An employer may terminate an employment contract but must follow specific rules and deadlines. The termination must be justified, and in the case of an indefinite-term contract, it must include a true and specific reason for the termination. Additionally, the employer is obligated to inform the employee of their right to appeal to the labor court.

There are situations when an employer cannot terminate a contract, including cases where the employee:
• is no more than 4 years away from reaching retirement age, provided that their period of employment entitles them to receive a pension upon reaching that age;
• is on leave or another justified absence from work, if the period allowing for termination without notice has not yet expired;
• is pregnant or on maternity leave;
• is a protected trade union representative.

An unlawful termination of a contract is considered to be a termination that violates the provisions regarding contract termination in terms of notice periods, prohibitions on termination, failure to consult with trade unions, failure to inform the employee about the deadline for appealing to the labor court, and when it does not include justification for the termination (in the case of contracts for indefinite and fixed terms).
If an employee believes that the termination is unjustified or unlawful, they can file an appeal with the labour court within 21 days of receiving the termination notice.

The court may order:
• reinstatement to work – if it finds the termination unjustified,
• compensation – in the amount of from 2 weeks up to 3 months’ salary, if returning to work is not possible or not reasonable.

The choice of claim (reinstatement or compensation) generally depends on the employee, but the court does not always have to agree with them. In the case of employees in need of particular protection (pregnant women, those on maternity leave, employees close to retirement age), the court is obliged to fulfill the employee’s demand, unless the workplace is in bankruptcy or liquidation.

The labour court is not obliged to grant an employee’s request for reinstatement if returning to work is impossible or impractical, e.g. due to the elimination of the position, a serious conflict with the employer, or a gross violation of principles of social coexistence.

In the event of a decision to reinstate an employee, the employee is entitled to remuneration for the period of unemployment, in accordance with Article 47 of the Labor Code, but not more than for two months, and if the notice period was three months, not more than for one month.

If an employment contract has been terminated with an employee of pre-retirement age or with an employee during pregnancy or maternity leave, remuneration is payable for the entire period of unemployment. An employee who has taken up employment as a result of reinstatement shall have the period of unemployment for which remuneration was granted included in the period of employment.

A lawsuit filed with the labor court must comply with the general formal requirements that apply to the preparation of legal pleadings. This means that it should include the proper designation of the court and the details of both parties to the proceedings, an outline of the situation, a presentation of the facts, the attachment of evidence, as well as specifying the value of the subject of the dispute, indicating the date from which the claim became enforceable, and providing information on any attempt to resolve the matter through mediation. The prepared document must be personally signed by the employee. It is worth noting that in cases where the value of the claim does not exceed 50,000 PLN, the employee is exempt from court fees.