As a general rule, applicants for a job in Germany are not required to disclose a severe disability on their own initiative during the hiring process. For this reason, the Cologne Higher Labor Court held that four terminations issued without the consent of the Integration Office, as well as an attempted rescission of the employment...

Where managers are employed by one group company but perform their duties in the organization of another group company, their engagement in the receiving organization may be subject to co-determination under section 99(1) sentence 1 of the German Works Constitution Act (Betriebsverfassungsgesetz – “BetrVG”). In a decision dated January 27, 2026 (Federal Labor Court, 27.01.2026...

Whether Copilot, ChatGPT or industry-specific solutions – artificial intelligence (AI) has long since become part of everyday business life. Employees use AI tools to draft texts, analyze data, write code and support customer communication. Many companies, however, still lack a clear position: some actively encourage the use of AI and provide their own systems, while...

The Berlin-Brandenburg Regional Labor Court has confirmed in an interim injunction that the works council of an airline elected at Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER) may provisionally exercise its co-determination rights under works constitution law—despite the airline’s headquarters being located abroad and the unresolved final classification of the stationing location as an organizational unit eligible for...

An order requiring an employee who works half the time from home to report to the workplace in person from Monday through Thursday is legally invalid. The key point is that a stricter requirement to be present at the workplace cannot be justified simply by citing the withdrawal of a “work-from-home privilege,” but rather requires...

A general restriction of annual leave to a maximum of two consecutive weeks violates Section 7(2), sentence 1 of the Federal Vacation Act (BUrlG). Splitting the leave is permissible only for specific, urgent operational or personal reasons; a general shortage of staff is not sufficient. Vacation may also be granted in summary proceedings if there...

If a company wishes to place its trade secrets under the protection of the Trade Secrets Act (GeschGehG), it must take appropriate measures to protect those secrets. The higher the value of the trade secret, the more effective the protective measures must be. This was decided by the Baden-Württemberg Regional Labor Court in its ruling...

Digital platform work involving delivery drivers does not automatically mean that a separate works council can be elected in every delivery area: The Federal Labor Court clarifies the requirements for organizational units eligible for a works council in app-based work models (BAG January 28, 2026 – 7 ABR 23/24). Facts of the case The ruling...

Construction workers who are employed on construction sites to perform simple tasks, receive an hourly wage, and do not appear to be entrepreneurs on the market are generally classified as dependent employees. This was decided by the Hesse Regional Social Court (LSG). Facts of the case In its ruling of February 20, 2025 (L 8...

Employers may not restrict voluntary wage increases across the board to employees with new contract templates. If no valid objective reasons for unequal treatment can be given, employees with old contracts are also entitled to the pay increase. This was clarified by the Federal Labor Court in a recent ruling (judgment of November 26, 2025...