06 Nov 2024

What is a contract for work?

Contracts for work make it possible to order a specific work, to remunerate the effort required to produce the work and to offer both parties security. That's a bit much for a single contract, but that's what a contract for work and labour means in a nutshell. 

The contract for work and labour at a glance

A contract for work is something that covers a taxi journey, a new software programme for the office or the construction of a house. This means that in each of these cases something is created and in each case there is an expense that is also remunerated in each case. To summarise at a glance, a contract for work serves to secure or order an entrepreneurial activity. There are two parties, a client and a contractor. The client wants a work to be created, which is then carried out by the contractor.

The exact nature of the work is set out in the contract. It also includes contingencies. This includes what is to be done if the work does not fulfil the order or is no longer required. On the other hand, the remuneration is also regulated. These also include the regulations for when acceptance of the work has taken place and how to react to any defects. In addition, there are sometimes special provisions for certain contracts for work.

What is important in a contract for work and labour is that the focus is on the completed work. It is not necessarily the labour performance or similar that is important, but that what was ordered as a work is created in accordance with the order.

In contrast, a service contract only provides a service. In this case, it is not important whether this service leads to a successful end or whether the end meets the client's expectations.

Remuneration in contracts for work and labour is based on the usual rates, which vary from region to region. In addition, they are a popular way of working with freelancers. They offer a great deal of flexibility and shift the entrepreneurial risk to the contractor.

Now that we have familiarised ourselves superficially with the more general aspects of a contract for work and services, it is time to look at it in a little more depth. The law on contracts for work and labour is regulated in BGB §§ 631 ff. According to this, it is a contract in which a contractor undertakes to produce a specific work for the client. In return, the client undertakes to pay a fee for this work.

With this definition, it is immediately clear that the aim is to produce a finished end state. This may be a complete painting, a house or a successful taxi journey home. It is not about spending time and providing a service. The fee is based on the result, not the duration of the work.

The contract for work is therefore directly concerned with the objective, the completed work. To ensure that this actually meets the client's requirements, the law provides for an acceptance procedure. This means that the client can now inspect the work and determine that it meets the specifications of the order. Only if the acceptance is successful is there an obligation to pay for the work in return. Again, it is clear to see that this is a payment for the completed work, not for the time spent.

The contractor is independent in the processing of the order. This means that the contractor can decide when to create the work, with which resources and in which ways. The contractor is not bound by instructions from the client.

Contracts for work and labour are used as part of a business activity and are important for both entrepreneurs and private individuals. Classic use cases are

  • Construction work, renovations, maintenance
  • Artistic and technical services
  • Travelling and transport
  • The programming, installation, implementation and modification of software and its systems
  • Intellectual work, such as ghostwriting
work contract

A contract for work and labour has certain characteristics that look like this in detail:

Objective of the contract for work

A contract for work and labour is not about the performance of work as such. In fact, from a general perspective, it is irrelevant to the contract how much effort is required to complete the work or the nature of the effort. The contractor decides on its working hours and the resources used.

Of course, the reality is that the contractor calculates its expenses and uses this as the basis for the amount of the fee. However, he does not have to specify or justify to the client why he expects the fee to be this amount. It is a question of negotiation between the two parties.

At the end of the day, it's about delivering a work result and doing so within a period of time that has been defined in advance. Only this determines the success or failure of the assignment, not whether more or fewer resources in any form were used for it.

The order in the contract for work

The contract for work is characterised by the fact that a work is ordered. This work must of course be described accordingly. In the end, it does not matter whether the result actually achieved corresponds to the customer's expectations. It merely has to correspond to the description of the desired work as contained in the contract.

In addition to the description of the work, it must also be specified how, when and where the delivery is to take place. This is therefore also part of the success and the acceptance of the work by the client begins with it.

The independence of the contractor

The contractor himself is responsible to the client for producing the work as ordered. This means that he also bears the risk of success. If this does not materialise, the effort with which he has attempted to bring about the result is not remunerated.

The contractor works entirely with his own resources when creating the work. It is up to him to decide which resources he uses, how much time he spends and how he plans this effort.

Acceptance of the work by the client

If the contractor is of the opinion that the work has now been completed and fulfils the client's requirements, he presents it for acceptance. Otherwise, a presentation for acceptance is always necessary when the contractually stipulated moment has arrived.

The client now has time to check the work and decide whether it fulfils the requirements of the order. If this is the case, he accepts the work and the contractor's contractual obligation is fulfilled.

The fee

As a rule, payment is due in full after successful acceptance of the work by the client. However, this can be deviated from. Payment in milestones is possible, especially for longer and more complicated works. This means that the work is created step by step and partial payment is made upon completion of an important step.

work contract

As already mentioned, the contract for work and labour is regulated in §§ 631 ff of the German Civil Code. Everything that is set out in these laws does not have to be included in each individual contract for work and labour.

