Before the complaint:

• Is there a works council? Inform it in advance about your plans and consult with it about preventing or minimizing redundancies and their consequences.
• If dismissals are unavoidable, you must inform the works council in writing of the exact measures at least 2 weeks before you notify the employment agency.
• If there is no works council, these information obligations do not apply.

Notification to the employment agency:

• You must submit the notification of dismissal to the employment agency in writing. To do this, you can download, save and complete the form "Dismissal notification in accordance with Section 17 of the Dismissal Protection Act (KSchG)" and the form "Information for the employment agency".
• The notification to the employment agency must include
  • Name of the employer
  • Location and type of business
  • Reasons for the planned redundancies
  • Number and occupational group of the employees to be made redundant
  • Number and occupational group of the employees normally employed
  • Period during which the redundancies are to be made
  • Criteria for the selection of employees to be made redundant.
• You can then send the completed documents to your employment agency online via the employment agency's eService or by post. The employment agency at the company headquarters is responsible.
• You can also use the upload service to submit additional documents if you have already submitted the notification of dismissal.
• If you submit the notification of dismissal online, it is not necessary to send the documents to the employment agency by post afterwards. A handwritten signature is not a prerequisite for an effective notification of dismissal. Stating your name is sufficient. You are free to sign the notification of dismissal.
• According to the law, you are obliged to provide the works council with a copy or a duplicate of the notice of dismissal.
• If your notification of dismissal is complete and valid, you will receive a written confirmation of receipt from your employment agency. You will also receive an information sheet for your employees with the confirmation of receipt. It contains important information for the employees affected by the redundancies.
• Please pass the information sheet on to your employees immediately so that your employees do not suffer any financial disadvantages. The information sheet can also help your employees to find a new job as quickly as possible. You can also download and print out the information sheet separately via "Downloads".
• If your notification of dismissal is not complete or is not yet effective for other reasons, your employment agency will contact you. In this case, you can still submit documents online via the eService if necessary.