ECHR: Strike ban for civil servant teachers permitted

The ban on strikes for teachers with civil service status in Germany does not violate the European Convention on Human Rights. This is what the Court of Human Rights decided.

Civil servants are not allowed to strike in Germany – and that also applies to civil servants. Three teachers had sued for the right to strike. They had received fines for striking despite the ban. The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has now decided: The ban on strikes for civil servant teachers in Germany is permissible and does not violate the European Convention on Human Rights. The fines were proportionate.

Salary cut as a sanction

Kerstin Wienrank was also among the plaintiffs. She is a civil servant teacher and took part in a warning strike by the Education and Science Union in 2009. Back then it was all about collective bargaining and higher wages. Wienrank wanted to strike so that the collective bargaining results for employees could also be transferred to the area of ​​civil servant teachers. Furthermore, in their view it was not irresponsible to strike. Because she organized a replacement so that no classes were canceled for her students.

Nevertheless, their strike had consequences. Wienrank’s salary was reduced and she received a fine. She had sued against this. But the Federal Constitutional Court said in 2018: The ban on strikes for civil servant teachers is in order. Civil servants are not allowed to strike because they have a special duty of loyalty to the state. He must be able to rely on his officials at all times, even in times of crisis. In return, the state also has a duty of care. Civil servants are employed for life and are entitled to appropriate pay.

Advocacy guaranteed according to the court

The European Court of Human Rights confirmed the Karlsruhe view today. With 16 votes to one, the Grand Chamber of the ECHR said: With a general ban on strikes for civil servants, Germany is not in line with the trend of international developments. But the representation of the interests of civil servants in Germany is guaranteed. Civil servants could organize themselves into unions even without a strike and represent their interests “effectively”. They have a constitutional right to appropriate pay, which they can also sue for.

In addition, teachers in Germany have the opportunity to work as employees and not as civil servants, the court said. Then they would also have the right to strike. The fines for the unauthorized strike were also not very high for the complaining teachers. They were between 100 and 300 euros.