However, what belongs in the contract for work and labour are all regulations that either deviate from, tighten up or define more precisely the legal template. This relates in particular to the procedures for acceptance and in the event of a conflict, for example if the work does not comply with the order.

What absolutely must be regulated in the contract for work is the end result that is to be achieved. Of course, in simple cases, such as a taxi journey, there is no need to draw up a long contract text with an extensive description of when the passenger will arrive home. However, for another work, such as a house, a private yacht or the new software programme for the office, a description that is as precise as possible is essential.

It is important to understand that conflicts are usually the result of orders that have not been described clearly enough. For this reason, model contracts, for example, should be used with caution. They provide a good framework for the actual work contract, but they must be supplemented by a precise description of the desired work.

Dhe contract for work must contain these points:

The work to be created must be described as precisely as possible. This also includes the material used, the performance of a system, the technical description and other features associated with it.

All preliminary and ancillary services are also included here. These are, for example, the provision by the client of technical information on the system with which the plant must work. Training materials may need to be provided in order to familiarise the client's employees with a new system.

The submission deadline must also be set in advance so that a corresponding acceptance can take place. If the work consists of several parts, then partial results must be determined and separate deadlines set for each. If necessary, it is also possible to remain flexible here and instead agree on dates by which information on the status of the work must be provided.

The form of delivery must also be agreed. There are various options depending on the work. For example, this can be an e-mail attachment for a softcopy, a paper printout for a book or delivery by parcel service.

Not only should the fee be specified in advance, it should also contain certain information. First and foremost, this includes VAT. However, there are also costs for additional services that should be listed here. In other words, these are services that go beyond the actual creation of the work. These include, for example, travelling expenses, costs for special requests, extra materials and more.

There are also agreements for the payment of the fee itself. These include, for example, instalment payments for larger orders. Other agreements relate to discounts for fast payments, the use of certain payment methods and compliance with certain payment deadlines.

Acceptance takes place at the end of the creation of the work. This usually takes place on the agreed acceptance date. From this moment on, the client has 30 days to inspect the work and pay the contractual fee.

The contract for work and services must also contain provisions for the event of cancellation. The client must pay the full amount of the fee less the expenses that the contractor was able to save.

Copyrights are often enough associated with the creation of a work. These must also be regulated. Does the client assume these rights in full or only in part, such as the right to publish or modify the work?

In addition, there are further rights and obligations, such as the payment of taxes and social security contributions or the obligation to maintain confidentiality on the part of the contractor. Non-disclosure regulations in particular often also form part of a contract for work and services.

Subcontractor mediation
industrial services

The special forms of a contract for work and labour

In addition to regular contracts for work and labour, a number of special forms of contracts for work and labour have emerged in practice that must be taken into account. These look like this:

The travel contract

The travel contract is aimed at travellers and serves to protect them against travel defects. To this end, it is provided with its own warranty rights. The tour operator is the contractor and is obliged to provide the traveller with all agreed travel services at the agreed price.

As soon as the contract has been concluded, the traveller must receive confirmation of the trip from the tour operator. The relevant regulations for this can be found in §§ 651 a ff of the BGB. In addition, there are regulations for compensation in the event of defects, which result from the contract for work and labour BGB §§ 651 c ff. It is important not to confuse these with a passenger transport contract.

What is a defect? This includes, for example, dirty bathrooms in the hotel on site, construction noise, flight delays, a dirty beach or vermin. It also includes cases in which the agreed services were either not provided at all, not provided in full or not provided in the agreed form. In each of these cases, a rectification of the defects or a reduction in the price of the holiday can be claimed. Alternatively, compensation can also be claimed.

Defects should be documented with videos or photos and reported on site. If the defects are not rectified, further steps can be taken after the return. A period of up to 2 years applies for this. There are defect tables with percentage values for the reduction of the holiday price. For example, a missing balcony is worth 5 to 10%. The value of a deviating location is just as high. A dirty or even missing pool is worth up to 20%. In case of doubt, a reduction in the price of the holiday can be enforced in court.

The passenger transport contract

Contracts of carriage as such can apply to the carriage of goods or passengers. The service consists of the carrier transporting the goods or passengers on time. This is decisive for the success of the transport.

The exact regulations that apply depend on which means of transport are used. For example, the Passenger Transport Act applies to motor vehicles, buses and trams. For aeroplanes, on the other hand, the Air Transport Act applies.

The contract of carriage

Two parties are involved in a freight contract. These are the principal and the carrier in the role of contractor. In individual cases, the latter may also be porters and servants.

The service itself consists of transporting goods. This does not require a significant change of location. It is also irrelevant which means of transport are used. The contract of carriage is regulated in §§ 631 ff and §§ 407-452d of the German Civil Code (BGB).

