Manifestly Unreasonable Dismissal, Reasons For Dismissal And Prior Hearing For Public Sector Contractual Workers

• Published date: 05 April 2024
• Law Firm: Claeys & Engels
• Author: Claeys & Engels

On 29 February 2024, the Federal Parliament adopted the law on the reasons for dismissal and for manifestly unreasonable dismissals of public sector contractual workers. This law will come into force on 1 May 2024. After years of controversy in the case law, it finally establishes a clear legal framework for the application of manifestly unreasonable dismissal to public sector contractual workers. The law also regulates the issue of hearings prior to the dismissal of such workers.

Background

Since 1 April 2014, CLA no. 109, adopted in implementation of the single status act, has provided special rules applicable to private sector employers concerning the reasons for dismissal and manifestly unreasonable dismissal. The single status act provided for similar rules to be adopted for the public sector, but nothing had been passed by Parliament until now.

In order to remedy this shortcoming, the Constitutional Court, in a decision of 30 June 2016, invited the trial courts to apply CLA no. 109 by analogy in the event of the dismissal of a public sector contractual worker, in order to avoid any discrimination between workers in the private sector, who could claim compensation on the grounds of a manifestly unreasonable dismissal, and workers in the public sector, for whom no legal provision provided for this possibility.

A controversy in the case...