Shutdown Due to Covid-19

First court decisions affirm employer’s obligation to continue paying wages

Since the corona pandemic also reached Germany in the spring of 2020, many companies have had to close temporarily due to official orders for reasons of general health protection. These employers are asking themselves whether in these cases “only” a general risk of life is realized and accordingly the principle of “no work, no pay” applies, or whether the business risk doctrine applies and the salaries of the employees who are involuntarily not employed must be paid even during the plant closure.