Bundesarbeitsgericht clarifies partial retirement overload quotas

The German Federal Labour Court (Bundesarbeitsgericht) has issued a ruling clarifying how the 'overload quota' (Überlastquote) is calculated for partial retirement (Altersteilzeit) requests. In its decision on August 25, 2026, the court strengthened the position of employers regarding the rejection of such requests.

The ruling specifies that when determining whether a collectively bargained quota has been reached, companies must include all employees in the calculation. This includes staff members who are not subject to the specific collective agreement or are not union members.

In a case involving the food industry, a 2.5 percent quota was used to deny a request for partial retirement. The court confirmed that because the threshold was met when accounting for the entire workforce, the individual employee's legal claim to partial retirement was effectively blocked. This decision validates the use of such quotas as a legitimate tool for personnel and financial planning.