Summary dismissal is a drastic form of dismissal. Summary dismissal simply ensures that the employment contract is terminated immediately, without the statutory notice period applying. For this reason, the legislator imposes strict requirements on summary dismissal. For instance, there must be an urgent reason justifying the summary dismissal. In addition, the dismissal must be given without delay, and the employee must also be notified without delay. In doing so, the employer must state the reason why the employee was dismissed. And this is where things seem to go wrong quite often.
Providing good justification
In practice, therefore, the dismissal letter must always state the reason why the employee is being dismissed. It must not only be stated that it concerns summary dismissal, but the reason justifying that dismissal must also be included in the dismissal letter. It is advisable to provide reasons for this. In other words: in the dismissal letter, you clearly state why the cited reason is urgent and therefore justifies summary dismissal.
All of this is not unimportant, because this letter fixes the reason for the dismissal. In other words, the reason stated in the dismissal letter also constitutes the final reason. Therefore, this cannot simply be deviated from in court, nor can additional reasons be cited. To avoid limiting yourself, it is therefore advisable to use as comprehensive a formulation and argumentation as possible.
When is there a compelling reason?
The legislator does not provide a clearly defined definition of an urgent reason, other than the fact that the facts must be serious enough so that “the employer cannot reasonably be expected to allow the employment contract to continue”. Precisely because of this ambiguity, it is important that you sufficiently substantiate your claim. The legislator does, however, list twelve behaviors that can constitute an urgent reason. Pay particular attention to the word 'can', as there is still room for counter-argumentation.
For example, there is a compelling reason if the employee is drunk or exhibits dissolute behavior despite warnings. This is also the case when the employee intentionally damages company property or leaks trade secrets.
When substantiating the grounds in the dismissal letter, always verify whether the facts fall under one of the twelve examples in Article 7:678 of the Dutch Civil Code and refer to it where appropriate, even if in a derived form. Consider, for example, the summary dismissal of an employee who, after previous warnings, is again under the influence of drugs. In such a case, it is not illogical to refer to the statutory example of drunkenness.
Providing arguments in a resignation letter is not an unnecessary luxury
Case law also proves that such argumentation is important. In a recent case, an employer summarily dismissed a salesperson. The salesperson had purchased goods from his employer using an employee discount and subsequently resold them at a profit. This constituted a prohibited form of competition. Consequently, this is cited as the reason in the dismissal letter, as is the reference to statements made by the employee which, according to the employer,are “uncredible”.
According to the Court of 's-Hertogenbosch, however, the employer had not made it sufficiently clear that the employee's statements were implausible. The Court therefore rules that the allegations in the dismissal letter are too suggestive and do not substantiate grounds for immediate dismissal. The Court rules that the employer acted with serious culpability, thereby mandating the payment of equitable compensation.
Always have the resignation letter proofread
The example above once again demonstrates the importance of a well-written resignation letter. Therefore, we always recommend having the resignation letter reviewed by one of our legal experts. Because there is some time pressure regarding summary dismissal, it is best to contact us by phone immediately. Only in this way can the summary dismissal be upheld.
