Right to protection against unfair dismissal and obstacles for its effective exercise in times of crisis

The right to protection against unfair dismissal is one of the fundamental rights of employees. It means that an employer cannot dismiss an employee unless there is a valid reason related to the capacity or conduct of that employee or to the employer’s requirements. At the very core of this rule lies an inclination to create a balance between the need to protect employees, as the weaker (economically dependent and legally subordinate) party to the employment relationship, and the need to preserve employers autonomy in matters that affect their business activities. In times of crisis, broad guarantees of employment security are criticized as an obstacle to overcoming the difficulties employers face in the market. On the other hand, the legal systems that give employers absolute freedom to dismiss employees are also criticized, because employees feel a bigger need for protection when they’re facing the risk of (long-term) unemployment. These were the ongoing debates after the flare-up of economic crisis in the autumn of 2008, and certain European countries decided to loosen up the protection against dismissal (simplifying the dismissal procedures, shortening the notice period, decreasing protection against unlawful dismissal). However, there is fear that such solutions may not be able to induce increase in employment rates and that they may lead to a deeper social inequality and marginalization of the most vulnerable categories of workers. Therefore, this paper starts with the examination of the right to protection against unfair dismissal and its place in the corpus of labour rights, as well as the development and contemporary interpretations of the concept of valid reasons for dismissal. After that, the key aspects of the reformed rules on dismissal in European countries are identified, as well as the fundamental challenges and obstacles for effective exercise of the right to protection against unfair dismissal in Serbian legislation and practice. And in the end, we draw a conclusion that economic crisis can be a legitimate reason for amending the rules on dismissal, but that these amendments should not result in excessive insecurity of employees and violation of their fundamental social rights