The expected wave of court cases by temporary employees against staffing agencies, which have signed collective bargaining agreements with the Christian Unions (CGZP), has started.

Under normal circumstances, temporary employees receive equal pay for equal work and are paid the same as their permanent counterparts unless there is a specific collective bargaining agreement in place, which says otherwise.

Many medium-sized temporary employment agencies have in the past signed collective bargaining agreements with CGZP, which have been rendered null and void by Germany's highest labour court (BAG) on 14 December 2010. The court ruled that CGZP is not sufficiently representative of its members and is therefore legally not a union.

As a result of the court ruling, temporary employees and the Social Security and Pension Offices can now sue for retroactive payment of the difference between equal pay for equal work and the wages negotiated with CGZP and the outcome will be decided on a case-by-case basis.

The local labour court in the town of Krefeld has yesterday awarded 13,200 Euro as retroactive payment going back to 2007 to a temporary employee who worked for the same staffing agency for 15 years.

Frau Gallner, Spokesperson for the BAG, told Staffing Industry Analysts, "any retroactive claims against agencies would have to go to labour courts, which will refer to BAG's decision on the so-called 'status' of the CGZP union in the past."

"It is theoretically possible but most unlikely that labour courts will not be guided by BAG's verdict that CGZP's status was the same in the past as it was on 14 December 2010."

However, the newly created Association of Staffing Agencies (BAP), which is the legal successor to the two previous associations (BZA and AMP), commented to broadcaster WDR, "the Krefeld court ruling is unique so far. In a comparable case in Freiburg the court ruled in favour of the staffing agency."

It is as yet unclear whether the staffing agency will appeal against the ruling of the Krefeld labour court.