Works Agreement Germany

By signing a service contract, a freelancer makes his services available to the client for a fee. The contract usually contains specific obligations, the duration of the agreement and the conditions for terminating the contract. Salaries and wages can be agreed by the company directly with its employees in two ways. Either the collective agreement concluded with a trade union is applied, or individual employment contracts are concluded with individual employees. Payment agreements can be concluded with the works council if no collective agreement is signed. Most collective agreements are negotiated at the industry or industry level. The employer is legally obliged to provide the employee with the essential contractual conditions in writing no later than one month after the start of the employment relationship. Conditions of employment are mainly governed by laws, collective agreements and company agreements. As a general rule, the employment contract may not derogate from these provisions to the detriment of the employee. In order to avoid future disputes, a version of the employment contract must be drafted in German. However, this is not required by law.

Collective agreements have three characteristic functions: mini-jobs are a form of marginal employment in Germany. A mini-job describes an employment contract in which the employee does not earn more than 450 euros per month (mini-jobs of 450 euros) or works less than three months or 70 days a year (short-term mini-jobs). Mini-jobs can be taken alongside your main job in addition to your salary or as your main form of income. Collective agreements are agreements between employers or employers` associations and trade unions. Collective agreements regulate the working conditions (i.e. working hours, wages, etc.) of employees of a company or industry such as the metallurgical and electrical industry or the chemical industry. In principle, working conditions regulated by a collective agreement are more advantageous for employees than those of companies or sectors without a collective agreement. The works council has general rights of information and consultation under the Constitutional Law on Enterprise. The works council is obliged to ensure that all health laws, rules and regulations are applied correctly and in the interests of workers.

In order to fulfil its tasks, the works council must conduct an established dialogue with the employer. The employer and the works council may agree on company agreements which are binding on all employees. In the absence of a central works council, three employees may convene a company meeting by sending an invitation to all employees or by attaching office boards visible to all employees. The invitation must be sent to the staff at least three days before the day of the meeting and clearly inform the staff that an electoral commission is to be elected for an election of the works council at the meeting. The electoral commission organizes the election of the works council and then dissolves. A rule of thumb is not to sign anything, even if you think you understand the context. German labour law is extremely complex and full of pitfalls. Therefore, it makes sense to ask a lawyer first. The good news is that if your employer pressures you to sign a termination agreement or otherwise risks being fired, your insurer is required to pay to consult with a lawyer before signing such an agreement. A works contract is a special type of contract concluded between the employer and the works council and contains general provisions on the working conditions of individual workers. Company agreements have the same direct and binding effect on individual employment relationships as statutory law.

When electing a works council, various complex rules and regulations must be respected, about which the electoral committee must inform itself in advance. The member or members of the works council must have sufficient time and financial resources, e.B. for the purchase of books or participation in seminars on the subject. The works council represents the interests of the workers vis-à-vis the employer. For example, the works council is responsible for this: Proportion of employees bound by collective agreements in 2018 The most important employee representative body is the works council. In companies with more than five employees who are regularly employed and entitled to vote, a works council may be elected. The works council is elected for a four-year term. In general, elections are held every four years from March to May in all companies in the country. The size of the works council depends on the number of employees regularly employed in the company. The length of the notice period for the employer depends on the employee`s length of service and ranges from 4 weeks for employees with less than 2 years of service to 7 months for employees with more than 20 years of service. Unless otherwise specified in the employment contract, the extended statutory notice periods apply only to dismissals by the employer, while the employee may terminate the employment relationship with four weeks` notice until the 15th or the end of a calendar month.

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