Since the start of the COVID-19 crisis, working from home has become increasingly popular as an option to contain the spread of the coronavirus. According to this, the share of companies using home offices has increased to 61%. Especially in times of crisis, it is important to work together to develop ways that create a balance between employer obligations and employee interests. Where working from home can offer employers and employees alike more flexibility and freedom, there are also new challenges for both sides.
In addition, it is often not known that working from home is not the same as working from home. In reality, there are different models, each with its own conditions, which entail different risks. What characterizes these models and what do you have to consider when implementing your own company policy on “working from home”?
What characterizes the various forms of “home office”?
In colloquial language, the term “home office” usually refers to Telework, where work is generally done in the private sector, i.e. from home. There is also the alternating telework, The unofficial light version of the home office, so to speak. This involves a mix of home office and presence in the office, and the office spaces are usually used alternately by several employees.
Finally, there is the option of mobile work, which is often called “Remote work” is referred to as. Mobile work describes the employee working remotely, partly at home, on the train, in cafes or “co-working spaces.” You could therefore say that the workplace moves with the employee.
What are the conditions?
expenses
When teleworking, the home office workplace must meet the same legal requirements as the workplace (ArbstättV). This means that rest and maximum working hours must be observed, the home office must be equipped by the employer, it is subject to a risk assessment and, where applicable, there is a claim for reimbursement of electricity, rent or ancillary costs. It is recommended that you seek advice from a tax advisor and check whether these costs are tax-deductible for the employee.
Home workplaces are generally equipped by the employer. The possible equipment includes technical devices such as laptops, mobile phones or printers, but also furniture, which can include a comfortable office chair or desk. These costs are usually covered by a lump sum in the employment contract or the amendment agreement (see here for a Submission of an amendment agreement) regulated.
An advantage for the employee: depending on the model, the costs for the study can be deducted from tax. The deductible amount for alternating teleworking is limited to just €1,250.00 per year. Anyone who works completely from home can deduct the costs of the study from tax without limits. In any case, a prerequisite for tax deductibility is that the study is furnished like an office and is used exclusively for professional purposes. A work corner in the living room is therefore not removable!
In contrast, mobile working can be the more cost-effective alternative, as only mobile devices need to be made available.
occupational safety
Both teleworking and mobile working are subject to statutory occupational safety. However, the employee is largely out of the employer's control. For example, constant availability due to the mobile workplace poses the risk of exceeding the legally prescribed maximum working hours and, in particular, failing to comply with rest periods, for example.
It is therefore recommended to set up systems that guarantee the employee's occupational safety, such as the introduction of core working hours, during which the employee should generally be available.
Data protection
Relying solely on trust is not enough when it comes to data protection, because care must be taken when working remotely as well as when working remotely. However, the risk of data breaches may be lower when working remotely because people work in a fixed environment far away from third parties. When working remotely, there is a higher risk that third parties will have access to the screen or that conversations will be overheard. In principle, it should therefore be expressly regulated beforehand which precautions are to be taken in order to avoid exactly this. If necessary, the employer can provide a screen film or a headset for this purpose. In addition, employees can be trained on data security insofar as, for example, customer names may not be mentioned during telephone calls or names and other sensitive data can be anonymized. In addition, further regulations on data security, user behavior, access rights, etc. must be clarified. For example, private data should ideally be strictly separated from operational data and private use of the work equipment or electronic devices provided should be restricted. After all, employees are required to protect company and trade secrets even at home or when working remotely. It is therefore advisable to point this out separately.
What else needs to be considered and regulated in the Home Office Directive?
Can the employer come to visit?
The employer may not visit his employees in their own homes unannounced, as employees and their roommates are entitled to house rights (protection of their own home in accordance with Art. 13 GG). However, since occupational safety also applies at home, provided that teleworking has been agreed, the employer must use a risk assessment to ensure that his employees do not endanger their health even at a computer workplace at home and even acts in violation of regulations if he does not comply with this legal requirement. In addition, as described above, compliance with data protection and related monitoring also applies when working from home.
It is therefore strongly recommended that this complex circumstance be regulated in the supplementary agreement or internal home office guideline. The employee's consent must be obtained so that the home workplace can be entered after consultation for the purpose of risk assessment or monitoring compliance with data protection regulations by the employer or his person responsible (e.g. company doctor, SiFa, data protection officer).
Roommates must be informed accordingly by the employee and must in principle also agree.
Does the landlord have to be informed that the apartment has been converted into a workplace?
Nowadays, digitization makes working from home easy for many professions. However, apartments are generally meant for living. This means that the employee may not readily use the living spaces for commercial purposes. The consent of the landlord is therefore required if the domestic activity has an external effect as a commercial use of the apartment by customers or deliveries of goods, if structural changes are to be carried out for the activity at home or if neighbors could be harassed due to increased noise, smell or high frequency of visitors. Examples include guitar lessons in a rented apartment, childminder for several toddlers or agency work with a large number of visitors.
On the other hand, the consent of the landlord is generally not required for professional office work in the home office, e.g. home office for employees, artistic, accounting or writing activities by writers, teachers, translators, reviewers, etc., as long as they do not impair neighbors or have an external effect.
5 tips for dealing with home office and mobile work
- Clearly define whether the activity should be carried out completely or partially remotely (i.e. in a real home office) or on the go.
- Set a lump sum to cover the costs of working from home in the employment contract or change agreement.
- Set core times when the employee should be available at all times.
- Help set up a screen lock or provide a headset or screen protector.
- Once again, point out that rest periods and maximum working hours should be observed in order to support employees through health-promoting measures and to ensure a balanced, albeit digital, working environment and a healthy and motivating corporate culture.
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