A German court case could determine whether hundreds of thousands of disabled people working in sheltered workshops should receive the country’s legal minimum wage.
The action was brought on behalf of 57-year-old Jürgen Linnemann, who has worked in facilities known as Werkstätten für behinderte Menschen for about four decades. He is asking Münster Labour Court to recognise him as an employee rather than a participant in a rehabilitation programme.
Workers Are Not Legally Treated as Employees
Approximately 300,000 disabled people work in Germany’s sheltered workshops, producing goods and completing services for outside companies. However, they are generally classified as having an employee-like legal status rather than being conventional employees.
That classification excludes them from the statutory minimum wage and some employment protections. The Society for Civil Rights, which is supporting Linnemann’s case, says workshop workers receive an average of about €233 per month.
The organisation argues that Linnemann performs genuine work under the direction of the workshop and should therefore qualify as an employee. It says excluding workshop workers collectively from minimum-wage protection is incompatible with German constitutional and European law.
A hearing at Münster Labour Court is scheduled for September, although a final decision may not arrive until 2027.
Few Workers Move Into the Wider Labour Market
Sheltered workshops are officially expected to prepare participants for employment in the open labour market. In practice, fewer than 1% make that transition.
Critics say disabled people often move through a segregated path from special schools into workshops, with few realistic opportunities to enter conventional employment. Workshops may also be reluctant to lose their most productive workers because income from commercial contracts helps fund their operations.
Germany requires larger employers to reserve at least 5% of jobs for severely disabled people. Companies that fail to meet the target must pay a levy, but part of that obligation can be reduced by purchasing goods or services from sheltered workshops.
The United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities criticised Germany in 2023 for the high number of people in sheltered workshops and the low transition rate into inclusive employment.
Supporters Say Workshops Still Serve a Purpose
Some workshop participants say the facilities provide a supportive environment that would be difficult to find in conventional workplaces. Barriers such as inaccessible buildings, unsuitable transport and a lack of workplace assistance can make outside employment impractical.
Workshop operators also argue that minimum-wage employment comes with contractual performance requirements that some participants may be unable to meet consistently.
Linnemann’s case does not seek the immediate closure of sheltered workshops. Instead, it asks whether disabled people completing economically valuable work can be denied employee status and minimum pay solely because they work within the workshop system.
Featured image credits: Magnific.com
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