The legal specialists of De Unie assist you during various differences of opinion and conflicts in the workplace. To make it clearer what exactly you can do with us, we highlight a true situation every month. We describe the member's question, tell us what De Unie has done to resolve the situation and share the outcome. In this edition: an employer who does not meet the so-called notice obligation in the event of an expiring temporary contract.
The problem
Our member's temporary contract expires on March 31, 2023. Just over a week before, on March 22, her employer has not yet announced whether her contract will be extended. And that is not the intention. This is because employers have an obligation to give notice: no later than one month before a temporary contract expires, they must inform the employee in writing whether they are allowed to stay. Don't employers do that? Then they must pay a notice fee of a maximum of one gross monthly salary. And if they comply with the notification obligation too late, they will pay the compensation pro rata: if the employer informs an employee a week too late, for example, the employee is also entitled to a maximum of one gross weekly wage as compensation.
This has De Unie done
In this situation, the employer was more than 3 weeks late in giving notice. Our member asked De Unie for advice. That was initially: send the HR department an e-mail and write that you have not yet heard anything about a possible extension of your temporary contract, while your employer should have informed you. We also advise her not to mention the notice fee: if the employer decides to extend the contract anyway, you can put the relationship on edge by claiming the fee immediately. So always think carefully about the best approach – we can of course help you with that.
The HR department responds to her e-mail: our member's manager schedules a meeting with her. That just doesn't happen. She will receive a new employment contract on March 29. The employer thus announces that her contract will be extended, but does so 29 days too late. We have advised our member to claim a notice indemnity over this period – almost a full monthly gross salary. This did not produce the desired result. That is why we have claimed the cancellation fee on her behalf.
The solution
After we have claimed the notice fee on behalf of our member, the employer has indicated that it will pay it.
Need help from our legal specialists?
Not every situation is the same. Therefore, please contact us directly: our legal specialists will be happy to assist you. Our Service Center can be reached every working day from 8.30:17.00 am to XNUMX:XNUMX pm via sc@unie.nl en 0345 851 963.