The building contract

A construction contract, on the other hand, relates to the construction of a building or the provision of a renovation or other craft service in the construction sector. This includes, among other things, painting work and heating construction.

The planning contract

A planning contract exists between a building owner, who acts as the client, and an architect or engineer, who assumes the role of contractor. The service consists of planning a construction project, putting it out to tender and supervising the work. This also includes the remedying and monitoring of defects during the warranty phase. The contractor is responsible for the construction of the entire building without defects. responsible.

sales contract

Cancelling a contract for work

A contract for work can be terminated by either party, by the client or by the contractor. However, the cancellation rights do not apply equally.

Cancellation by the client

A client may terminate a contract for work at any time, even before the work has been completed. Neither a cancellation period nor a reason is required for this. This results from §§ 648, 648a of the BGB. This right to terminate the contract at any time also exists if the contractor works on time and honours all agreements.

In the event of such a cancellation by the client, the contractor is entitled to payment of the remuneration for the work as agreed. However, he must deduct the costs that were saved as a result of the cancellation. These include costs for materials that were not used and the time that was not spent working on the work. However, these costs are not deducted in full. Instead, there is a judicial presumption that the contractor still retains a justified claim to 5% of these costs.

Cancellation by the contractor

Although the contractor can also terminate the work, there must be good cause for doing so, as stipulated in $ 648a BGB. Good cause exists, for example, if the contractor can no longer reasonably be expected to continue the contractual relationship. This in turn is the case if, for example, the client does not fulfil its own obligation to cooperate and a corresponding deadline has expired.

Partial cancellation

Partial cancellation of the contract for work and services for good cause is possible for both parties. As a prerequisite, however, the partial performance must be clearly different from the rest of the work.

Why a contract for work?

A contract for work is a contractual obligation and the question naturally arises as to why such a contract should be concluded at all and why the associated risks should be taken. One answer is that contracts for work are attractive for companies that outsource certain activities to freelancers, either because the freelancers have the relevant skills, networks or other resources or because they are less expensive.

For freelancers, on the other hand, contracts for work are an opportunity to receive projects from companies and work on them with appropriate remuneration. In addition, they remain independent with contracts for work and labour and can plan their own work performance and the resources they use themselves.

Contracts for work offer companies flexibility. They can align their operations with ongoing requirements and utilise additional resources via the work contracts if required. This also reduces the economic risk, as the contractor now assumes this risk and payment is only due once the work has been successfully completed.

It also simplifies payroll accounting for companies and saves costs by eliminating the need to pay social security contributions. In addition, regulations associated with the use of temporary labour can be avoided.

The use of external expertise is also very important in various areas. This can be on a smaller scale, such as ordering an advertising campaign from a freelancer, or on a larger scale, where an office receives completely new accounting software.

Contract for work - weigh up the risks

However, the disadvantages and risks associated with a contract for work must also be weighed against this. The client becomes dependent on a third party. This third party ultimately determines the success or failure of the order with its work performance. The risk is correspondingly lower for simple projects than it is for more complicated projects, such as the development of new software.

The contractor works independently. Conversely, this means that the client has fewer opportunities for control and intervention. In addition, the expertise that is utilised with a contract for work is not automatically available again for future projects.

Conclusion

A contract for work is a contractual relationship that is concluded between a client and a contractor. The aim is to produce a specific work and receive a fee in return. The contractor bears the entrepreneurial risk.

The contractor remains independent in his work. This means that he is not bound by instructions. He decides for himself on the use of his resources and his working hours. He only receives his remuneration after the successful completion of the work and its acceptance by the client.

The success of the contract for work is determined by whether the work ordered was created in accordance with the specifications. It is neither about the time spent nor the resources used. Acceptance of the work depends on the client confirming that it has been created as ordered.

In contrast to a contract for work, a contract for services involves the provision of a service. There is no pressure to succeed and remuneration is based on the time spent. In a contract for work, on the other hand, time is irrelevant and the success of the work is owed.

A BGB contract for work gives the client flexibility and allows them to utilise skills and resources that are located outside the company. However, it must be clearly differentiated from an employee leasing agreement in order to avoid a possible pseudo self-employment.

Temporary work international - your partner for legal work contracts

Are you looking for a reliable partner for legally compliant contracts for work and labour? We at Zeitarbeit International will be happy to help you. We place subcontractors and temporary workers from Eastern Europe. Our subcontractors from Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Lithuania, Latvia and the Ukraine speak German, can read plans and come with their own tools and vehicles. We take care of the accommodation and, if necessary, a replacement if you are not satisfied with an employee. All necessary papers and documents are checked by our team and in some cases also by specialist lawyers. Our Subcontractors, Freelancer Craftsmen from PolandSome of our Polish, Croatian, Slovakian and Czech employees have been working in Europe for over 30 years. Our Polish personnel service provider is very experienced when it comes to the Drafting and execution of work contracts in Germany.