At NITSCHNEIDER & PARTNERS, a case involving a dismissed kindergarten worker tested the definition of “pregnant employee” under the Labour Code. (source: Vecteezy)
In a country where precarious work contracts and opaque employment practices are often part of everyday working life, a series of recent labour law cases handled by leading Slovak law firms is quietly reshaping the rules of the game. From long-contested wrongful dismissals at the public broadcaster to novel interpretations of protections for pregnant employees, these cases highlight both the fragility and potential of employment protections in Slovakia.
Journalists’ win
At the centre of the most consequential case is the team at Taylor Wessing, representing four journalists dismissed from the former Radio and Television of Slovakia (RTVS), now Slovak Television and Radio (STVR), in 2018. At the time, the broadcaster was facing mounting criticism of its management under then-director Jaroslav Rezník. The journalists – Kristián Čekovský, Jana Alexová, Matúš Baňovič and Matúš Dávid – had been working for years in what they claimed was a form of disguised employment. Though formally bound by “external” contracts, they performed day-to-day duties akin to full-time staff.
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When their contracts were abruptly terminated, they challenged the decision in court. “This was not a typical claim for the invalidity of an employment termination,” explained Tomáš Grell, LL.M., the lead counsel from Taylor Wessing. “The clients were, by decision of the public broadcaster, compelled to carry out their work formally under a copyright contract. As a result, it was necessary to persuade the courts that the nature of their work in fact constituted dependent employment within the meaning of the Labour Code – in other words, a concealed employment relationship.”
