And worker from Girona, Spain, that had been dismissed while it remained hospitalized due to a heart attack he managed to get justice to agree with him after a long legal process. According to AS Diarythe employee received the dismissal letter just two days after entering the ICU, despite the fact that his health condition was serious y fully accredited.
The case ended up reaching courts and has led to a resolution that classifies the dismissal as null and void.
A dismissal while the worker was in the ICU
According to the same media, the conflict lasted for years, going through different judicial stages until the Superior Court of Justice of Catalonia issued his final ruling. The resolution obliges the company not only to reinstate the workerbut also to compensate him financially for the damages caused.
The events began in March 2022, when the employee, who worked in a carpentrysuffered a heart attack that required urgent care and his immediate admission to intensive care. Diario AS explained that, despite knowing the health situation, the enterprise decided dismiss him alleging an unjustified absencesending him a disciplinary dismissal letter while he was still hospitalized.
The situation generated surprise and public rejection when it was reported that, instead of waiting for his recovery or requesting medical information, the company opted for sudden dismissal. The worker’s family confirmed the severity of the clinical condition and his stay in the hospital, factors that were later key in the judicial process.
The ruling of the TSJC: readmission and economic compensation
The sentence of Superior Court of Justice of Catalonia concluded that the dismissal should be considered void because it occurred while the employee was in a situation of special vulnerability. The resolution was supported by the Ley 15/2022of equal treatment and non-discriminationwhich protects people from business decisions linked to serious illnesses.
As a result, the company was forced to reinstate the worker already pay the salaries that you stopped receiving since the day of dismissal. In addition, the ruling included compensation for moral damages, the amount of which is considered proportional to the severity of the business action and the emotional and economic impact generated.
A case that sets a clear precedent
According to Diario AS, the worker wore years carrying out their work without incidents and the only reason for his absence on the day of dismissal was his hospitalization for a heart attack.
The ruling reinforces the idea, already consolidated in recent judicial pronouncements, that the companies cannot make disciplinary decisions when the actual cause is linked to an illness that temporarily incapacitates the employee.
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