The termination of an employment contract due to its dissolution is one way to end an employment relationship, but its use is quite limited. This is based on the employee's absence from work and failure to notify, and cannot be applied on other grounds. The conditions for the dissolution of an employment contract must be assessed on a case-by-case basis.
Under the Employment Contracts Act, an employer may consider an employment contract terminated if an employee has been absent from work for at least seven days without a valid reason for their absence. In such cases, the employer may deem the employment relationship to have ended from the first day of absence. The employee has a corresponding right if the employer has been absent for at least seven days.
Notification, absence and valid reason
The law requires the employee to report his/her absence. In addition, the reason for the absence must be valid. If neither of these requirements is met, the employer can consider the employment relationship to have been terminated. However, the employer cannot consider the employment relationship to have ended if he or she could have concluded from the circumstances that the employee had a valid reason for the absence, even in the absence of notification.
The employee must notify their employer of their absence as soon as possible. If the employee is unable to notify of their absence immediately, for example due to serious illness, they should notify as soon as the obstacle has passed. The reason for the absence may be entirely acceptable, such as illness. It is important to assess whether the employee had an obstacle that prevented them from properly notifying of their absence. If there was no such obstacle, the employer has the right to consider the employment contract terminated.
If the employee has had a valid reason and the employer has already treated the employment contract as terminated, the termination must be revoked. The prerequisite for revocation is that both the absence and the failure to notify have had a valid reason. In such cases, the employment relationship is considered to have continued uninterrupted for the entire duration of the absence.
An employment relationship can also be considered terminated if an employee has been absent from work without permission for seven days. In this case, the employee may have notified their employer of their absence, but the parties may not have agreed on the acceptability of the absence, for example, regarding the duration of a holiday or reduced working hours. If the employee in this situation consciously opposes the employer's decision by being absent, the employer can treat the employment contract as terminated. The employer has the primary right to interpret the situation, regardless of whether the legal interpretation of the holiday or reduced working hours is correct.
An employment contract can also be deemed terminated if the employee does not return to work after a lay-off or sick leave has ended. The seven-day period is then calculated from the date work should have commenced.
Over a seven-day period, all days of absence are taken into account, including weekends. However, if this period includes only a few working days, and the other days are, for example, compensatory leave or public holidays, the employer is not entitled to consider the employment relationship terminated after seven days.
Generally, an employee must notify their employer, or their representative, usually their supervisor, of their absence. Notification to colleagues or the switchboard cannot legally be considered adequate.
Measures required from the employer
The termination of an employment contract requires a decision by the employer. However, the employer must endeavour, by reasonable means, to ascertain the reason for the employee's absence before making a decision. Notice of termination should be given to the employee in writing.
If there is no valid reason for absence, the termination notice must be given to the employee at the latest when they contact the employer. The notice given to the employee has no specific formal requirements, so it can be delivered by e-mail or letter, for example.
When an employee has received a notice of termination from the employer, the employer must give the employee an opportunity to present a lawful reason for their absence, which may lead to the rescission of the termination of the employment contract. If the employer considers that grounds for termination exist, they must take steps to terminate the employment relationship, which in practice means paying the employee their final wages.
Amos Attorneys at Law Oy
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