In Germany, too, restaurants, clubs, cinemas and the like are closing their doors. But what exactly does this mean for employees?
The pandemic continues to keep Europe in suspense. The working lives of many people in Germany are also changing: restaurants, clubs, cinemas... they all have to temporarily close their doors . And what happens to the employees? The lack of clarity unsettles those affected and the fear of termination increases - a new contract may have to be signed a short time later.
The German Federation of Trade Unions (DGB) warns employees not to sign a termination or amendment agreement too quickly. Via Facebook, the DGB recommends that you always first seek advice from the works council or union and seek advice.
Short-time work
“When it comes to short-time working benefits, it is important to know that the employee does not have to do anything initially. In this respect, employers are required to clarify the details of short-time work benefits with the employment agency,”
says lawyer and specialist in banking and capital markets law Kemal Eser . He has been dealing with dismissal protection law for over 15 years and continues:
“A legal basis is necessary for ordering short-time work. This means that the employer cannot order this unilaterally. A legal basis can arise from the employment contract itself, from collective agreements or company agreements.
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In this respect, affected employees should first have their employment contracts checked for relevant clauses by a specialized lawyer. Employers themselves can also have corresponding agreements subsequently included in the employment contracts.”
The Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs (BMAS) explains that affected employees should be protected from unemployment through publicly financed short-time work benefits. In an expedited procedure, the Bundestag decided on the following changes [ as of March 16, 2020 ]:
- Companies can use short-time work benefits as soon as 10 percent of employees are affected by the loss of work.
- The contributions are fully reimbursed by the BA.
- Short-time work benefits can also be paid to temporary workers. Here the BA covers 60 percent of the lost net wages. For employees with children the figure is 67 percent.
These reliefs will come into effect retroactively to March 1, 2020 and will also be paid out retroactively. The contact person is the local employment agency.
Protection against dismissal
According to lawyer Eser, employers can generally make use of the option to issue a dismissal for operational reasons due to the new coronavirus situation.
“From a lawyer’s perspective, the first question would be whether the Dismissal Protection Act applies. First of all, the small business limit of more than 10 employees is decisive; Section 23 Paragraph 1 Sentence 2 KSchG must be observed!”
If the Dismissal Protection Act applies, an examination will be opened by the labor courts. The procedure determines whether a corresponding termination is actually justified.
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If a termination is considered legally invalid, the terminated employee will continue to be employed. Here, however, the employee must observe the emergency period of 3 weeks . The employee can only file a claim for protection against dismissal before the relevant labor court within these 3 weeks.
However, in order to be able to make use of protection against dismissal, the employment relationship must have existed for at least six months. In addition, the company must have more than ten employees. (see also Section 1 of the Dismissal Protection Act; paragraph 1 )
Receipt of benefits in the event of quarantine
WDR , if an employee is sent into quarantine, he will continue to receive his wages - after all, the quarantine is not his fault. The working hours do not have to be made up. However, the employer can get the money back from the state. This also applies to self-employed employees.
Related to the topic: The confusion about coronavirus patients and ibuprofen
Article image: Jeanette Dietl / Shutterstock
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