Employment relationship and collective agreement

You may only be a freelancer or contract worker if you are self-employed . You do not have the same rights as employees. For example, neither minimum wages under the collective agreement nor vacation rights apply.

As a freelancer , you commit yourself to providing a service for a definite or indefinite period of time. You are not bound by instructions and can organize your time freely. The work equipment is usually provided by your client. 

A contract for work and services is a contract for a specific work that you have to deliver as a contractor. You don't have to work yourself, but can also let someone else do the job.

An employment contract is an agreement between the employer and the employee.

As an employee, you undertake to perform work. Your employer undertakes to pay a wage or salary. 

Verbal employment contracts are also valid. Exceptions are apprenticeship contracts, which must be concluded in writing. In order to be able to better prove claims, a written employment contract is best suited.

As an employee, you are entitled to certain rights according to the law, collective agreement and also according to company agreements . Works agreements are concluded between the employer and the works council and apply within the company. 

Your rights must not be diminished by the employment contract. 

Immediately after the start of the employment relationship, your employer must provide you as an employee with a written record of the essential rights and obligations. The service slip states, among other things, your place of work, your working hours, your annual vacation entitlement and your remuneration. You must also receive a written payslip every month.

More and more often, employment contracts contain "all-inclusive clauses". In addition to the basic salary, the monthly remuneration agreed in them also covers overtime and overtime, holiday and Sunday bonuses as well as special payments. The clauses are only valid if, including overtime, additional services and surcharges incurred, at least the minimum wage according to the collective agreement is paid.

However, such employment contracts rarely state how much is paid for normal working hours. For example, it is difficult to understand how many overtime and overtime hours are covered by remuneration and what additional services would have to be paid additionally. The law stipulates that the amount of the current basic wage or basic salary must be stated in the service slip (or employment contract).