Does the reason for terminating an employment contract without notice need to be precise? The latest ruling of the Supreme Court

Decisions to terminate an employment contract without notice can have serious consequences for both the employer and the employee. However, the latest ruling of the Supreme Court (II PSK 103/23) marks a step towards an interpretation more favourable to employers.

Factual Justification

The District Court for Warsaw Praga-North dismissed the claim of R. G., which was subsequently upheld by the Warsaw-Praga Regional Court. Despite this, the employee’s representative filed a cassation appeal to the Supreme Court, alleging a gross violation of labour law. The situation began when the employer, T. Ltd., decided to terminate the employee’s contract without notice, citing serious breaches of work duties. The employee disagreed with this decision and brought a case seeking compensation for unlawful dismissal.

What Did the Supreme Court Rule?

The Supreme Court held that the cassation appeal could not be accepted for consideration, even though a qualified breach of labour law had occurred. However, as stated in the reasoning, the basis for accepting a cassation appeal is not an obvious breach of a specific substantive or procedural legal provision, but a situation in which such a breach caused an obviously incorrect ruling. In this case, the court found that this was not so.
The Court emphasised that under Article 30 § 4 of the Labour Code, when terminating an employment contract without notice, the employer is obliged to indicate the reason justifying such a decision. This provision aims to allow the employee to defend themselves against an unjustified dismissal. Therefore, in cases of termination without notice, there should be no ambiguity: the employee has the right to know exactly why the employer is ending the contract.

According to the Supreme Court, a lack of precision does not always mean a breach of the law, because an imprecise indication of the reason by the employer does not violate Article 30 § 4 of the Labour Code if, in the circumstances of the case and considering other information provided to the employee by the employer, this constitutes a sufficient specification of the reason.

Summary

The latest ruling of the Supreme Court from April 2024 confirms that clarity is key in matters concerning the termination of employment contracts. Employers should indicate the reasons for termination without notice in a precise and understandable manner. If you have any questions or doubts regarding labour law, please do not hesitate to contact our Law Firm. You can count on comprehensive service and full commitment at every stage of your case.