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Termination by mutual agreement? or the iron ring of labor law made of wood

Termination by mutual agreement? Well, there are things in life that many people know badly, but not by their own fault. Such a misconception is, for example, that hake is a fish from Lake Balaton or that the Viennese steak is made from pork. One of the most searched terms for termination is “termination by mutual consent”. However, it does not matter whether the half-timbered drawing sheet is A4 or Audi. There may be little labor nonsense greater than this, since termination is a unilateral statement (so it does not have to be accepted), while a common understanding presupposes a unanimous will. Nevertheless, samples can also be found on the internet for the iron ring of labor law.

termination by mutual agreement
Termination by mutual agreement – is there such a thing?

Let us put the issue of mutual agreement and termination in short, in 6 points. Ignoring the tedious labor law rules, but with a brief interpretative background, we will explain to everyone why there is no termination by consensus. Of course, we do not leave the reader in doubt. By the end of the article, we hope that both termination and collective redundancy will become understandable terms.

1. Termination of employment

The employment relationship may be terminated unilaterally , by termination, or bilaterally by mutual agreement. Denunciation by mutual agreement does not exist precisely for this reason, as it implies two completely opposite intentions.

The difference between the two is that

  • if the employee or the employer wishes to terminate the existing relationship (and there is no ground for exclusion), he must unilaterally address a statement to the other party, ie termination,
  • on the other hand, either party may indicate that it wishes to separate from the other party by common agreement, which requires the same will of the other party.

2. Termination

The termination must never be accepted by the other party. Very often it is written on the resignation statement that I “accept” it, even though it is completely unnecessary. It is, of course, necessary that the unilateral statement be duly communicated to the other party. From this point of view, from a practical point of view, it is a good idea to date a copy when notifying the other party of the termination.

If someone cancels with ordinary notice , there is, as a rule, a notice period . An important difference, however, is that if the employer terminates the employee, you must exempt you from work for at least half of the notice period. In this respect, dismissal should be treated with caution as an employee. It is a common misconception that dismissal also applies in the event of termination of employment. Unfortunately, this is not true. It is also worth noting that termination is not a reason for ordinary termination.

There is also an immediate termination , which is not covered in detail, but we mention that a justification is required in this case.

In the event of termination during the probationary period , the legal relationship may be terminated without justification and immediately.

3. Termination by mutual consent

Well this is what does not exist (there is no such thing as termination by mutual agreement). We can only talk about a consensus , without notice. In the event of a mutually agreed termination of employment, the parties agree on the details and both wish to terminate the employment relationship under the same conditions.

Important information for mutual agreement:

  • The agreement must be in writing. There are no strict conditions for the details of the agreement, but there are minimums that must be met. For example, the principle of duty to cooperate, free choice without coercion and threat is important.
  • There is no notice period. It is a common misconception that this is the case, although the essence of the common understanding is that the parties deviate from the rules of termination of employment. They can even terminate the relationship in this way with immediate effect.
  • There is no obligation to state reasons. This is good for the employer because it leaves less room for attack in court, and for the employee because he does not have to explain in the job interview why he was fired from his previous position.

4. If someone has signed the mutual agreement, is there no going back?

In other words, is it possible to challenge the termination of a collective agreement? Of course you can attack. If the employee successfully challenges his or her own statement, the court may also reinstate his or her employment.

The consensus may be challenged in the event of error or deception . We are talking about an error if it existed at the time of signing and related to an essential circumstance in the knowledge of which you would not have signed the common understanding. A classic example is when an employer falsely informs an employee that there will be no severance pay in the event of termination.

An error also occurs if the employee, due to an error in the validity of the illegally agreed probationary period, believes that the alternative to collective agreement is immediate termination and therefore decides to sign the agreement, provided that the employer may have recognized the error.

An illegal threat can also be a reason for an attack. It often presents the possibility of collective agreement as an “immediate, one-time and irrevocable” offer. Perhaps this could mean, in common parlance, a category of termination by consensus. In this case, the employer usually does not allow you to call a familiar lawyer, the employee’s partner, and employs a psychological threat.

It is also conceivable that the threat and / or deception is not used directly by the employer, but by, say, another manager or a lawyer acting on their behalf. In such a case, the common understanding may be challenged.

challenging the consensus
The consensus can also be challenged

5. Is a good agreement good now or not?

A mutual agreement is good if both parties are aware of the general and ad hoc differences between the termination and the mutual agreement. The general differences can be pretty much learned from this article. It would not be good for anyone to claim notice of dismissal with exemption (for example, to look for work) or severance pay. After three years of employment, 1 month, 2 months for 5 years, 3 months for 10 years, 4 months for 15 years, 5 months for 20 years and 6 months for severance may be paid in the event of ordinary termination. That is why it is definitely worth reviewing the Memorandum of Understanding with an expert, discussing the circumstances and, if possible, not signing it immediately.

6. What happens if my paper says termination by mutual agreement?

Did I resign now or did we agree? In this case, there is no need to despair, as we call on the following principle:

“In the event of a dispute, the Letter of Rights shall be construed as understood by the addressee in accordance with the generally accepted meaning of the words, having regard to the presumed will of the declarant and the circumstances of the case.”

termination by mutual agreement
Termination by mutual agreement does not exist

It is also worth mentioning in a few words what to do if your employer has handed over a mobile phone, laptop, or any other similar device in connection with your work . It is important to note that these devices are not worth browsing for private purposes or storing images or data. Perhaps most importantly, it is worth having private conversations on other devices as well. In case of termination, but also by mutual agreement, it is worth handing over these devices by deleting all personal data on the last day spent at work. Never delete data or conversations related to your employment.

We hope that we have managed to get around the issue of the term termination by consensus in a concise and comprehensible manner.

In summary: There is no termination by consensus, so be sure to be careful about what you sign.

Ask for your free legal advice if you have any questions.

You can access the current text of the Labor Code HERE.

General court information on labor lawsuits can be found HERE.

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