March 2025 – As Kinstellar moves into 2025, Kinstellar highlights some of the key developments in the Romanian employment dispute landscape over the past year. You can read the firm’s summaries of these key trends below, along with its thoughts on where it expects to see more employment litigation activity in the year ahead.
I. Romanian market insights
Two key drivers in Romania this year concerning the increased risk of employment litigation are economic uncertainty, which could lead to company restructurings and related dismissals, as well as the many changes in Romanian legislation relating to whistleblowing and the prevention of discrimination and harassment at the workplace.
Specifically, there are two types of employee lawsuits Kinstellar expects to see often in 2025: (i) harassment, discrimination, as well as whistleblower claims, and (ii) appeals against employment termination.
Harassment, discrimination and whistleblower claims
There is a strong focus on the importance of fair procedures when conducting complex investigations into issues relating to workplace culture and moral and sexual harassment and discrimination, together with significant investment in training, risk frameworks and policy reviews in light of the new Romanian legal obligations on employers to take reasonable steps to prevent moral and sexual harassment and discrimination at the workplace.
Kinstellar has also seen an increase in the number of whistleblowing claims brought against company management. Although some of these are justified, others continue to use whistleblowing as a strategy to turn standard unfair dismissal claims into uncapped claims. Many employees tend to believe that allegations of moral and sexual harassment and discrimination should automatically constitute whistleblowing, which may increase the number of complaints made through company whistleblowing channels.
Appeals against dismissals
The Romanian labour market has faced significant challenges in recent years. From the impact of COVID-19 to rising inflation and rapid advances in AI, these disruptions have triggered economic shifts that have reshaped the professional landscape. In response, companies have resorted to mergers and restructurings, changes that often result in individual, as well as collective dismissals.
The year 2025 began with a significant number of companies making redundancies, particularly in the technology sector. Redundancies of this magnitude can carry both business and reputational risks and need to be handled carefully in accordance with the law to avoid backlash.
II. Three different legal types of employment litigation won for employers in recent months in Romania by Kinstellar’s skilled and agile employment litigation team
Drawing on these trends, Kinstellar is proud to share the Bucharest employment litigation team’s court victories in favour of employers from the past two months, namely:
- a case concerning collective dismissal—Kinstellar was able to demonstrate that the collective dismissal implemented by an employer/Romanian subsidiary of a global group of companies due to regional organisational changes and the unprofitability of some online games was legal and justified in the current global context;
- a case concerning moral harassment and discrimination at work—Kinstellar was able to demonstrate that the annual increase in salaries is at the discretion of the employer/Romanian subsidiary of an international group of companies and that the employer has the right to organise its activities as it deems convenient, including by dismissing some employees if their positions have become objectively redundant;
- a case concerning the unilateral termination of an individual employment contract during a probationary period—Kinstellar was able to demonstrate that the employer/Romanian subsidiary of a global IT company did not perpetrate an abuse of right by unilaterally terminating the individual employment contract if the employer can prove that the employee was not suitable both from a professional perspective, as well as from an ethical perspective; another particularity of this employment litigation was that the employee was in the incentive period (after the parental leave), protected by law against dismissal, but the employee did not inform the employer about this legal situation.
Such judicial outcomes are rare in Romania, where it is usually the employees who win labour disputes, so this is a remarkable achievement for Kinstellar’s skilled and agile employment litigation team and its clients. In Romania, Kinstellar is fortunate to have a strong Litigation team of ten lawyers and an excellent Employment and Labour team of four lawyers, giving the local office the full capacity to offer dedicated and specialised teams to its clients.
III. Takeaway
The takeaway for employers is that, in the event of a dismissal dispute, they will need to prove that the measure was not subjective or unjustified. Thus, an important step before the implementation of dismissals for reasons not related to the employees envisages preparing a financial and business analysis pointing out the solid/serious and real grounds for implementing the dismissal for redundancy. Should the dismissal decisions be established as illegally issued (i.e., if any of the procedural aspects reflected by the law are not properly observed or the reorganisation process is not solidly grounded on its merits), the court shall order its cancellation and oblige the employer to pay damages to the employee, representing up-to-date salaries, as well as other salary rights the employee would have been entitled to under the individual employment agreement, and even moral damages.
Also, in case of a claim raised by an employee, whether it relates to harassment, discrimination or any other issue, the employers will need to demonstrate that they took reasonable steps to enquire as to the nature and substance of the complaint, as well as any remedial action that may be available to them.
Martie 2025 – Pe masura ce Kinstellar intra in 2025, Kinstellar evidentiaza unele dintre cele mai importante evolutii in peisajul litigiilor de munca din Romania din ultimul an. Puteti citi rezumatele firmei despre aceste tendinte cheie mai jos, impreuna cu opiniile sale despre unde se asteapta sa vada mai multa activitate in litigiile de munca in anul urmator.
I. Perspectivele pietei din Romania
Doi factori cheie in Romania anul acesta, care influenteaza cresterea riscului de litigii de munca, sunt incertitudinea economica, care ar putea duce la restructurari si concedieri, precum si numeroasele modificari ale legislatiei romanesti referitoare la avertizorii de integritate si prevenirea discriminarii si hartuirii la locul de munca.
In mod specific, exista doua tipuri de litigii initiate de angajati pe care Kinstellar se asteapta sa le vada frecvent in 2025: (i) revendicari privind hartuirea, discriminarea si avertizorii de integritate si (ii) contestatii impotriva concedierilor.
