The job center in the Northeim district suffered a defeat in urgent proceedings before the Social Court (SG) Hildesheim (ref.: S 58 AS 4177/20 ER). In a decision dated December 2, 2020, the court ordered that the job center may not withdraw subsistence benefits from a benefit recipient who belongs to a Covid-19 risk group if he or she fails to attend personal appointments.
The 45-year-old SGB II benefit recipient from Einbeck had not accepted “invitations” to personal appointments with the job center out of fear of being infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus. After three unsuccessful “invitations”, the job center then completely withdrew the subsistence benefits from the person suffering from obesity.
In response to the urgent application before the SG Hildesheim, the court decided that the withdrawal of benefits was unlawful. The person concerned should neither be sanctioned nor should their benefits be withdrawn completely. The court refers, among other things, to information from the Robert Koch Institute, according to which obesity increases the risk of a severe course of illness with Covid-19. There would therefore be an important reason for staying away.
“The complete withdrawal of subsistence benefits in order to force my client to appear at personal appointments no longer has anything to do with the actions of an authority bound by law and order,” says lawyer Sven Adam, who legally represents the Einbecker, about the measures of the Job centers . “It is gratifying that the court is countering such behavior with clear and fundamental words, especially in the current situation that is stressful for everyone,” concluded Adam.
The court's order dated December 2nd, 2020 can be found here:
