There are always curious cases in the labour courts in Germany that make you shake your head. In one case at the Cologne Regional Labour Court (LAG, 9 Sa 657/05 ), an employee demonstratively did not greet his managing director during a chance encounter outside the work context. The managing director felt disrespected and insulted. He dismissed his employee. He sued and won. The court ruled: failure to greet is not grounds for dismissal and is also not a punishable offense under the German Criminal Code.
In the court's opinion, a dismissal would only be effective if there were reasons that made it unlikely that the employee would continue to work with the company in a spirit of trust. This was not the case with the failure to greet, especially as this took place in a private context. The dismissal was therefore invalid.
This case probably falls under the motto: “If you don't have any problems, you make your own.”
But be careful - such behaviour, if it takes place within the company, can already be assessed differently. This is because there is a duty of mutual consideration in the employment relationship in accordance with § 241 German Civil Court (BGB). This includes a minimum level of respect and consideration in dealing with one another (Federal Labour Court, AZ: 3 Sa 150/11). The employer does not have to tolerate insults, belittling or disrespectful remarks and breaches of this obligation can be punished with a formal warning and, in the event of recurrence, with dismissal. This is because aspects of peace at work and respectful, trusting cooperation between colleagues would come into play here. The length of service and other overall behaviour could also be evaluated in an overall assessment. In this case, the employer could also object to bad conduct and, in the event of a repeat offense, issue a conduct-related dismissal following a formal warning.
I publish interesting questions about German employment law judgements on this blog regularly. If you need special advice tailored upon your individual case, don't hesitate to get in contact with me.
photo / source: designed by freepik.com