ver.di prohibited from striking at Weimar Hospital - HEUKING obtains temporary injunction
On July 30, 2024, Erfurt Labor Court issued a temporary injunction prohibiting trade union ver.di from striking at Sophien- und Hufeland-Klinikum gGmbH.
Trade union ver.di had called on employees of Sophien- und Hufeland-Klinikum gGmbH to partici-pate in a warning strike on August 1, 2024. However, under the legal guidance of a team led by HEUKING Partner Utz Andelewski, Evangelische Kirche in Mitteldeutschland (KdöR) [Protestant Church in Central Germany, a corporation under public law], Diakonisches Werk Evangelischer Kirchen in Mitteldeutschland e.V. [Social Service Agency of the Protestant Church in Germany, a registered association], and Sophien- und Hufeland-Klinikum gGmbH took legal action against this call to strike. Erfurt Labor Court subsequently issued a temporary injunction prohibiting the strike. In its ruling, Erfurt Labor Court upheld the case law established by the Federal Labor Court, which states that church institutions “adhering to collective bargaining agreements” are not subject to strike actions. The court’s decision explicitly reinforced the constitutionally protected autonomy of churches and their institutions, despite ver.di’s argument that the interpretation of the relationship between the right to strike and church autonomy is evolving.
Litigator on behalf of Evangelische Kirche in Mitteldeutschland (KdöR),
Diakonisches Werk Evangelischer Kirchen in Mitteldeutschland e.V., and
Sophien- und Hufeland-Klinikum gGmbH
HEUKING:
Dr. Utz Andelewski (Lead, Employment),
Ann-Kathrin Weber,
Dr. Christopher Wiencke (both Employment), all Berlin
