Whether you are pregnant or you already have a child and are working for a German company, it is important to know your rights in the workplace...
Mothers and Mothers-to-be in the Workplace: Your rights Are you pregnant or already a parent and employed in a German company? Lucky you! German law is very good at protecting family policy when it comes to employment. Here’s a short breakdown of your rights:
Mothers and Mothers-to-be in the Workplace: Your rights Are you pregnant or already a parent and employed in a German company? Lucky you! German law is very good at protecting family policy when it comes to employment. Here’s a short breakdown of your rights:
Kündigungsschutz (Protection Against Dismissal) As soon as you break the news of your pregnancy until four months after childbirth, you cannot be dismissed either with or without notice (unless there is a special case such as insolvency of the company).
Mutterschutz (Maternity Leave) Female employees are entitled to full-paid maternity leave starting six weeks before the expected due date and ending eight weeks after childbirth.
Mutterschutzgesetz (Maternity Protection Law) According to the Mutterschutzgesetz (maternity protection law), pregnant women are forbidden from:
Employers must endeavour to offer alternative tasks and at the same rate of pay. This so-called ‘employment ban’ (Beschäftigungsverbot) can also take place at an individual level, if a you as a pregnant woman cannot carry out your job without risking you or your unborn baby’s health (e.g. due to back pain). An employment ban must be verified by a qualified doctor. If your job does not encompass any of the above tasks, you may voluntarily work up until you have your baby. However, following the birth of the baby, you may not work at all for the full eight weeks of your Mutterschutz.
Mutterschaftsgeld (Maternity Benefit) If you have German health insurance, you are entitled to maternity benefit. This amounts to a maximum of 13 EURO per day, paid by your health insurance company and topped up by your employer to equal your net salary, which is calculated as an average of your last 3 months pay (including overtime and commission). If you are privately insured, you can apply for a lump sum of 210 EURO and your employer will pay you your net salary minus 13 EURO per working day.
Elternzeit (Parental Leave) Both male and female employees are entitled to a maximum of three years' unpaid parental leave per child. Throughout the period of paternal leave, the employee may not be dismissed from their job (Kündigungsschutz) and is entitled to work part time (under 30 hours per week). It’s especially important for fathers-to-be to note that you have to inform your employer in writing, 7 weeks prior that you intend on taking parental leave- no earlier, no later.
Elterngeld (Parents’ Money) You should apply for Elterngeld as soon as your baby is born if possible, as this can only be retroactively implemented 3 months from the date the application is turned in.
Any income earned during parental leave will be calculated against Elterngeld. This includes Mutterschaftsgeld (which usually means you don’t start getting Elterngeld until your Mutterschaftsgeld stops being paid- 8 weeks after your baby’s birth). For families that already have children, an additional 10% of Elterngeld or a minimum amount of 75 EURO monthly is paid as a "sibling bonus". The requirements for multi-child families are:
Single parents that qualify will receive a total of 14 months of Elterngeld. Parents jointly caring for their newborn are entitled to 14 months of Elterngeld in total, as long as one partner takes at least 2 months’ Elternzeit. This doesn’t necessarily mean taking two months off- parents may reduce their hours to less than 30 per week to keep their entitlement. It’s also possible to split Elterngeld payments over 2 years, which means these payments are effectively reduced by 50%.
The writer of this section is a 30-something Brit, raising a little boy with her German boyfriend in the wonderful city of Berlin. Her ultimate dream is to work out how to make a career out of drinking tea, eating cake and chatting all day. Her blog Cup of tea anyone? is about life in Berlin and whatever else jumps into her busy brain.
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Mutterschutz (Maternity Leave) Female employees are entitled to full-paid maternity leave starting six weeks before the expected due date and ending eight weeks after childbirth.
Mutterschutzgesetz (Maternity Protection Law) According to the Mutterschutzgesetz (maternity protection law), pregnant women are forbidden from:
- handling toxic or radioactive substances or pathogens
- regular lifting and carrying of loads that are heavier than five kilograms (in some cases ten kilograms)
- permanent standing, as well as stretching, bending, working on ladders etc.
- from the third month: work in transport such as buses, taxis, either as a driver or as a ticket inspector or stewardess
- piecework or assembly line work
- nightshift and Sunday work after 8pm
Employers must endeavour to offer alternative tasks and at the same rate of pay. This so-called ‘employment ban’ (Beschäftigungsverbot) can also take place at an individual level, if a you as a pregnant woman cannot carry out your job without risking you or your unborn baby’s health (e.g. due to back pain). An employment ban must be verified by a qualified doctor. If your job does not encompass any of the above tasks, you may voluntarily work up until you have your baby. However, following the birth of the baby, you may not work at all for the full eight weeks of your Mutterschutz.
Mutterschaftsgeld (Maternity Benefit) If you have German health insurance, you are entitled to maternity benefit. This amounts to a maximum of 13 EURO per day, paid by your health insurance company and topped up by your employer to equal your net salary, which is calculated as an average of your last 3 months pay (including overtime and commission). If you are privately insured, you can apply for a lump sum of 210 EURO and your employer will pay you your net salary minus 13 EURO per working day.
Elternzeit (Parental Leave) Both male and female employees are entitled to a maximum of three years' unpaid parental leave per child. Throughout the period of paternal leave, the employee may not be dismissed from their job (Kündigungsschutz) and is entitled to work part time (under 30 hours per week). It’s especially important for fathers-to-be to note that you have to inform your employer in writing, 7 weeks prior that you intend on taking parental leave- no earlier, no later.
Elterngeld (Parents’ Money) You should apply for Elterngeld as soon as your baby is born if possible, as this can only be retroactively implemented 3 months from the date the application is turned in.
- Elterngeld is as a rule 65% of the applying parent's post-tax earnings, averaged over the 12 months before the child's birth (including overtime and any commission-based earnings). This percentage depends on your earnings though. For example, if you earn 1,000 EURO, you are entitled to 67% of your net earnings. From earnings of 1,220 EURO, this decreases to 66%. Those who earn less than 1,000 EURO per month, receive a low income bonus so that for every 20 EURO earned below 1,000 EURO, the rate increases by one percent.
- The maximum amount monthly is 1,800 EURO (which means if you earn 2,770 EURO after tax, you receive the maximum)
- The minimum amount issued to eligible applicants is 300 EURO (even for unemployed parents)
- For each multiple birth, parents are entitled to 300 EURO extra per child
Any income earned during parental leave will be calculated against Elterngeld. This includes Mutterschaftsgeld (which usually means you don’t start getting Elterngeld until your Mutterschaftsgeld stops being paid- 8 weeks after your baby’s birth). For families that already have children, an additional 10% of Elterngeld or a minimum amount of 75 EURO monthly is paid as a "sibling bonus". The requirements for multi-child families are:
- For 2 children, they have to be under 3 years of age
- For 3 children, they have to be under 6 years of age.
Single parents that qualify will receive a total of 14 months of Elterngeld. Parents jointly caring for their newborn are entitled to 14 months of Elterngeld in total, as long as one partner takes at least 2 months’ Elternzeit. This doesn’t necessarily mean taking two months off- parents may reduce their hours to less than 30 per week to keep their entitlement. It’s also possible to split Elterngeld payments over 2 years, which means these payments are effectively reduced by 50%.
The writer of this section is a 30-something Brit, raising a little boy with her German boyfriend in the wonderful city of Berlin. Her ultimate dream is to work out how to make a career out of drinking tea, eating cake and chatting all day. Her blog Cup of tea anyone? is about life in Berlin and whatever else jumps into her busy brain.
Berlin for all the Family can also be found on: