Employment Law

Excellent. Innovative. Internationally connected.

In today's increasingly dynamic working environment, well-considered, sustainable employment law solutions are essential for business success. Our large, specialised team provides comprehensive advice to employers on all aspects of individual and collective employment law. We support you in the strategic planning and implementation of employment law restructuring measures, negotiations with employee representatives, drafting works and collective bargaining agreements, and the judicial enforcement of measures, drawing on our outstanding expertise.

We can also assist you with drafting and terminating employment contracts, and developing alternative working models. We also provide guidance on tackling the challenges of the digital working world and addressing questions of co-determination and collective bargaining law. We ensure that your business acts in a legally compliant, agile and forward-looking manner by providing tailor-made solutions.

Consulting services in detail

Corporate restructuring, outsourcing and transactional advise

Restructuring and reorganisation: Design and implementation of all forms of organisational and personnel reduction measures. Design and implementation of all forms of organisational and personnel reduction measures, including transfers of undertakings (e.g. outsourcing), reconciliation of interests, and social plan negotiations and conciliation committee proceedings
Collective agreements and restructuring collective agreements: Design and negotiation of corporate and restructuring concepts at the level of collective agreements, including transfers of undertakings (e.g. outsourcing), reconciliation of interests, and social plan negotiations and conciliation committee proceedings

Employment law support: We can assist with the implementation of measures, including providing legal representation for employers
Employment law due diligence and risk analysis: Advice on purchase and sale negotiations, and drafting of employment law elements of transaction agreements

Co-determination and collective rights

Business concept implementation: advice on works constitution and staff representation law
Support with co-determination law: assistance with co-determination issues and works agreements relating to working hours, remuneration models, IT systems, IT security, occupational health and safety, remote working arrangements, and more
Works agreements: advice and support in concluding works agreements

Conciliation committees and decision-making procedures: Representation in conciliation committees and support in decision-making procedures.
Co-determination on the supervisory board: Advice and support in electing employee representatives to the supervisory board.

Employment relationships, boards, freelancer

Employment relationships

Advice on drafting employment contracts: legally compliant drafting of employment contracts, in particular provisions on variable remuneration models, flexible working hours, mobile working/home office, employee participation programmes, drafting contracts for executives, drafting company pension schemes
Support in the implementation of employment relationships: e.g. employee data protection, introduction and implementation of technical monitoring tools, company integration management
Termination of employment relationships: advice and support in termination and settlement agreements, partial retirement models, transfer measures, nationwide litigation

Boards

Drafting and negotiation of service contracts: managing director service contracts and executive board service contracts
Advice and support in the implementation and termination of service contracts

Freelancer

Advice and drafting of alternative employment relationships: service contracts, contracts for work, framework agreements for freelancers, consultants, interim managers, contracts for the supply of temporary workers

Digital working environment and data protection

Use of AI in the workplace: implementation in terms of individual and works constitution law, scoring, and employee data protection
Agile working models (SCRUM/platform work): Support with introducing and implementing SCRUM and other agile working methods
Remote working and home offices: legal advice on home office regulations, working time models, data protection, and mobile working

International employer law and mobile work

Organising cross-border employee assignments and recruitment
Developing legally compliant concepts for working abroad, particularly secondments, workations and business trips, as well as the 'employer of record' concept

Management of cross-border labour law projects together with our international partners, in particular from the European Employment Group (LAW Network)
Europe-wide networking involving our International Desks

Company retirement provisions

Deferred compensation: Advice on tax optimization and legally compliant structuring of deferred compensation arrangements
Structuring, Designing, and Phasing out pension systems: Development of tailor-made pension solutions to secure the benefits of your employees and executives

Pension and providence funds: Advice on pension funds, support funds, and company pension regulations
Pension schemes for shareholding directors: Legal advice on retirement and pension arrangements for shareholder-managing directors

Your contacts

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Rankings and awards

Handelsblatt / Best Lawyers 2025

According to Handelsblatt and Best Lawyers, ESCHE's employment law practice group is one of the leading law firms in Germany, both nationwide and in Hamburg.

Die WirtschaftsWoche 2025

WirtschaftsWoche recognizes ESCHE as one of the top law firms in employment law in 2025. Dr. Erwin Salamon is named as a leading lawyer in the field.

Chambers Germany Guide 2025

ESCHE is ranked by Chambers Germany for the first time in 2025 in the field of employment law and appears in the current rankings.

JUVE Handbuch 2024/2025

JUVE once again ranks our employment law team among the top corporate law advisors nationwide, with Dr. Patrizia Chwalisz recognized as one of the leading names in this field.

brand eins 2024

According to brand eins, ESCHE is once again ranked among Germany’s top business law firms, with particular recognition for its employment law practice.

Our areas of expertise

Tax Consultancy

Auditing Services

Integrated Consulting