Below are 5 Steps to #SueYourBoss! for payment, plus a 6th step to withdraw your lawsuit.
1. Get your PAPERs
Get the basic documents needed:
- proof of payments that you recieved (on your bank account)
- Only for the months where you are missing pay
- If you do get paid in cash then ask for a written proof and get help.
- your work CONTRACT
- If you do not have a written contact, then get help.
- your PAYSLIPS
Take photos and make TWO copies of all documents.
2. Get your EVIDENCE
- Assertion of claims
- You need to proof that you did formally make your claims before you filed the lawsuit
- Proof of WORKTIME
- Timesheets / shiftplan (schedule): any worktime that your boss scheduled you above your contractual work hours needs to be paid.
- Screenshots / photos of the shiftplan (schedule)
- E-Mails / Messages stating your shifts
- anything else proofing that you did actually work more then the workhours stated in your contract
Take photos and make TWO copies of all evidence. In the end you have 3 piles of papers:
- Originals for the court
- Copy for yourself
- Copy for your boss
3. Fill out the lawsuit TEMPLATE
There are simple and complex lawsuits. The most common simple lawsuits are
- lawsuits for papers
- lawsuits for payment
- lawsuits for termination protection
Here are 3 steps to file a lawsuit for payments:
-
- Fill out the german template to file a lawsuit (see below)
- If you do not understand german then use the english translation to fill out the german original
- You can fill out the template digital (on your computer / mobile) or print it and use a pen
- Sign the filled out and printed german template with a pen
- No digital signature!
- Take a photo and make a copy of the filled out german template
- Keep the copy and photo as evidence
- Fill out the german template to file a lawsuit (see below)
Working at Gorillas or Lieferando? Need an address? Here you go!
Templates to file lawsuits for payment
Print the non-editable documents below and fill it out with a pen:
- German original: “Zahlungsklage”
- Source: berlin.de
- English translation: “Lawsuit for payments”
- Do NOT fill out the english version.
- Use the english translation only to understand the german version.
This is how the lawsuit looks like. Yes, the lawsuit is only two pages! No big deal, right?
4. Get legal costs covered (legal insurance)
In short: The costs for lawsuits (in the first instance) can be up to 1.000 Euro.
1.000 Euro!?! How am I supposed to pay this? No problem! Please continue reading …
► Informations on legal costs.
There are three main ways to get your legal costs covered:
- unions,
- private insurances,
- “Legal aid” by the state.
► More Informations to get your legal costs covered by legal insurances.
5. #SueYourBoss!
You filled out the german lawsuit template? Great now lets file the lawsuit at court!
- Get all nessesary documents together
- your lawsuit,
- your legal aid application and
- your papers (from the steps before)
- your contract
- your payslips
- alternatively your bank account printouts with payments
- your evidence
- your assertion of claims
- proof of worktime (imesheets, schedules)
- Make sure you have copies of all documents that belong to your lawsuit
- You need to have 3 piles of papers:
- Originals for the court
- Copy for yourself
- Copy for your boss
- You need to have 3 piles of papers:
- Send the signed lawsuit to court (Check informations on sending documents with proof of delivery)
- by mail
- by FAX
- Alternatively: bring it yourself to court
- Get the first letter from court with
- the date of your first court hearing
- if you applied for legal aid: informations if more informations are needed
- If you applied for legal aid: Get a second letter from court with
- information if you will get legal aid or not
When you file your lawsuit you can ask for translation! Translations costs money but will be covered by legal insurance or legal aid. Courts can assign interpreters to you. If you know someone who can translate, then you can bring this person with you.
Click here for more details on filing lawsuits (for example: the steps and length of lawsuits).
6. Withdraw the lawsuit (only if needed)
You can cancel (withdraw) a lawsuit any moment you like. This is normal and absolutely no problem. In many cases bosses will give you what you want after you filed your lawsuits but before a court will make a ruling on it.