Verdict: Job center is not allowed to cut off family benefits across the board!

Verdict: Job center is not allowed to cut off family benefits across the board!

When it comes to the topic of social benefits, the legal framework is often complex and confusing. The State Social Court of Lower Saxony-Bremen recently provided considerable clarity: a ruling shows that job centers are not allowed to cut off benefits across the board to entire communities of need just because a member has difficulty participating. The Citizen's money for a six-member patchwork family from Aurich was at stake after their application for Hartz IV was initially rejected in 2021.

After the rejection decision in summer 2021, the job center was given the prospect of a new decision after further evidence. But the required documents could not be submitted in time, which led to the aid being completely blocked in April 2022. The job center's justification that all members of the family suffered from the lack of cooperation was not legally tenable.

Individuality of the obligation to cooperate

The court found that the blanket denial of benefits violated the principle of individual participation. After all, the children of the family had not violated any of their own duties and should therefore not be subject to sanctions. Citizen's money has clearly signaled here that job centers cannot act broadly in the event of a lack of declarations of cooperation, but must differentiate between those who specifically have not fulfilled their obligation. The court also called for a more individual approach and criticized the use of standard text modules in the notices.

The State Social Court also allowed an appeal because the fundamental importance of the case could be decisive for future decisions. However, the legal consequences are not yet legally binding and the deadlines for filing an appeal continue to run.

The role of job centers

Such judgments are of great importance for many people who rely on social benefits. They make it clear that the social system must work carefully to meet the needs of citizens without going overboard. But what does everyday practice look like? Many a song can be sung about the challenges that many families experience with the job centers. If communication is not good or forms are missing, the entire family often suffers, even though only one person may have been responsible.

Current technology helps deal with these challenges. Companies like Office offer digital solutions to better organize paperwork. With the right tools and platforms, families can work more efficiently to gather the necessary evidence for their applications - so that no one finds themselves in a similar situation again.

It remains to be seen how the situation regarding the revision will develop. If the Federal Social Court confirms the opinion of the LSG Lower Saxony-Bremen, it would have far-reaching consequences for the way the job centers handle their obligations to cooperate. One thing is clear: There has to be a rethink in order to do justice to the many people affected.