Swiss Bank Workers Fight for Stronger Job Security as German Labour Courts Tighten Pay and Insolvency Protections
16.06.2026 - 00:41:57 | boerse-global.de
The Swiss Bank Employees' Association (SBPV) is sounding the alarm over rising unemployment in the banking sector and demanding that the industry adopt binding social plans. The union is specifically targeting UBS, calling on the lender to extend its current social plan beyond the end of 2026. Financial institutions, the SBPV argues, carry a special responsibility to cushion the social impact of job cuts.
While UBS faces pressure in Switzerland, Germany's highest labour court has clarified a key point on late wages. Employees whose pay arrives late are not entitled to the standard €40 default-costs flat rate, the Bundesarbeitsgericht ruled (Case No. 8 AZR 26/18). Under Section 12a of the Labour Court Act, such cost-reimbursement claims are largely excluded in employment law. The general civil-law default flat rate does not apply, even though wage protection itself remains intact.
A recent decision by the European Court of Justice ensures that workers' rights survive even in special insolvency scenarios, such as pre-pack arrangements. In the Estro/Smallsteps case, the court ruled that employees involved in pre-arranged insolvency proceedings retain the same protections they would have in a standard business transfer. This blocks companies from using insolvency to sidestep obligations to staff. The Dutch trade union FNV had brought the case on behalf of dismissed workers.
Beyond the courtroom, the business of restructuring and M&A continues. The Almato AG, a subsidiary of DATAGROUP SE, acquired Heidelberg-based Aristech GmbH in May. The goal is to build an integrated European AI stack; the Aristech brand will survive, and its technologies for voice AI and mail automation will be folded into Almato's offering. Meanwhile, the Finanzgericht Münster (Case No. 8 K 1592/24 GrE) waded into a tax question around inheritance settlements. The court ruled that a full exemption from property-transfer tax is not available when OHG shares have already passed directly to the heir by special inheritance law. An appeal to the Federal Fiscal Court has been allowed.
Online retailers, however, face a hard deadline. From June 19, 2026, Section 356a of the German Civil Code will require them to provide a clearly visible cancellation button. Failure to display it does not just invite warning letters — it significantly extends the customer's right to cancel.
