Payroll statements may also be provided digitally – new ruling by the Federal Labor Court

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The ruling of the Federal Labor Court (BAG) of January 28, 2025 (case no. 9 AZR 48/24) addresses the admissibility of digital payroll statements. The court ruled that employers may also provide payroll statements exclusively in electronic form, as long as they meet the legal requirements. These include:

• Permanent availability: The statements must be securely stored and accessible at all times.

• Accessibility: Employees without online access must have the opportunity to view and print the statements on-site.

• Legal basis: Providing them in digital form meets the requirements of Section 108 of the German Trade Code (GewO).

The BAG clarified that there is no right to paper statements if the digital provision complies with the legal requirements. The decision underscores the advancing digitalization of everyday work.

I view this ruling critically:

1. Access restrictions: Not all employees have the technical means or access to retrieve digital pay slips. This could particularly disadvantage older or less tech-savvy employees. Also, it is especially problematic when employees are cut off from the access system because they were unexpectedly laid off by the employer, for example, in preparation for a termination. I see these cases again and again: Employees are laid off from work overnight and cut off from all of the company’s IT systems. They often have no access to important documents, such as pay slips, because they were not prepared for the suspension of their access to the employer’s IT systems. Obtaining these documents is then a laborious process.

2. Data protection concerns: Storing and making sensitive salary data available in digital mailboxes raises questions about data security and protection against unauthorized access.

3. Obligation to retrieve the pay slips principle: The ruling emphasizes that employees must actively retrieve the pay slips. This places an additional burden on employees who may not have regular or permanent access to digital platforms, see above.

4. Lack of paper option: While the ruling promotes digitalization, it is concerning that employees are not given a choice between digital and paper-based provision, which represents a restriction of employee rights.