Significance of the planned amendment to the Evidence Act

In a current initiative to cut red tape, the traffic-light coalition intends to amend the German Evidence Act (NachwG) in order to support modern ways of working and reduce the administrative burden on employers and employees. Lawyer Stephanie Simon-Sommer advises companies on, among other things, employment-law matters and knows the challenges from her in-house experience in the legal departments of various companies and also as a manager. In the interview she gives an overview of the planned changes to the Evidence Act for the options available when drafting employment contracts.

The traffic-light coalition is planning a change to the Evidence Act that concerns documentation in connection with employment contracts. What exactly is it about?

The planned change aims to replace the written form previously required under the Evidence Act for documenting the essential contractual terms of an employment relationship with text form (Textform). This means that employers will in future no longer be obliged to print these terms out on paper, sign them and hand them over physically. An electronic form, such as a simple electronic signature or even an e-mail, would in future — as matters currently stand — suffice.

What concrete benefits will this change bring for employers and employees?

Employers could save considerable time and resources, because the physical exchange of documents would fall away. This simplifies processes, especially in times of remote work and an acute shortage of skilled staff. Many companies still have employment contracts signed exclusively by hand in order to avoid separate documentation — and thus a further step in the hiring process — because of the requirements of the Evidence Act. As a result they lose valuable time and, in the worst case, even the preferred candidate.

Through the planned changes to the Act, employees would receive their employment contracts, and at the same time the documentation required under the Evidence Act, more quickly and more simply and could store them electronically straight away. Employers could therefore send their contract offers to candidates immediately after an acceptance and would afterwards no longer have to have a separate second version of the employment contract signed by hand, or provide separate handwritten documentation, in order to meet the requirements of the Evidence Act. In particular, the deadlines contained in the Evidence Act would be much easier to meet, and the risk of fines therefore falls inherently.

This change could consequently promote a more comprehensive digitalisation of work processes. Simplifying the documentation can lead to more efficient workflows and then allows even more extensive use of advanced technologies such as document generators for fully automatic contract creation and documentation.

Are there concerns about the planned change to the Evidence Act?

The precise design remains to be seen. At present it is envisaged that companies will provide proof of transmission and receipt. Employers will therefore have to ensure that the documents can be stored on a durable medium.

Any concerns about the evidential value of electronic documents could then be dispelled by establishing automated processes, for example with the help of document generators. In this way, reliable documentation could be ensured that, even in the event of a dispute, is equivalent to physically signed documents.

The reformed Evidence Act makes fully automatic contract creation easier — benefit from the efficiency of the corresponding software solutions

With our document generator you simplify processes and relieve your legal department. Legally sound documents can be created by people without legal prior knowledge. Besides a considerable saving of effort, the document generator enables the highest traceability thanks to Smart Form and freely definable approval processes. Because a new, legally sound document is generated each time, rather than merely assembling individual text modules, the tool offers variability and flexibility in document creation.

We would be glad to present the benefits and options to you in a no-obligation demo appointment.

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