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Employment Law

Disputes concerning employment contracts, working conditions, termination and social security.

ABOUT THIS FIELD

Employment law regulates individual and collective relations between employees and employers, working conditions, pay and rest rights, termination of employment contracts and related social security matters. Mandatory provisions and the principle of employee protection define the limits of contractual freedom.

The employment contract, payroll records, working hours, notice of termination and workplace records define the scope of the dispute. In employment disputes subject to mandatory pre-action mediation, the parties first apply to a mediator; if no settlement is reached, the labour court examines the claims and evidence.

PROCESS AND TIME LIMITS

Mandatory mediation

For employee or employer claims and compensation and for reinstatement requests, recourse to mediation is mandatory before bringing an action (Law No. 7036, Art. 3). If no agreement is reached in mediation, the final report opens the way to court proceedings.

Reinstatement

An employee covered by job security must apply to a mediator within one month of service of the notice of termination; if no agreement is reached, a reinstatement action may be brought within two weeks of the date of the final report (Labour Law, Art. 20).

Severance, notice and other claims

Severance pay is due to an employee who has worked for at least one year and whose employment contract has ended on one of the grounds set out in the law. Claims for severance and notice pay, overtime, annual leave and wages are subject to a five-year limitation period.

Work accidents and social security

In claims for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages arising from a work accident or occupational disease, the employer’s fault and the benefits paid by the Social Security Institution are assessed together. An action to establish uninsured or under-reported employment must be brought within five years from the end of the year in which the work was performed (Law No. 5510, Art. 86/9).

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Is an employee who resigns entitled to severance pay?

As a rule, an employee who resigns is not entitled to severance pay. Severance pay is due where the employee terminates for just cause, leaves for compulsory military service, leaves having fulfilled the conditions for a retirement or old-age pension, or, for a female employee, leaves voluntarily within one year of marriage (Law No. 1475, Art. 14).

How is overtime pay calculated?

Overtime is work exceeding forty-five hours a week. Each hour of overtime is paid at the normal hourly wage increased by fifty per cent. Where working time is averaged, work that does not exceed the normal weekly average is not overtime (Labour Law No. 4857, Art. 41).

How many days of annual leave are there?

Employees who have worked at least one year are entitled to paid annual leave of no less than fourteen days for one to five years of service, twenty days for more than five and less than fifteen years, and twenty-six days for fifteen years or more. Employees cannot waive their annual leave (Labour Law No. 4857, Art. 53).

Is there a time limit for termination for just cause?

The right to terminate for conduct contrary to morality and good faith must be exercised within six working days of the other party learning of the conduct and, in any event, within one year of the act. The one-year limit does not apply where the employee obtained a material benefit from the conduct (Labour Law No. 4857, Art. 26).

What are the notice periods?

An open-ended employment contract ends, from notice, after two weeks for service of less than six months, four weeks for six months to one and a half years, six weeks for one and a half to three years, and eight weeks for more than three years. A party that fails to give notice pays compensation equal to the wages for these periods (Labour Law No. 4857, Art. 17).

What happens if a reinstatement case is won?

The employee applies to the employer to return to work within ten working days of service of the final judgment. If the employer does not reinstate the employee within one month, it pays compensation of four to eight months' wages, and wages and other entitlements of up to four months for the period not worked until the judgment became final (Labour Law No. 4857, Art. 21).

DOCUMENTS

The following documents are usually used when a file in this field is reviewed:

  • Employment contract and employment registration notice
  • Payslips and bank records of wage payments
  • Social security service record
  • Notice of termination, formal notice or letter of resignation
  • Timesheets, overtime and entry-exit records
  • Correspondence with the employer and witness details
SCOPE

Principal areas of work

  1. 01

    Drafting, amending and terminating employment contracts

  2. 02

    Reinstatement proceedings and review of the validity of termination

  3. 03

    Severance and notice pay, wages and overtime claims

  4. 04

    Annual leave, weekly rest and public-holiday claims

  5. 05

    Compensation claims arising from occupational accidents and diseases

  6. 06

    Determination of employment service and social security disputes

  7. 07

    Non-compete, confidentiality and workplace-practice agreements

  8. 08

    Mandatory mediation and individual and collective employment disputes