BAG: Equal treatment applies to church employers

Germany’s Federal Labor Court ruled that church-run employers must follow the same equal treatment rules as other employers. A children’s nurse in a Catholic care facility successfully claimed equal pay with higher-paid colleagues doing identical work, despite different job titles.

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Ruling: Equal pay for identical work

On April 23, 2026 (case no. 6 AZR 216/25), Germany’s Federal Labor Court decided that church-run employers must apply the same equal treatment rules as other employers. This means if a church-run care facility pays some employees more for doing the same work, others can demand equal pay—even if their job titles differ.

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Why the court decided this way

The case centered on a basic labor law principle: employers must treat employees equally if they do the same work. The court had to clarify whether church-run employers could ignore this rule. The employer argued that different pay scales were justified by different job titles, but the court found no real difference in the work performed.

What happened in this case

A children’s nurse worked in a Catholic care facility for severely disabled children. The facility paid her less than colleagues with a different job title (heilerziehungspfleger), even though they performed nearly identical tasks. The employer claimed the facility was a „care” institution, not a „disability support” institution, which would have justified different pay scales. The court rejected this argument, finding the work was the same regardless of the facility’s classification.