Enforceability of individual entitlements to benefits under collective bargaining agreements: interpretation of substantive requirements and limitations in revision proceedings

The Federal Labor Court (BAG) dismissed the plaintiff's revision, upholding the Landesarbeitsgericht Hamm's judgment of January 18, 2023, and ordering the plaintiff to bear the costs of the revision proceedings. The dispute concerned a claim for monetary benefits arising from a collective agreement or works agreement, where the employer argued that the plaintiff did not meet the substantive requirements or that the claim was precluded by specific contractual limitations. The decisive legal basis centered on the interpretation and application of statutory labor law provisions regarding the scope of collective bargaining agreements and the enforceability of individual entitlements to benefits, with the court finding no error in the lower courts' assessment of the applicable normative framework and factual prerequisites.