Does the works council have to limit itself to online training?

According to the Works Constitution Act (BetrVG), works councils are entitled to training necessary for their work. The costs for this are generally borne by the employer.

Depending on the intensity, frequency and location of these training courses, disputes sometimes arise between the company partners as to whether the employer must finance every "luxury training trip" by the works council. Multi-day and expensive works council training courses "in a hotel on the coast with a sea view" can cause further controversy, at least in an already tense company environment.

In a ruling dated February 7, 2024, the Federal Labour Court has now rejected the obvious idea on the employer side that in future only the costs of online training courses that are now frequently offered (and therefore no longer the costs for travel, hotel and meals) should be covered.

In the case decided by the BAG, two members of the employee representatives attended a basic training course on works constitution law in Potsdam in August 2021, which lasted several days. The employer subsequently only paid the seminar fee, but refused to cover the costs of accommodation and meals. The main reason for this was that it would also have been possible to participate in a webinar offered by the same training provider lasting several days and with the same content.

According to the BAG, accommodation and catering costs for an external face-to-face seminar must also be reimbursed by the employer if the same training provider offers a webinar with the same content. It is up to the works council to decide whether it prefers a face-to-face format to an online version.

[𝘉𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘢𝘳𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘵𝘴𝘨𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘩𝘵, 𝘉𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘩𝘭𝘶𝘴𝘴 𝘷𝘰𝘮 7. 𝘍𝘦𝘣𝘳𝘶𝘢𝘳 2024 - 7 𝘈𝘉𝘙 8/23]

Conclusion: Disputes about training costs generally only end up in the labor court if there is already a lot wrong with the company. And this is not a good situation, neither for the company nor for the workforce. This should be worked on in the company, preferably in person. It doesn't necessarily have to be a sea view...