In Saxony-Anhalt, a teacher's dismissal for not offering an extra lesson was deemed lawful.
In the year 2023, a new regulation was implemented in Sachsen-Anhalt for a five-year span, mandating teachers to put in an extra hour of teaching each week. This hour can either be stored in a compensation account or cashed out. From the school year 2033/2034, these extra hours can be deducted. The aim of this regulation is to address the teacher shortage.
Teachers with physical impairments, limited work capacity, retirees aged 62 or older, and temporary employees are not obligated to follow this regulation. However, a long-term primary school teacher, who has been in the civil service of Sachsen-Anhalt for 33 years, refused the additional hour and was reprimanded. Eventually, she was terminated without notice in September 2023 and given a notice until March 2024.
Both terminations were subject to court proceedings at the Labor Court. The court ruled that the refusal of the mandatory additional hours following a prior reprimand was unlawful, thus validating the March dismissal. However, the initially given notice without prior notice was deemed ineffective by the court.
In March, the Higher Administrative Court of Saxony-Anhalt had already weighed in on the additional hour. They ruled that the overtime work was legal and dismissed the opposing arguments of two teachers. This judgment has not yet become legally binding.
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- Despite being a long-term primary school teacher in Stendal, she severely disabled and over 62, she refused the additional hour of teaching mandated by the Labor Court ruling in Saxony-Anhalt.
- The labor court in Saxony-Anhalt ruled that the teacher's termination was lawful due to her refusal of the mandatory additional hour, following a prior reprimand, which violated the school's policy.
- In the region of Stendal, Saxony-Anhalt, the labor court dismissed the opposing arguments of a disgruntled teacher who challenged the legality of the mandatory additional hour, upholding the higher administrative court's earlier judgment.
- The teacher from Stendal, a primary school educator in Saxony-Anhalt with 33 years of civil service, faced termination after refusing the added hour of teaching, as per the school's new policy, following a prior reprimand before the Labor Court.
