Forms of Employment

From students and pensioners to stay-home mothers/fathers or even employees, many get so-called "mini-jobs" to earn something extra on the side. Here you can learn what a mini-job actually is and what you have to consider as someone with a mini-job.

Doing an internship helps you to gain work experience and can considerably improve your job opportunities. In many schools and universities, the students are expected to take part in a compulsory internship during their studies. Here you will learn about your rights as an intern, the benefits of doing an internship, and the crucial issues you need to consider before starting your internship.

Many people dream of working as self-employed and being their own boss so that they can work independently or realise a business idea. Starting your own business is called "Existenzgründung". As an independent business owner, you are the one who decides which jobs to accept or how and when to work. But working independently also requires a lot of effort: you are personally responsible for everything and have to take care of many issues. Furthermore, there are always financial risks involved in building a business: if you invest significant capital, but your business does not make much profit, you will lose your investment.

As someone who starts up a business or founds a company, you are considered to be a businessperson or "Gewerbetreibender". When you, for instance, open a shop, restaurant, factory or craft business, you need to register your business ("Gewerbe"). If you practice a liberal profession ("Freie Berufe"), e.g. you are a journalist, doctor, etc., you can find all the information you need in our chapter "Starting a business as self-employed ("Freiberufler")".

Many people dream of working as self-employed and being their own boss. Starting to work as self-employed is called "Existenzgründung”. As a self-employed person, you are the one who decides which jobs to accept or how and when to work. But self-employment also requires a lot of effort: you are personally responsible for everything and have to take care of many issues. Furthermore, you do not receive a regular fixed salary.

In this chapter, you will find essential information required for starting self-employment in a so-called Liberal Profession ("Freien Beruf"). If the job you practice is not categorised as a liberal profession and you are not a "freiberufler", visit our chapter "Starting up a Registered Business ("Gewerbe")" to find the essential information you need about self-employment for tradespeople.

You may have to earn money on the side while you study because the BAföG or other financial support you receive is not enough for a living. Or maybe you do not even receive any financial aid- then the only option left is to work and study at the same time. However, having a part-time job ("Nebenjob") can also help you start gaining work experience and establishing professional contacts, even if your student job is not in your future field of work. When it comes to student jobs, there are often many questions: Do I have to pay taxes? What type of insurance should I have? Does my part-time job affect my entitlement to BAföG? Here we answer the most crucial of these questions.

Subcontracted labour ("Leiharbeit") is also known as temporary employment or temporary work. Subcontracted workers sign a contract with a company which "lends" them as employees to various other companies. When you have an employment contract with a temporary employment agency, you will be temporarily sent to other companies which are in urgent need of staff. Although you will work for the designated company, you will not be considered a regular staff, as the temporary employment agency will be paying your wages. The temporary employment agency remains your employer, i.e. for instance, they will be the authority at which you need to apply for your holidays, and they cover your social insurance contributions.

Please note: Subcontracted work does not mean "short-term work". As a subcontracted worker, you are mainly employed by your temporary employment agency and only occasionally change the company in which you work. The contracts signed between the workers and the temporary employment agencies are usually open-ended.

Temporary employment is often available in the metal and electronic industries as well as the security, logistics, transport, administration and office sectors. In general, however, one can do temporary work in any industry. Even unskilled workers are sought-after and hired by temporary employment agencies.