The most important (planned) changes are summarized below.
1st amendment to the IfSG - compensation entitlement for parents due to school and daycare center closures
Employed custodians who are temporarily unable to work due to the care of their children are entitled to compensation under the new provision in Section 56 para. 1a IfSG. This compensation amounts to 67% of the loss of earnings incurred by the custodian concerned, up to a maximum of EUR 2,016 per month for a full month. The new regulation has been in force since March 30, 2020 and is valid for a limited period until December 31, 2020.
The following conditions apply to the entitlement to compensation:
There must be a loss of earnings on the part of the legal guardian. This loss of earnings must be attributable to the care of children in need of care due to the closure of daycare centers or schools. Furthermore, the entitlement to compensation requires that no other reasonable care option exists.
2.Amendments to the ArbZG - exceptions to maximum working hours, minimum rest periods and employment bans
The "Ordinance on Deviations from the Working Hours Act as a Result of the COVID-19 Epidemic" (COVID-19 Working Hours Ordinance - COVID-19-ArbZV), which came into force on April 10, 2020, allows exceptions to the applicable provisions of the Working Hours Act under certain conditions and for certain areas of activity. The regulations are limited until June 30, 2020.
Exemptions are permitted in relation to
- the maximum working hours,
- minimum rest periods and
- the ban on working on Sundays and public holidays.
The new regulations in the Working Hours Act only apply to those areas of activity that are deemed necessary in light of the current crisis.
3rd amendment to SGB IV - Temporary special regulations in connection with marginal employment
The previous regulation on time limits for marginally employed persons in the form of short-term employment provides for a maximum duration of three months or 70 days within a calendar year in accordance with Section 8 para. 1 no. 2 SGB IV. For a limited period from March 1, 2020 to October 31, 2020, the maximum duration will now be increased to a maximum of five months or 115 days within a calendar year in accordance with Section 115 SGB IV.
This regulation is intended to take account of the problems with seasonal work caused by the coronavirus crisis, particularly in the agricultural sector. However, the change applies to all sectors.
4th amendment to SGB III - Temporary special regulations in connection with short-time work
Due to the corona crisis, employees in many areas of activity have to go on short-time work. At the same time, staff shortages are arising in other areas, especially in the so-called systemically relevant areas. The amendments to Section 421c SGB III are intended to create an incentive for employees on short-time work to take up temporary work in systemically relevant areas, such as agriculture, on a voluntary basis.
The amendments stipulate that in the period from April 1, 2020 to October 31, 2020, the short-time working allowance can be topped up by a secondary occupation without being offset against the short-time working allowance. The total income (short-time working allowance, any earnings from the main job plus additional earnings) may not exceed the monthly target remuneration from the original main job.
The regulation applies exclusively to systemically relevant professions and sectors. To determine systemic relevance, the Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs has published a list based on the Ordinance on the Determination of Critical Infrastructures under the Federal Office for Information Security Act (BSI Act). According to this, professions and sectors that are of systemic relevance are those that are vital to public life, security and the supply of the population.
5th amendment to the BetrVG - virtual resolutions in the corona crisis
The Works Constitution Act did not previously provide for virtual works council meetings via video or telephone conference. Resolutions therefore always had to be passed in a face-to-face meeting. This caused considerable problems in the current coronavirus crisis due to the physical proximity involved.
In a ministerial declaration published on 20 March 2020, Federal Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Hubertus Heil called for the ability of works councils to work to be ensured during the Covid-19 crisis. According to the statement, resolutions passed in virtual works council meetings and by connecting individual works council members are effective.
In order to enshrine this view in law, Section 129 of the WorksConstitutionAct was amended accordingly. It is now possible for works councils to participate in meetings and resolutions via video and telephone conference. The prerequisite for this is that third parties cannot take note of the content of the meeting. Recording the meeting is not permitted. In the absence of an attendance list to be signed by hand, meeting participants are required to confirm their attendance to the works council chairperson in text form. These changes are limited until December 31, 2020 and will take effect retroactively until March 1, 2020. Resolutions already passed via virtual forms of communication therefore remain effective under the aforementioned conditions.
Corresponding amendments have also been made to the European Works Councils Act, the SE Employee Involvement Act and the Spokespersons' Committee Act.
6 Planned amendment to the KSchG - extension of the deadline for actions for protection against dismissal
According to the draft bill for the "Act to Ensure the Functioning of the Labor and Social Courts during the COVID 19 Epidemic and to Amend Other Laws" (COVID-19 ArbGG/SGG-AnpassungsG), Section 25a KSchG is to extend the period for filing a lawsuit pursuant to Section 4 sentence 1 KSchG to five weeks in the event of an epidemic situation of national scope.
Isa Zölitz and Dr. Philipp Harlände