A German court has ruled that the Federal Employment Agency does not have to advertise red light district jobs on its site. The agency argued it wanted to protect young users, though the ads called for receptionists.
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The state social court in Rhineland-Palatinate decided on Friday that Germany's Federal Employment Agency is not required to post jobs that come from the erotic or sex industry sector.
The agency runs a large online job portal that advertises job openings all over the country, but ran into legal problems after it removed job postings from a red light establishment in the city of Speyer.
The owner of the erotic business took her case to court after she said the agency deleted her account and advertisements for female bartenders and receptionists.
The court said in its decision that the agency was generally allowed to not post erotic-related open job positions on its platform based on the site's conditions of use.
The agency argued that the removals were carried out in order to protect youths and other users on its website.
"Even changes in society have not yet led to prostitution being regarded like any other profession," the decision read.
The case can still be challenged in Germany's Federal Social Court.
Prostitution has been legal in Germany since 2002, but social stigma still plagues sex workers.
Every once and a while a judge has to make a serious decision over some seriously odd occurrences. Those presiding over compensation claims for work-related accident insurance are no exception.
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Don't copy his example
One claimant tried to sneak in a quick alcohol-free beer while at the copy machine. But it starting foaming beyond control, and in the hectic rush to drink it off, he chipped a number of teeth. Is that considered a workplace accident? Not according to Dresden's social court - food and beverage consumption is not insured, and copy-making isn't believed to leave employees especially thirsty.
Image: Techniker Krankenkasse
Slippery situation
One woman fell down the stairs on her way from her home office to grab some water - and her case made it all the way up to Germany's national social court. It ruled that, while what happens at work on the trip to eat or drink is insured, the way is subject to the procedures of the company. Because home workers decide their own procedure, it was on her.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/B. Pedersen
Ice cream gone bad
Enjoying ice cream on his way home from a work appointment, one man swallowed a chuck as he entered a subway car. It got lodged in his esophagus, setting off a lightning jolt of pain - that was later determined to have been a heart attack. Berlin's social court ruled though that it didn't count as a work-related accident. Ice cream is consumed for pleasure, not work.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/C. Seidel
And when sex goes wrong
Speaking of pleasure. One civil servant's sex got a bit out of hand on a business trip. A lamp was ripped out of the wall and its shards injured her. She demanded compensation, including for the post-traumatic stress syndrome she developed in the event's aftermath. But the court ruled against her claim, saying sex was not expected by the employer.
Image: Colourbox
Look before you leap
At breaktime during an occupational training course, a 27-year-old's collegues tried to soak him with an animal squirt gun. Fleeing to safety, he jumped out of the window. In hindsight, this may have been a poor decision: he crashed through a plexiglass awning. The social court of the German state of Hesse ruled against his claim, saying the jump was not necessitated by workplace conditions.
Image: picture alliance/dpa
Falling asleep on the job
A bar worker fell asleep at the counter - and then fell off her chair, injuring herself. Was it a workplace accident? The social court ruled no, because overwork wasn't the reason she fell asleep.
Image: Imago/blickwinkel
Choose your battles wisely
One claimant was on a business trip in Ibiza and met customers at a beachside club, which he left drunk past midnight. He later wanted to go back in, but instead got into a fight with the bouncer, who struck the man a blow. He ended up with serious head injuries. But, while business travelers are protected by insurance, this doesn't apply when they're drunk at night, the social court ruled.
Image: picture alliance/PIXSELL/F. Brala
And look both ways before you rescue a cow
A cow got caught in its chain and was at risk of suffocating. The brother of the cow's owner came to the rescue, but in the process was stepped on by a different cow, who broke his leg. The court ruled that - although the brother wasn't on the job while injured - neither are people who help out after a disaster, granting his claim.
