CASE STUDY
An employee requests to take leave from August 4th to 25th 2025. He receives no response from his employer. Frustrated, as he has already booked a seaside rental for those dates, he decides to go on holiday anyway. Unhappy, the employer dismisses him for gross misconduct.
In turn, the employee, also unhappy, contests his dismissal before “le Conseil de prud’hommes”. He argues that there were no clearly established rules for taking time off from work, which led him to believe that his employer’s silence amounted to approval. He also claims the employer failed to fulfil their obligations regarding the planning of holidays.
The judge rules in favour of the employee: his dismissal for gross misconduct is deemed unfair.
An employer’s failure to fulfil their obligations in determining holiday periods and the order of departures can be considered a mitigating factor, or even grounds for fully exempting an employee from fault if they go on leave without authorisation.
This is a good opportunity to briefly remind employers that organising paid leave falls within their managerial authority, even though employees’ preferences are usually taken into account.
The organisation of holidays is done in three stages
(after consulting the Social and Economic Committee – where applicable – and checking the provisions of the relevant national collective agreement):
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Step 1
Determine the period during which holidays may be taken (excluding the fifth week), which must include, in all cases, the period from May 1st to October 31st each year.
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Step 2
Determine the order in which employees will take leave, considering their family situation, length of service with the company, and whether they have other employment.
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Step 3
Inform employees of the holiday period at least two months before it begins (for example, if the standard period starting on May 1st is used, employees must be informed by March 1st) and inform them of the order of departures by any means at least one month before their scheduled departure. Remember that, in theory, the employer cannot change the order or dates of leave less than one month before the planned departure, except in exceptional circumstances.
Did you know?
You can establish, through a company agreement (including in businesses with fewer than 11 employees), a broader holiday period than the standard May 1st to October 31st window, define the order of departures during this period, and set the deadlines for modifying the order and dates of leave – even if these terms differ from, or are less favourable than those in the national collective agreement.
