Under labor law, working students are to be treated as regular employees of a company—they are employed on a fixed-term and/or part-time basis. Essentially, this means that all laws, collective bargaining agreements, and company agreements apply to them (though entitlements under collective bargaining agreements naturally apply only if they are union members themselves). Even “interns” who are completing a voluntary internship at the company are, in terms of labor law, actually working students.
If you have any further questions, please contact your works council or one of our local offices.
Interns and Graduating Students
True student interns are those students who complete a mandatory internship at a company during their studies and are present for training purposes. They typically have requirements from their university regarding the minimum number of days or hours they must be present at the company for the internship to be recognized.
This group also includes students working on their theses if they are at the company exclusively to work on their thesis. If they are also employed by the company beyond this, they are to be treated as working students (this must be reviewed on a case-by-case basis in case of doubt).
Employment Status
Due to the educational purpose of their placement, interns are not treated as regular employees—but they are also not apprentices within the meaning of the Vocational Training Act. The prevailing view among legal experts is that these “genuine interns” are not entitled to employee rights because they are essentially working at the university. Accordingly, interns are not entitled to compensation, vacation time, etc.
Dual Students
Dual students complete part of their education at a higher education institution (formerly a vocational academy, university of applied sciences, or university) and the other part at a company with which they have signed a contract in advance. There are various forms of dual study programs across Germany.
Regardless of the specific program, the following applies to all: Dual-track students are employees within the meaning of the Works Constitution Act (BetrVG), and the works council, as well as the youth and trainee representatives, are responsible for representing their interests. Laws and company agreements apply to them unless they are expressly excluded from the scope of application. A different rule applies to the application of collective bargaining agreements.
Employment Status
Dual students who are first pursuing an IHK vocational degree are treated under labor law as regular apprentices until they earn this initial degree. All statutory, collective bargaining, and company regulations for apprentices apply to them. Only after earning the IHK degree are they treated under labor law like the students described below who are enrolled in practice-integrated dual degree programs.
Graduates, Trainees, and Interns
It has now become common practice to first offer college graduates and those entering the workforce a trainee or internship position. These employment relationships are characterized by the fact that, first, they are temporary, and second, they often include training components such as project management, public speaking seminars, or company-specific training.
Employment Status
Their status within the company depends on how much of their working time is devoted to training: If this proportion is very high (often the case for volunteers), they should be treated like “real” interns. As a rule, however, trainees and interns are already fully integrated into projects and day-to-day operations for the majority of their working hours and only attend individual seminars on the side. In such cases, they should be treated like all other employees.
Doctoral Candidates
Doctoral candidates have successfully completed a university degree and have been admitted to a doctoral program at a German university. They are thus pursuing further academic qualifications with the goal of earning the “Dr.” degree.
Employment Status
There are two types of doctoral candidates in a company:
University employees: Doctoral candidates often have an employment contract with the university where they are pursuing their doctorate but collaborate with the company’s researchers and developers on joint projects. Their employer is the respective federal state, and they are subject to the ver.di collective bargaining agreements (TV-L); the staff council of the respective university is responsible for representing their interests within the company.
Company Employees: It is also possible to pursue a doctorate at a university while simultaneously being employed by a company. At the university, they are usually considered “external doctoral students”; at the company, they are regular employees.
