Capstan News

The key updates in employment law.
Practical insights from Capstan lawyers.

GDPR breach by the employer : no compensation without proof of harm
GDPR breach by the employer : no compensation without proof of harm

As a rule, a person seeking compensation must prove the harm they have suffered. The Court of Cassation has now confirmed that the same logic governs breaches of the GDPR. In this case, an employer ra...

Company car chosen by the employee : a clause passing on the extra cost after termination can be lawful
Company car chosen by the employee : a clause passing on the extra cost after termination can be lawful

A clause imposing a financial charge that deters an employee from resigning is unlawfulย : it amounts either to a prohibited financial penalty or to a restriction on the freedom to resign, which is val...

Whistleblowing on moral harassment : an internal investigation finding no harassment does not establish bad faith
Whistleblowing on moral harassment : an internal investigation finding no harassment does not establish bad faith

An employee who reports moral harassment cannot be dismissed on that groundย ; a dismissal that refers to the report is void, and where the dismissal letter cites the report, that ground alone renders ...

Annual hours agreement : a manager bound by the shopโ€™s opening hours lacks the required autonomy
Annual hours agreement : a manager bound by the shopโ€™s opening hours lacks the required autonomy

An annual hours agreement (forfait annuel en heures) allows a predetermined number of foreseeable overtime hours to be built into an employeeโ€™s working time over the year. It is open only to managers ...

Day rate agreement : the collective agreement need not set out the operational detail of workload monitoring
Day rate agreement : the collective agreement need not set out the operational detail of workload monitoring

A day rate agreement (forfait en jours), under which an employee works a set number of days per year rather than counted hours, requires an underlying collective agreement. This scheme is subject to h...

Offering mutual termination during sick leave does not, in itself, raise a presumption of discrimination
Offering mutual termination during sick leave does not, in itself, raise a presumption of discrimination

A mutual termination (rupture conventionnelle) may validly be agreed while the contract is suspended for sickness, subject only to fraud or a defect in consentย ; the employee remains free to accept or...

A resignation validly challenged four months later
A resignation validly challenged four months later

A resignation must reflect a clear and unequivocal intention to end the contract. Where an employee later challenges their resignation and asks for it to be reclassified as a dismissal without grounds...

Two sexually suggestive text messages are enough
Two sexually suggestive text messages are enough

Harassment cases call for a two-stage analysisย : the employee puts forward facts suggesting harassment, after which it is for the employer to prove that the conduct does not amount to harassment and t...

โ€˜Ambientโ€™sexual harassmentย : a witness to offensive conduct can be a victim
โ€˜Ambientโ€™sexual harassmentย : a witness to offensive conduct can be a victim

Sexual harassment is defined by its effects, not by the identity of its targetย : the Labour Code prohibits repeated sexual or sexist comments or conduct that undermine a personโ€™s dignity or create an ...

A former employeeโ€™s image kept onlineย : open-ended consent lapses when the contract ends
A former employeeโ€™s image kept onlineย : open-ended consent lapses when the contract ends

The right to oneโ€™s image, an aspect of the right to respect for private life protected by Article 9 of the Civil Code, covers the capture, storage, reproduction and use of a personโ€™s image. The Court ...

Residence clausesย : the needs of the business alone do not justify restricting a free choice of home
Residence clausesย : the needs of the business alone do not justify restricting a free choice of home

Anyone has the right to choose where they live, as an aspect of the right to respect for the home protected by Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. An employer may interfere with that...

Reorganising the spread of working hours over the day falls within the employerโ€™s management powers
Reorganising the spread of working hours over the day falls within the employerโ€™s management powers

Subject to any excessive infringement of the employeeโ€™s right to respect for their personal and family life or their right to rest, deciding on a new distribution of working time across the day falls ...

A pregnancy-related dismissal is void even where the employee concealed her pregnancy which allegedly led the employee to expose her foetus to a dangerous environment
A pregnancy-related dismissal is void even where the employee concealed her pregnancy which allegedly led the employee to expose her foetus to a dangerous environment

Under French law, any dismissal based, even in part, on an employeeโ€™s pregnancy is void. A pregnant employee is, moreover, not required to disclose her pregnancy โ€“ save where she claims the protection...

Daily sickness benefitsย : attending a job interview during sick leave is an unauthorised activity
Daily sickness benefitsย : attending a job interview during sick leave is an unauthorised activity

To receive daily social security benefits while on sick leave, an employee must refrain from any activity that has not been expressly and previously authorised by the prescribing doctor. The case law ...