Mobile working promises employees a better work-life balance and sovereign organisation of their own working days. Mobile work also offers advantages for employers, as it can have a positive effect on the productivity, satisfaction and loyalty of employees if implemented well. The importance of flexible working hours and the free choice of work locations has therefore been steadily increasing in practice for years.
This entrepreneur's guide provides a brief and concise introduction to the relevant terms. It outlines the legal basis and obligations for employers and, based on our own experience, gives pointers for the implementation of mobile work.
The most important facts in brief
- There are different types of mobile work. Home office is a misleading term here.
- The different types of mobile work result in different requirements for employers, e.g. in workplace design and occupational health and safety.
- Mobile working can boost productivity, satisfaction and employee retention. But it requires new processes and rules to counter the dangers of poor communication and alienation.
- Mobile work is digital. The right tools are crucial for success.
- Mobile work is part of a cultural change that began long ago on the way to the work of the future. It is not possible everywhere, but companies are well advised to examine their options today.
- [UPDATE] The home office obligation in times of the Corona pandemic forces employers to act quickly now in order not to become liable to prosecution.
What is mobile work and what are the designations?
In the context of work outside the employer's premises, a number of fuzzy and partly synonymous terms exist. They are defined in different ways and are usually not based on a legal definition. In the following, we will clearly distinguish between the terms home office, telework and mobile work:
1. home office
The term "home office" is often used in the literal sense of the word to describe work in the employee's private premises. This can be a desk in the study, but also the kitchen table or the sofa at home. Colloquially, working with a notebook in a café is often referred to as a home office. There is no legal definition or basis for this term.
Attention:
The term home office is problematic because it is contradictorily used as a synonym for both location-independent, less strictly regulated mobile work and strictly regulated home-based telework. However, because this distinction creates legal differences, the term "home office" should be avoided in operational practice and the desired explicit term used instead.
2. teleworking
This is the only term clearly defined by law, regulated in §2 para. 7 of the Workplace Ordinance. It states:
"Telecommuting workstations are computer workstations permanently set up by the employer in the employees' private areas for which the employer has established a weekly work schedule agreed upon with the employees and the duration of the set-up."
Teleworking therefore always takes place on the employee's private premises. All legal requirements of occupational health and safety apply here. The employer is obliged to set up this workplace and must bear all the costs for it.
3. mobile work
The term mobile work generally describes any work outside the employer's premises. This can be the employee's private premises, but also a café or the train. Mobile work is the most comprehensive term with the widest scope. Although it is also not defined by law, it is considered to be more clearly distinguished from telework than the misleading term home office.
When do employers have which obligations?
In principle, the duty of care as the basic idea of occupational health and safety applies to all forms of work inside and outside the employer's premises. It is not possible to evade this guiding principle by choosing certain terms of work organisation. In any case, the following apply:
- the Working Hours Act (ArbZG), including its limits on maximum daily working hours ($ 3 ArbZG), break regulations ($ 4 ArbZG), and the rest periods to be guaranteed (§ 5 ArbZG) as well as
. - the Occupational Health and Safety Act (ArbSchG), including its obligations to provide instruction (§ 12 ArbSchG),
- the posting obligations (e.g. § 16 ArbZG, § 12 para. 5 AGG), e.g. for the Working Hours Act or the General Equal Treatment Act. You can readmore about the simplest possible fulfilment of notice obligations here.
In addition, however, there are significant differences for employers depending on whether the teleworkplace is explicitly regulated by law or not.
Attention:
If the workplace is a teleworkplace, the Workplace Ordinance (ArbStättV) applies, which leads to the employer's obligation to professionally and ergonomically set up the employee's teleworkplace at the expense of the company. The requirements of the ArbStättV, including its "Measures for the Design of Display Screen Workstations" regulated in Appendix 6, must be observed.
Another aspect is the risk assessment, which must be carried out for teleworkplaces according to § 3 ArbStättV in the same way as for workplaces in the company. Although this regulation does not apply to general mobile working, an assessment of the working conditions must also be carried out here - in this case in accordance with § 5 of the Occupational Health and Safety Act. However, this is less extensive.
Since the employer has no influence on many environmental parameters in the case of mobile work not tied to a specific location, the assessment is generally limited to technical conditions such as:
- the availability of adequate hardware with sufficient screen size,
- the provision of adequate software to perform the tasks assigned,
- the provision of an ergonomic mouse and keyboard and
- a sufficiently powerful Internet connection.
The following table provides a compact comparison of the relevant characteristics and obligations of each form of work.
How can mobile working succeed?
In order to achieve the desired positive effects of mobile work and at the same time control the risks, suitable tools must be provided on the one hand and rules created and a suitable corporate culture maintained on the other.
We would like to support the engagement with mobile work by sharing our own experiences. Our Sawayo team consists of more than 10 people who work largely distributed and mobile. So we ourselves face the permanent task of organizing our collaboration efficiently.
You can find out which software tools have proven themselves for mobile work at Sawayo here.
What's the deal with the "home office obligation" in Corona times?
On 25 November 2021, the amended Infection Protection Act (IfSG) came into force, which will remain valid until at least 19 March 2022. Within this framework, the home office obligation, which expired in June, has been reintroduced. As an employer, you must offer all employees who perform office or similar work the opportunity to work from home. However, many jobs do not allow for work to be carried out in the office. There may also be various operational reasons why you cannot work from home. In these cases you do not have to offer a home office. Employees must accept the offer in principle. However, if there are important reasons against it, such as a lack of workspace, missing or insufficient technical equipment or disturbances by third parties, they can informally reject the home office offer, preferably in writing.
For more information on the home office obligation and 3G in the workplace, see our comprehensive article on Corona measures in companies. Take a look.
In order to support employers in the most time-saving and uncomplicated way possible, we have decided to make our own agreement on mobile work available here for download free of charge. This sample should help to clearly define the framework conditions and thus to demonstrably fulfil the "home office obligation": Sample template Mobile Working
How can Sawayo help you?
Sawayo is designed to assist in meeting the obligations that exist in each case. This includes:
- Compliance with the Working Hours Act through digital time recording via smartphone app and browser,
- Instruction of employees and
- the posting of certain laws.
Sawayo works location-independently and is therefore particularly suitable for employees in mobile work. To learn more, take a look at our features in detail.
Disclaimer:
We would like to point out that our web offer only serves the non-binding purpose of information and does not represent legal advice in the true sense. The content of this offer cannot and should not replace individual and binding legal advice that addresses your specific situation. In this respect, all information offered is without guarantee of correctness and completeness.
The contents of our website - especially the legal articles - are researched with the utmost care. Nevertheless, the provider cannot assume any liability for the accuracy, completeness and timeliness of the information provided. In particular, the information is of a general nature and does not constitute legal advice in individual cases. For the solution of specific legal cases, please be sure to consult a lawyer.
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