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Unlike the former registered mail with peel-off label, the new digital registered mail is no longer suitable as prima facie evidence. This is the result of a decision by the Hamburg Regional Labor Court (July 14, 2025 – 4 SLa 26/24). Facts The Hamburg Regional Labor Court had to rule on the validity of a...

The unlawful and almost complete video surveillance of an employee at work over a period of 22 months has resulted in the employer being ordered to pay damages of €15,000. In the absence of any legal justification, the intensive video surveillance constituted a serious infringement of the employee’s personal rights. This was decided by the...

If a clause triggers the reimbursement of training costs when the employment relationship is terminated “at the request” of the employee, this means the indiscriminate termination of the employment relationship by the employee giving notice. With this content, the clause is unreasonably disadvantageous within the meaning of Section 307 (1) sentence 1 of the German...

The question of whether external applicants who were not previously employed by the employer and have already reached the standard retirement age may be rejected on the basis of their age was recently decided by the Federal Labor Court (BAG) (judgment of May 8, 2025 – 8 AZR 299/24). The BAG concluded that although age...

A probationary period that corresponds to the entire duration of the fixed-term employment relationship is generally inadmissible. However, if a termination option has been agreed in addition to the probationary period, the invalidity of the probationary period provision does not affect the possibility of ordinary termination. This was clarified by the Federal Labor Courtin its...

Compensation payments under the General Equal Treatment Act (AGG) can be taken into account as income or assets in the context of granting legal aid. This was decided by the Düsseldorf Regional Labor Court in its ruling of July 4, 2024 (9 SLa 359/24). Facts The ruling of the Düsseldorf Regional Labor Court (LAG) is...

In its ruling of March 10, 2025 (Ref. 16 TaBV 109/24), the Hesse Regional Labor Court decided that the works council chairperson would be excluded for a gross violation of his data protection obligations. Facts The ruling of the Hesse Regional Labor Court (LAG) is based on the following facts: The parties were in dispute...

If an employee chokes while drinking coffee at work and subsequently falls, this may constitute an accident at work in terms of Social Security Law in individual cases. This was held by Saxony-Anhalt Regional Social Court in its judgment of May 22, 2025 (Ref. L 6 U 45/23). Facts of the case The plaintiff is...

When calculating compensation for a post-contractual non-competition clause in accordance with Sections 74 et seq. of the German Commercial Code (HGB), benefits from a virtual stock option program are also included. However, this only applies if the option rights were exercised while the employment relationship was still in place, according to the Federal Labor Court...

According to the case law of the Federal Labor Court (judgment of April 16, 2025 – 10 AZR 80/24), this is possible under certain conditions. Facts of the case The judgment of the Federal Labor Court is based on the following facts. The plaintiff was employed by the defendant, a company that deals with cryptocurrencies,...