's what happened: A Berlin startup wrote in its job ad that it is looking for a "(Junior) Key Account Manager". The company's description referred to "a young team with flat hierarchies". A 50-year-old whose application...more
Employers in Germany should not underestimate the meaning of reference letters – the German Arbeitszeugnis. German employment law and employment practice provide employers with clear guidelines as to when and how they must...more
In Germany, regular works council elections are held every four years, from March 1 through May 31. The next election period will begin shortly, starting on March 1, 2022. Companies should prepare early on for the election...more
This Legal Q&A two pager gives an overview of the potential problems of using contractors and freelancers in Germany, in particular the risk of misclassification. Incorrectly classifying an employee as a contractor can have...more
This Legal Q&A two pager gives an overview of non-compete clauses with a focus on postcontractual non-competes. Non-compete clauses can effectively protect the know-how of companies, especially in the tech sector. But their...more
Employers in Germany should not underestimate the meaning of reference letters – the German Arbeitszeugnis. German employment law and employment practice provide employers with clear guidelines as to when and how they must...more
Every player interested or already active in the German market needs to have a working knowledge of the key principles of German employment law which offers a good level of protection to employees. This is especially true for...more
2/25/2021
/ Employee Benefits ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
EU ,
Germany ,
Hiring & Firing ,
International Labor Laws ,
Maternity Leave ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Parental Leave ,
Remuneration ,
Sick Pay ,
Unions ,
Wage and Hour
This Legal Q&A two pager gives an overview of non-compete clauses with a focus on postcontractual non-competes. Non-compete clauses can effectively protect the know-how of companies, especially in the tech sector. But their...more
This Legal Q&A two pager gives an overview of non-compete clauses with a focus on post-contractual non-competes. Non-compete clauses can effectively protect the know-how of companies, especially in the tech sector. But their...more
German employment law provides for a sophisticated system of employee representation. The employees' representative body on operational level is the works council (Betriebsrat). The works council is to be involved in...more
In Germany, employees enjoy rather strong protection against termination of employment. Additionally, there are some form requirements employers must observe. This Q&A two pager gives a basic overview of the termination...more
2/4/2020
/ Employer Liability Issues ,
EU ,
Garden Leave ,
Germany ,
Hiring & Firing ,
International Labor Laws ,
Labor Regulations ,
Layoffs ,
Notice Requirements ,
Redundancy Dismissals ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Severance Pay
In one of its latest rulings, the Regional Labor Court of Munich concluded that crowdworkers or microtaskers are not employees under German employment law. However, the Court has allowed an appeal to the Federal Labor Court....more
German employment law provides for rather strong dismissal protection. This is the main reason why more and more employers are hiring employees on a fixed-term basis, since this will in most cases end employment legally...more