Dismissal during short-time work

If your employer dismisses you for business-related reasons, he/she must prove that there is no more work for you, not just in the short term, but permanently.

Certain conditions apply to dismissals for business-related reasons:

• It must be urgently necessary for the company.
• Your job must be lost in the long term and there must be no other possibility of continuing to employ you. 
• And there must have been a proper social selection (i.e. a comparison with colleagues based on age, knowledge, length of service and other criteria).

Protection against dismissal

If you have worked for over 6 months in a company with more than 10 full-time positions subject to social insurance contributions (part-time combined), you are legally protected against dismissal.

Please note: your employer can always terminate your contract during the probationary period.

If your employer has dismissed you or you resign yourself, you are not entitled to a short-time working allowance. The same applies if you have signed a cancellation agreement. Your entitlement to short-time working allowance ends on the day you receive your notice of dismissal or on a day agreed in the cancellation agreement. From this date, the employer must pay you your full wage. It is best to seek advice on this from your Fair Integration advice centre.

Important: if you are dismissed during or after short-time work, your unemployment benefits will be calculated according to your usual income – not according to the short-time working allowance.