Rights and duties of the employer on vacation
The vacation time is pending. As an employer, you have to consider some rights and obligations.
Full -time employees are entitled to a legal vacation entitlement of at least 24 working days a year. The working days are all calendar days that are not Sundays or statutory holidays. This means that there is a vacation entitlement of at least 20 working days with a widespread 5-day week. Less may not be agreed in the collective agreement or by individual contractual agreement, even if the employee agrees. A vacation that goes beyond the statutory vacation entitlement is the contractual additional vacation. As an employer, you can largely freely make your vacation.
If the employee falls ill during the vacation, the days of incapacity to work are not counted towards annual vacation. However, the employee's vacation ends at the agreed date. The lost vacation days must not be attached to the original vacation by the employee.
When planning vacation, you as an employer must note the following:
When determining the vacation in terms of time, you have to take into account the employee's vacation requests. Urgent operational interests that conflict with the employee's vacation request only lead to the employer's right to refuse performance. As an employer, you have to explain and prove the urgent operational. The vacation must also be granted in a coherent manner. There is only an exception for urgent operational or reasons in the person of the employee that require a division of the vacation.
In addition, you are not allowed to impose a unilateral vacation on the employee. The employee's vacation requests must be taken into account primarily. According to the case law of the Federal Labor Court, a one -sided determination of the vacation is only permitted if it is accepted by the employee.
When determining company holidays, it should be noted that they do not require urgent operational concerns. With reference to the specified company holidays, they are entitled to reject deviating individual vacation requests from the employee. In companies with a works council, the determination of the company holidays is a measure subject to co -determination (Section 87 (1) No. 5 BetrVG). In companies without a works council, the employer can introduce company holidays unilaterally and determine their position.
Furthermore, a one -sided change in vacation by the employer is not permitted. It is only possible to make a mutually acceptable relocation or withdrawal of the vacation. But the employee is also bound to the vacation if the employer's declaration of exemption has received him/her.
However, the employee must not take your vacation on his own. The Federal Labor Court regarded self -prohibition as a serious violation of the contractual obligations, which can also justify extraordinary termination. The State Labor Court of Düsseldorf decided by judgment of July 11, 2018, 8 Sa 87/18, that a termination without notice was justified if the vacation takes a close time. In this case, an employee had submitted the vacation application from Mallorca and had therefore refused herself.
In addition, as an employer, you are generally not entitled to a one -sided right of callback from the employee from vacation. There is only an exception in emergency situations in which there are considerable damage that can only be averted by the participation of the employee on vacation. However, this includes non -manageable operational difficulties. If there is a call back from the employee from vacation, you as an employer are obliged to reimburse the employee the costs incurred by the termination of the vacation.
