Workplace disputes can sometimes escalate into physical fights. In those cases, employers may dismiss an employee without examining who was right. An employee who starts a fight at work may also lose the right to severance pay.
Consequences of Being Involved in a Workplace Fight
Tensions and disagreements that arise in the workplace can occasionally turn into fights. Employees involved in those fights risk losing their jobs and forfeiting long-earned rights such as severance pay. Many court decisions by the Turkish Court of Cassation (Yargıtay) address this issue.
One illustrative recent case is Yargıtay decision number 28093. In that matter, an employee who had worked at the company for six years was dismissed without receiving severance or notice pay after joining a fight with coworkers. The dismissed employee sued to recover those payments. The trial court initially sided with the employee, but the employer appealed and the Court of Cassation ultimately ruled in the employer’s favor. According to the case file, the plaintiff had previously been involved in an earlier altercation and, despite receiving a warning, later engaged in another dispute with a colleague and issued threats.
The employer terminated the worker who sparked the incident. The Court of Cassation found that because the plaintiff had initiated the wrongful conduct and had a prior similar incident, dismissal was justified. However, the court also determined the employer failed to act fairly by dismissing only one of the participants; both employees involved in the fight should have been dismissed. Because the employment contract was terminated for a valid reason, the court held that severance and notice payments were not owed.
All Participants in a Fight May Be Dismissed
Another Yargıtay decision confirms that when a fight breaks out at work, courts do not typically seek to establish who was more justified. All participants in the altercation can be dismissed. In a leading precedent, the court emphasized that insulting or attacking the employer, a member of the employer’s family, or another employee gives the employer grounds for lawful termination. Words or actions that breach the employee’s duty of loyalty provide the employer with the right to terminate the employment relationship. The court noted that harassment can take the form of verbal or physical assault and that such conduct need not constitute a criminal offense to justify dismissal.
Accordingly, even if one party instigated the fight or another party acted under provocation, when a fight occurs on company premises the employment contracts of all participants can be terminated. The employer may dismiss everyone involved for valid reasons and, in such cases, is not required to pay severance or notice compensation.
Employers Must Act Equally
Employers also have important obligations under principles of equal treatment in the workplace. If an employer dismisses only the person it sees as at fault while treating others differently, that may breach the equal treatment principle. If the dismissed employee files a lawsuit, the court may determine that the other participant should also have been terminated on legitimate grounds without entitlement to compensation. For this reason, employers and their representatives should apply consistent measures to all participants in a fight.
Under relevant rulings, those who provoke or take part in a fight can be dismissed without severance. Even if an employee was mocked or physically attacked, if they responded by fighting they may still lose their job. An exception exists when the injured party uses proportionate actions solely to defend themselves; in that circumstance, dismissal may not be justified. If an employer fires only the alleged instigator and not the other participants, the matter can be brought before a court for review.