Diplomatische Vertretungen und Arbeitsrecht Diplomatische Vertretungen und Arbeitsrecht

Foreign missions not only function as official representations of the sending state but are also parties to private labour agreements in the receiving state. By hiring employees of the local workforce and engaging with local contractors, problems evolve concerning the application of national labour law to those agreements. Rights of local employees like minimum labour standards as well as the jurisdiction of local courts need to be reconciled with the status of diplomatic immunity and the right of foreign missions to define their inner structure on their own.This article analyzes the obligation of foreign missions to comply with national law within the framework of their diplomatic immunity. For that purpose, it provides an overview of the legal provisions in international contract law as well as international customary law regarding diplomatic immunity, labour law and domestic jurisdiction. The article describes the implementation of those international rules into German national law.By distinguishing between »acta iure imperii« (falling under the rule of immunity) and »acta iure gestionis« (falling under the jurisdiction of German courts), the article explains the standard set by German labour courts for the application of national labour law and their jurisdiction. Within this jurisprudence, there is a tendency to generally qualify contractual labour agreements as »acta iure imperii«. On the other side, the article argues, the increasing outsourcing of official activities to private economic agencies could signal a change of legal evaluation towards »acta iure gestionis«. Limits for this tendency are seen in the necessity for foreign missions to maintain their work ability and in the exercise of foreign governmental power such as consular activities (e.g. visa matters). Citing specific examples of German labour court decisions, the article provides a practical guide for the application of German national labour law to foreign missions and their employees in Germany.