A driver who stopped showing up to work after his boss kicked in his door and woke him up in his bedroom should not be fired. The employer must pay the man more than €15,000 in severance pay and about €2,000 in back pay. In return, the man still has to repay the loan to his old employer.
This is clear from the ruling of the North Holland Court.
He kicked the door in
The 35-year-old man has been working as a driver for a transportation company since the summer of 2021. When he did not show up for work in June last year, his employer went to the driver's home at around 4 a.m.
When the man did not answer the door after knocking and calling, the business owner kicked in the door. He then entered the house and woke the employee in his bedroom. Then he left the house again.
No longer going to work
The driver then did not return to work for two weeks. On July 10, his employer informed him that he had been fired because he had not returned to work. He is also said to no longer respond to contact requests from the company.
The driver did not agree to this and went to court. The man did not want his job back, but he wanted a series of damages for unfair dismissal. The employer stated that the driver was not entitled to anything because it was his fault that he lost his job.
“Worried” boss
According to his boss, he kicked in his employee's door because he was worried about him. It is also said that he had already agreed to pay for the damages and left the house immediately. He also informed the driver about this in an app.
The district court judge in Alkmaar did not like this statement and largely agreed with the employee. According to the judge, it was possible to explain that the driver did not return to work immediately after his boss kicked in his door.
Unfair dismissal
Instead of firing him, the employer should have approached the driver to express the matter. If he did not show up for work, the company should have warned him that he could be fired.
The District Court judge did not consider that it had been proven that the employee had not responded to contact requests. The driver is said to have called him on his own initiative, but his calls were not returned.
Therefore, the driver's dismissal will not be accepted in district court, and the employer must pay the man a series of severance payments.
17,000 euros
The driver receives a regular transitional payment of more than €3,000, a salary for the notice period of more than €4,800 and fair compensation for unfair dismissal of €7,500. The company must also pay the man a net amount of €1,800 in back wages. This amounts to more than 17,000 euros.
Finally, the claim for €2,400 brought by the employer against the driver for damage to the car supplied to him was also rejected. According to the local court, damage has not been proven. Furthermore, there were no provable agreements regarding compensation for any damage to the company vehicle.
Repayment of loans
The employer was right on one point. The driver had to pay back the €13,000 he allegedly borrowed from his employer. During the case, the man acknowledged the loan, but disputed the amount.
Based on the bank statements, the district court judge ruled that the loan was indeed €13,000. The employer may deduct this amount from the termination payments.
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