Aachen Administrative Court, 27.04.2015, Ref.: 1 K 908/14
Many civil servants would like to take on a second job in addition to their work as a civil servant in order to earn a second salary. In North Rhine-Westphalia, the main standard for secondary employment is Section 49 (1) LBG. According to Section 49 (1) LBG, the exercise of any individual secondary employment requires prior authorisation (see Section 49 (1) LBG).
The application for a secondary employment licence must then be submitted in accordance with § 40 BeamtStG before taking up the secondary employment. Subsequent authorisation is not possible. If a secondary employment requiring authorisation is carried out without approval, this is considered an official offence or a breach of service or employment contract obligations. This may result in disciplinary measures or consequences under labour law.
When applying for authorisation for secondary employment, information on the type, scope and remuneration of the secondary employment must be provided.
The authorisation for secondary employment is then limited to a maximum of five years; it can be subject to conditions and requirements (see Section 49 (3) sentence 1 LBG). If the secondary employment is to be exercised for longer than authorised, a new application must be submitted in good time before the existing authorisation expires.
Furthermore, a new application for a secondary employment permit must be submitted when changing jobs, as the permit issued automatically expires when changing jobs (see Section 49 (3) sentence 2 LBG).
Authorisation for secondary employment must be refused if there is reason to fear that official interests will be impaired (see Section 49 (2) LBG). A prognosis is required as to whether the intended secondary employment is likely to jeopardise official interests. If this is not the case, the employer must grant authorisation. During the period of authorisation, this can and must be repeatedly reviewed by the employer.
In the case discussed here, the Administrative Court of Aachen had to decide whether the secondary employment of a prison officer, in which she operated an internet portal for erotic chats, could be authorised.
1. Background to the secondary employment
In 2011, the plaintiff, a prison officer at Aachen Prison (JVA), was authorised to work as a part-time moderator and administrator on internet platforms. In October 2011, she reported a change in her secondary employment: she would now operate it independently and manage her own portals together with her husband and a friend. The responsible head of Aachen Prison approved this self-employed activity until 30 September 2016 on the condition that the additional income of over 1,200 euros per year was disclosed and that the time required did not exceed eight hours per week.
2. Income and activity of the applicant
In January 2014, the plaintiff reported additional income of EUR 94,212.27 for 2013, whereupon the head of the prison requested more detailed information on the activities, scope of work and internet addresses of the platforms operated. The plaintiff explained that it operated a social media portal that was comparable to platforms such as Facebook or StudiVZ. Her workload amounted to a maximum of eight hours per week, whereby she mainly carried out monitoring tasks and was supported by freelancers. The reported amount did not correspond to her income, as taxes and other duties had to be deducted from it.
3. Revocation of the secondary employment licence
Following the approval of the staff council, the head of the prison revoked the authorisation for the secondary employment in April 2014, citing the fact that the platform offered erotic chats, which was detrimental to official interests. The operation of such a platform by a prison officer could damage the reputation of the public administration and undermine trust in the civil service. The activity could also become known to the prisoners in the prison and undermine the applicant's authority. Furthermore, the high amount of additional income was used as an indication that the time spent on the secondary employment exceeded the permitted limit.
4. Legal basis and decision of the court
The Administrative Court of Aachen ruled that the revocation of the secondary employment authorisation was lawful. The basis for this was Section 49 (4) LBG NRW, according to which a licence must be revoked if it subsequently becomes apparent that it is detrimental to official interests. In this case, the court considered the operation of an erotic platform to be potentially damaging to the reputation of the public administration, particularly with regard to the applicant's work as a prison officer. The considerable earnings from the secondary employment, which accounted for over 40 per cent of her annual basic income, was also a permissible indication for the assumption of a detriment to official interests.
5. Conclusion of the Ruling
The court clarified that although social morals have changed and eroticism is less taboo today, this does not affect the legal assessment in this case. Especially in the prison system, the behaviour of officers is of central importance for their authority and reputation. The applicant was unable to provide sufficient evidence that her secondary employment was not detrimental to the interests of the service, particularly as her income was far in excess of the authorised secondary income. The revocation of the authorisation was therefore justified in order to protect the reputation of the public administration and trust in prison officers.
Source: Administrative Court of Aachen
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