Recent news
Latest items of recent news relevant to Germany as reported in our fortnightly newswire ‘Dernières nouvelles’.
Germany: Important ruling on references
The German Federal Labour Court (BAG) has held that an employee cannot automatically claim for a ‘good’ overall assessment of their performance in employment references …
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Germany: Quotas for supervisory boards to be introduced in 2016
The government of Germany has agreed to a new law that would oblige the country’s largest companies to ensure that 30% of supervisory board positions are held by woman by 2016 …
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Germany: may ask about trade union membership
In a recent case, the German Federal Labour Court has stated that employers may, in some circumstances, be entitled to ask their employees about their trade union membership …
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Germany: Reforms make parental leave more flexible
Reforms to the German law on parental leave have now been endorsed by the Bundestag …
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Germany: New Bill on collective bargaining
Germany’s Minister of Labour, Andrea Nahles, has presented a draft law regarding collective bargaining to its Ministries for review …
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Germany: Green light for new industry health and safety regulation
Germany’s Federal Government has approved a new Regulation on Industrial Health and Safety …
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Germany: Rising proportions of pupils studying Spanish
Although there are 24 official languages in the EU, English was the most commonly studied foreign language at lower secondary level in 2012 …
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Germany: Different notice periods based on seniority are not discriminatory
The German Federal Labour Court (BAG) has held that the differentiation of termination notice periods depending on an employee’s continuous service, as provided for in article 622 of the Civil Code, is not discriminatory on the grounds of age …
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Germany: Ministry commissions report on potential anti-stress law
German labour minister, Andrea Nahles, has commissioned the Federal Institute for Health and Safety at Work to present a report on the viability of introducing an ‘anti-stress’ law in Germany …
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Germany: Court rules on dismissal for statements spread on social media
The German Federal Labour Court has had to consider for the first time whether an employee may be dismissed for spreading detrimental statements about their employer via social media …
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Germany: Remedying procedural errors in works council decisions
Germany’s Federal Labour Court (BAG) has recently relaxed the requirements regarding the validity of decisions taken at works council meetings …
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Germany: Labour taxation in the EU
In its latest ‘Taxation Trends in the European Union’ report, the European Commission has pointed out that labour taxes were the main source of tax revenue in 2012 in the majority of EU member states …
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Germany: Acceptance of an employment contract written in a foreign language
The German Federal Labour Court has held that an employee’s signature on an employment contract will be considered a valid acceptance of its terms, even if the contract is written in a language that the employee does not understand …
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Germany: Employers’ duty to review company pensions
A recent decision by the German Federal Labour Court confirms that employers have a reasonable amount of discretion as regards increasing company pensions …
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Germany: Education not providing the necessary skills for employment
According to a recent Eurobarometer survey, 73% of EU citizens agree that their education and training has provided them with the skills required to find a job that matches their qualifications …
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