Who has to wash the work clothes - employee or employer?

In many industries, people wear work clothes.

When it comes to the question of who has to take care of cleaning, it goes into detail.

Overalls, chef's jacket or hospital gown: wherever work clothes are worn, the question always arises: Who looks after the equipment?

Do employees have to wash themselves, or is it up to the employer *?

Employers must wash prescribed work clothes

“That depends above all on the

type of work

clothing involved,” says Johannes Schipp, specialist lawyer for labor law from Gütersloh.

Basically, it is always about the question of whether the

clothing is mandatory or only expected

.

If it is work clothing that has to be worn and is even required for safety reasons, the

employer

must

both provide it and clean it after use

, says the specialist lawyer.

An example would be employees in the meat processing industry, whose clothing must comply with certain hygiene regulations.

There are also clothing that is not mandatory, but which the employer provides for its employees - for example, very specific

jackets and pants with company logo and name

in an electrical installation company.

In such a case, too, the employer is responsible for the clothes and has to take care of cleaning.

Also read:

Can my boss ask me to clean the toilet?

Dress code at work: Employees have to pay for clothes

It looks a little different if there is a certain

dress code in the company

, but the clothes could also be worn in leisure time.

To illustrate this, Schipp names a

bank employee

who is supposed to come to work in a suit and tie.

The employer does not have to finance this clothing, nor does it have to pay for the care.

But there

can always be exceptions

: "I once had the case of a casino that required employees to appear to work in blue tuxedos." In case the employer can be held responsible for the clothing.

About the person: Johannes Schipp is a specialist lawyer for labor law in Gütersloh and chairman of the executive committee for labor law in the German Bar Association.

(dpa / tmn / as)

*

Merkur.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA.

Also read:

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