Dear Madam or Sir,
 

our second Newsletter for 2012 starts off by taking up a decision of the Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof)
on the application of the General Equal Treatment Act
(Allgemeines Gleichbehandlungsgesetz – AGG) to the managing directors of private limited companies. The
Federal Court of Justice affirmed the applicability of the
Act and granted damages and compensation for pain and
suffering to a managing director whose contract was not
renewed due to his age. In addition, we discuss the prerequisites for a dismissal for suspected misconduct which,
unlike a dismissal for misconduct, always require the prior
hearing of the employee. Thereafter, we concern ourselves with a judgment of the European Court of Justice on successive fixed-term employment contracts – which remain basically permissible – and a judgment of the Federal Labor Court (Bundesarbeitsgericht) on the special protection of severely disabled persons against dismissal. Finally, we examine a decision of the Federal Labor Court on the issue of whether a Christmas bonus has to be paid to an employee whose employment has already been terminated, which was decided in a manner pleasing to employees.