What grounds of dismissal are permitted?
You can dismiss your employee:
- for economic reasons, e.g. restructuring, company relocation or bankruptcy;
- if your employee is disabled for 2 or more years;
- if your employee is often sick and this has serious repercussions on your business and no other job or suitable work is feasible;
- if your employee’s performance is unsatisfactory; in this case you have to prove that you have warned your employee about this often and have given your employee sufficient opportunity to improve their performance;
- if your employee commits wilful misconduct or is culpably negligent, such as theft, coming to work drunk, forging diplomas or refusing to work without good reason; often, you can dismiss your employee summarily yourself on these grounds;
- if your employee has serious conscientious objections to the business activities and you are unable to offer alternative work;
- if the working relations are impaired (in Dutch) and cannot be restored;
- in other circumstances (in Dutch), for example, if your employee is in the Netherlands illegally or is imprisoned;
- in the event of non-performance of work by your employee, for a variety of reasons. Since 1 January 2020, there has been the option to dismiss your employee through the sub-district court on cumulative grounds (in Dutch). This means dismissal is also possible through a combination of the circumstances outlined above. Please note: economic reasons or long-term disability cannot be combined with other reasons.
Find more information (in Dutch) here about reasons for dissmissal.
Since 1 January 2020, dismissal on cumulative grounds via the sub-district court has resulted in extra severance pay
If the sub-district court terminates the employment contrac on cumulative grounds, it may award extra severance pay in addition to the transition payment. This extra severance pay cannot exceed 50% of the transition payment.
Relocation
Before you can dismiss your employee, you must consider whether relocation is feasible.
When can you dismiss your employee without grounds?
- when your employee has reached the statutory or any other retirement age;
- when you dismiss your employee during a trial period; or
- when their temporary contract ends.
When are you not allowed to dismiss your employee?
There are a number of situations in which you cannot dismiss your employee, namely:
- during sickness or disability for work;
- if, during sick leave, you have done hardly anything to facilitate your employee’s return to work; you are therefore required to continue payment of salary for a longer period;
- during pregnancy, pregnancy and maternity leave and 6 weeks thereafter, or parental or care leave;
- during membership in a workers’ participation body;
- during candidature for a participation body;
- during membership of a preparatory committee for a works council;
- during compulsory military or alternative service in the country of origin;
- if your employee is a member of a trade union or due to attendance at meetings of representative bodies or the upper (not the lower) house of parliament);
- for reasons of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, age or disability;
- if your employee refuses to work on Sundays;
- if your company is taken over;
- because of the right to adoption leave and leave for taking a foster child;
- if your employee works for you as an expert under the Working Conditions Act (Arbeidsomstandighedenwet);
- if your employee is a data protection officer under the Dutch Data Protection Act (Wet bescherming persoonsgegevens).
What if your employee resigns?
An employee does not have to give a reason for resigning. If your employee resigns of their own volition, you do not have to pay a transition payment. However, if your employee leaves due to your own serious wilful misconduct or negligence, which has impaired the working relationship, then your employee is entitled to transition payment.