THE SECURITY OF EMPLOYMENT ACT The scope of the Act Basically the Act covers all public and private employment. It makes no distinction between different occupational groups and is equally applicable e. g. to members and non-members of unions. Part-time employees and domestic employees are also included. On the other hand the Act does not apply to temporary commissions, company relationships or partnerships. Managerial personnel, members of an employer's family and employees on relief work projects in sheltered workshops etc. are also excluded Deviations Deviating or supplementary provisions may apply by virtue of other legislation. This is the case e. g. with civil servants and such occupational groups as domestic servants, seamen and commercial travellers. Most of the provisions of the Security of Employment Act also apply to public servants. Among other things this means that the possibilities of appointing a government officer for a specific period are now more limited and that dismissals must be preceded by notice and discussions as provided by the Act. Exceptions are being made for the time being to the rules concerning the order of dismissal and options on new appointments. Further deliberations are needed in these from its provisions. Persons working in their employer's households are provided for by the Act concerning hours etc. in domestic employment. Some of the provisions of the Act are subject to the employee having attained a certain age or been employed for a certain period of time, but the basic provisions apply without any such provisions. In certain cases different rules can apply depending on the form of employment concerned, employment until further notice or employment for a certain time or a particular task. respects together with the unions concerned. There are certain situations, e. g. military service, marriage and pregnancy, dismissal for which is prohibited by law. Some of the provisions of this Act can be replaced or supplemented by provisions in collective agreements that are specifically designed for individual occupations or firms. As a rule agreements of this kind have to be concluded centrally, but local agreements can also play a part. An employer bound by a collective agreement of this kind must also follow the agreement when dealing with employees who are not members of unions. An agreement on employment for a certain period of time, a certain season or a certain task may only be concluded if it is justified by the special nature of the tasks involved, e. g. isolated specialist tasks, seasonal employment in agriculture and ad hoc employment in the building industry. for a limited period in connection with vocational practice or the temporary replacement of a regular employee. Probationary employment for a given period is permissible when sanctioned by a collective agreement. Other agreements regarding employment of limited duration may also be concluded if sanctioned by a collective agreement, e. g. in connection with an abnormally heavy work load. In the State sector special rules apply concerning temporary appointments. County labour boards can intervene against an employer using temporary engagements in a manner contrary to The Act also sanctions employment sound practice in labour relations. Termination of employment Employment of indefinite duration can be terminated at the end of a certain period after notice has been served. This applies whichever party notice is served by, though there must be reasonable grounds for notice given by an employer. An appointment confined to a certain period, a certain season or a certain task is terminated without prior notice when the period expires or the task Grounds for dismissal, notice There must be reasonable grounds for notice given by the employer. This rule applies to notice occasioned by cut-backs etc. as well as to notice prompted by personal circumstances. Notice for which there are no reasonable grounds can be declared invalid by a court of law at the instance of the employee, who will then retain his employment on the same terms as previously. The employee is also protected against the termination of his employment while the case is sub judice. If the employer refuses to comply with a verdict in the employee's favour, he can be ordered to pay the employee compensation. The Act does not include any definition of what are to be considered reasonable grounds for dismissal. Individual cases and conditions at different work places vary so widely that has been completed, failing agreement to the contrary. In certain cases, however, the employee may have priority regarding new employment opportunities with the same employer. If either party to a contract of employment gravely neglects his obligations under that contract, the other party may serve notice terminating the employment and damages may be awarded. it has not been found possible to frame any general criterion in this respect. Account must always be taken of the circumstances of the individual case. Allowance must be made e. g. for the different conditions applying at large and small work places. The court's assessment may also be influenced by the employee occupying a position of special responsibility, and so on. In the ultimate analysis the court has to decide whether the employer can reasonably be expected to allow the employment to continue. There are several respects in which this Act diverges from earlier practice and by doing so confers advantages on the employee. Particular emphasis should be placed on the duty of the employer to try to find alternative work for an employee if this can be reasonably expected of him. As a general rule, illness, reduced work capacity etc. are not regarded as 44-725 O-75-4 In the event of misbehaviour by an employee, the court's assessment of the justifiability or otherwise of his dismissal must focus more on what has happened in the individual case than on the conclusions which can be drawn from these events concerning the suitability of the employee. Dismissal can only be resorted to when the employee's unsuitability has been conclusively established. The Act also contains a rule to the effect that dismissals may not be grounded on circumstances which have been known to the employer for a month past. It is often stipulated that the employer must have given the employee previous warning. Incompatibility must be of a serious nature in order to justify dismissal. As a rule the employer must previously have attempted to solve the problem by transferring the employee concerned to other duties. Trade union activities are not reasonable grounds for dismissal, nor does participation in a union action provide any such justification in the normal run of events. Of course this rule is absolutely inviolable where legal actions are concerned. Dismissals on account of nationality, religion, colour, political convictions etc. also lack reasonable grounds. An employee guilty of gross misconduct, e. g. grand larceny at his place. of work and repeated drunkenness while on duty, can be dismissed without any prior notice. In other cases of misconduct, on the other hand, an employer cannot dismiss the employee concerned without notice. Redundancy and comparable situations, e. g. cut-backs and organizational changes, generally constitute reasonable grounds for dismissal, though measures such as transfer, natural reductions ог successive closures should be tried first. The rules contained either by relevant legislation or by collective agreements guarantee union organizations and county labour boards a measure of influence on the conduct of cut-backs. The employer also has to follow a certain order of dismissal. In many cases a worker dismissed on account of redundancy will have first refusal for a year after the termination of his employment if the employer takes on new employees during that period. |