Insolvenzantrag: Galeria-Beschäftigte können auf Insolvenzgeld hoffen

Around 12,000 employees of the struggling Galeria wholesale company are waiting for a decision from the Federal Employment Agency regarding potential unemployment benefits. According to many insolvency law experts, these benefits should not be paid because the payment problems are still not resolved from the 2024 insolvency. The company is still in the supervisory review process, which is typically considered an exclusion criterion for renewed payment. However, sources suggest employees' chances might be better than initially expected.

The 2024 insolvent company, Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof GmbH, still exists, but its business operations were transferred to Galeria S.à r.l. & Co. KG, which is not in supervisory review according to court registry entries. This could potentially make the employees eligible for unemployment benefits on a formal legal basis. Insolvency expert Manfred Hunkemöller notes that transferring business operations to a new company is unusual and questions why this was done in the past.

However, merely having another legal entity is not considered sufficient. The decisive factor is whether a new insolvency event has occurred and if Galeria S.à r.l. & Co. KG is a different employer. The Federal Labor Court could provide additional guidance on this matter. When a business switch occurs during a restructuring, it might be justified to consider a different insolvency event, according to Thüsing.

The current insolvency administrator, Frank Kebekus, has applied for unemployment benefit payments, which are to be pre-financed through a bank to expedite the process. The wages of Galeria employees amount to nearly 25 million euros per month. The decision from the Federal Employment Agency is expected in the near future.

Galeria faced financial difficulties as early as summer 2024, with landlords complaining about unpaid rent. The management pointed to liquidity fluctuations as the cause. In June, the company received a new loan of up to 160 million euros from US investment firm Gordon Brothers, which was secured by Galeria's inventory. The owners and management, led by Tilo Hellenbock, have been discussing a reorientation for some time.

However, they faced criticism for not addressing issues and lacking innovative ideas. Defective elevators, escalators, and ventilation systems have been reported in many stores.

Both the management and owners have been criticized for their handling of the situation. Criticism was directed at the owners for not injecting sufficient capital after taking over the company in 2024 despite the need for investment. Many stores have defective elevators, escalators, and ventilation systems.