Hartuire, discriminare si avertizori de integritate
Exista un accent puternic pe importanta procedurilor echitabile atunci cand se efectueaza investigatii complexe in probleme legate de cultura organizationala si hartuirea si discriminarea morala si sexuala, alaturi de investitii semnificative in training, cadre de risc si revizuiri ale politicilor, avand in vedere noile obligatii legale impuse angajatorilor romani de a lua masuri rezonabile pentru a preveni hartuirea si discriminarea morala si sexuala la locul de munca.
Kinstellar a observat, de asemenea, o crestere a numarului de reclamatii legate de avertizorii de integritate impotriva conducerii companiilor. Desi unele dintre acestea sunt justificate, altele continua sa utilizeze statutul de avertizor de integritate ca strategie pentru a transforma revendicari standard de concediere nejustificata in revendicari fara limita maxima de despagubire. Multi angajati tind sa creada ca acuzatiile de hartuire morala si sexuala si discriminare ar trebui sa fie automat considerate ca avertizari de integritate, ceea ce poate creste numarul de plangeri formulate prin canalele de avertizare din companii.
Contestatii impotriva concedierilor
Piata muncii din Romania s-a confruntat cu provocari semnificative in ultimii ani. De la impactul COVID-19 la cresterea inflatiei si avansurile rapide in domeniul inteligentei artificiale, aceste perturbari au declansat schimbari economice care au remodelat peisajul profesional. Ca raspuns, companiile au recurs la fuziuni si restructurari, schimbari care au dus adesea la concedieri individuale si colective.
Anul 2025 a inceput cu un numar semnificativ de companii care fac disponibilizari, in special in sectorul tehnologic. Concedierile de aceasta amploare pot implica atat riscuri comerciale, cat si reputationale si trebuie gestionate cu atentie, in conformitate cu legea, pentru a evita reactiile negative.
II. Trei tipuri diferite de litigii de munca castigate recent in Romania in favoarea angajatorilor de catre echipa agila si experimentata a Kinstellar in litigii de munca
Pornind de la aceste tendinte, Kinstellar este mandru sa impartaseasca victoriile echipei sale de litigii de munca din Bucuresti in favoarea angajatorilor din ultimele doua luni, si anume:
- un caz privind concedierea colectiva—Kinstellar a demonstrat ca restructurarea colectiva implementata de un angajator/subsidiara romana a unui grup global de companii din cauza schimbarilor organizationale regionale si a lipsei de profitabilitate a unor jocuri online a fost legala si justificata in contextul global actual;
- un caz privind hartuirea morala si discriminarea la locul de munca—Kinstellar a demonstrat ca majorarea anuala a salariilor este la discretia angajatorului/subsidiara romana a unui grup international de companii si ca angajatorul are dreptul sa isi organizeze activitatile asa cum considera potrivit, inclusiv prin concedierea unor angajati daca posturile acestora au devenit obiectiv redundante;
- un caz privind incetarea unilaterala a unui contract individual de munca in perioada de proba—Kinstellar a demonstrat ca angajatorul/subsidiara romana a unei companii IT globale nu a comis un abuz de drept prin incetarea unilaterala a contractului individual de munca daca angajatorul poate dovedi ca angajatul nu era potrivit atat din punct de vedere profesional, cat si etic; o particularitate a acestui litigiu de munca a fost ca angajatul se afla in perioada de stimulare (dupa concediul de crestere a copilului), fiind protejat de lege impotriva concedierii, dar acesta nu a informat angajatorul despre aceasta situatie legala.
Astfel de rezultate judiciare sunt rare in Romania, unde de obicei angajatii castiga disputele de munca, ceea ce reprezinta o realizare remarcabila pentru echipa experimentata si agila a Kinstellar in litigii de munca si clientii sai. In Romania, Kinstellar are avantajul de a avea o echipa puternica de litigii, formata din zece avocati, si o echipa excelenta de Dreptul Muncii si Relatii de Munca, formata din patru avocati, oferind astfel biroului local capacitatea completa de a oferi echipe dedicate si specializate clientilor sai.
III. Concluzie
Concluzia pentru angajatori este ca, in cazul unui litigiu privind concedierea, acestia vor trebui sa dovedeasca faptul ca masura nu a fost subiectiva sau nejustificata. Astfel, un pas important inainte de implementarea concedierilor din motive care nu tin de angajati consta in pregatirea unei analize financiare si de afaceri care sa evidentieze motivele solide si reale pentru implementarea concedierii pentru restructurare. Daca deciziile de concediere sunt stabilite ca fiind ilegale (adica daca vreunul dintre aspectele procedurale reflectate de lege nu este respectat corespunzator sau daca procesul de reorganizare nu este fundamentat solid), instanta va dispune anularea acestora si va obliga angajatorul sa plateasca despagubiri angajatului, reprezentand salariile actualizate, precum si alte drepturi salariale la care angajatul ar fi avut dreptul conform contractului individual de munca, si chiar daune morale.
De asemenea, in cazul unei reclamatii formulate de un angajat, fie ca este vorba despre hartuire, discriminare sau orice alta problema, angajatorii vor trebui sa demonstreze ca au luat masuri rezonabile pentru a examina natura si substanta plangerii, precum si orice actiune remediala care ar putea fi disponibila pentru ei.