Introduction: The Impact of Workplace Behavior and Swearing on the Employment Relationship (Disrespectful Employee)
Employee behavior that damages the workplace atmosphere, such as foul language or disrespectful behavior, can serve as a basis for termination of employment – this is the conclusion we reached two years ago, in our article on workplace disagreements, taking into account judicial practice. However, a Curia decision has further nuanced this picture.
Curia’s Position: Consequences of Disrespectful Employee Behavior
The Labor Code (LC) establishes the obligation of cooperation as a basic principle, which obliges both the employer and the employee to behave respectfully and cooperatively towards the other party. This obligation is violated, for example, if the employee behaves disrespectfully, offensively or provocatively towards his/her colleagues or other persons. Such behavior can spoil the atmosphere at work, cause tension and reduce work efficiency, thus causing damage to the employer.
The Curia already stated in its principled decision in 2015 that in case of violation of the employee’s obligation to cooperate, the employer has the right to terminate the employment contract with immediate effect.
A More Balanced Decision from the Curia: The Case of Swearing
A new decision by the Curia recently nuanced the previous position. According to the facts, a head of the upload department cursed a colleague in an obscene manner, saying that “your ge*i is dry”, while two other colleagues were present. The offended colleague heard this, and the remark also reached the HR manager. It turned out that this was not the first time that the manager had used obscene language against his colleagues. Based on this behavior, the employer terminated his employment with immediate effect.
However, the employee started to sue, and although he lost at first instance, the second instance court and finally the Curia ruled in his favor. The decision can be traced back to three important reasons:
- The comments were not directly addressed to the colleagues: According to the Curia, since the offensive comments were not directly addressed to the colleagues, they did not constitute a material breach of duty that would justify immediate termination. A breach of the obligation to cooperate could only be considered serious if the comments had directly hindered work.
- The employee’s situation: The court took into account that the employee performed difficult tasks and did not receive sufficient help from his colleagues, which may have contributed to stressful situations.
- Missing warning: The employer did not give the employee a warning about his behavior, but immediately applied one of the most severe sanctions, which was not legally justified.
Conclusion: How to Deal with Workplace Behavior Problems?
The Curia’s decision made it clear that a breach of the duty to cooperate cannot automatically lead to immediate dismissal. The decision emphasizes that the behavior in question, although it violated the rules of ethics at work, was not so serious as to justify immediate dismissal. In addition, it is important that the employer gives the employee a prior warning if there is behavior that violates the rules at work.
Therefore, it is advisable for employers to apply proportionate measures and, on the first occasion, to give a written warning to the employee who exhibits offensive behavior. Establishing a code of ethics in the workplace can also help ensure that both employers and employees are aware of the standards of behavior.
Dr. Katona Géza, LL.M. ügyvéd (Rechtsanwalt / attorney at law)
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Katona és Társai Ügyvédi Társulás
(Katona & Partner Rechtsanwaltssozietät / Attorneys’ Association)
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