An Apple for the Road — and Summary Dismissal

Summary dismissal is the most severe employment law sanction available to an employer. However, such a dismissal will only stand if there is an urgent cause justifying it. Whether an urgent cause exists depends, among other things, on the seriousness of the employee’s conduct. In practice, employers do not always assess that seriousness correctly.

Court of Appeal Arnhem-Leeuwarden, 20 April 2026

A recent judgment by the Arnhem-Leeuwarden Court of Appeal illustrates this perfectly.

The case concerned an employee who was alleged to have stolen fruit from his employer, a car rental company. Every Monday, the employer provided a fruit basket for employees, from which they were allowed to take fruit free of charge for immediate consumption.

After reviewing CCTV footage, the employer observed the employee taking several pieces of fruit with him at the end of the working day and decided to dismiss him with immediate effect. According to the employer, a strict zero-tolerance policy applied in cases of theft. The employer also argued that, given the timing and quantity involved, the employee could not reasonably have intended to consume the fruit during working hours and must therefore have taken it home for personal use.

At first instance, the subdistrict court upheld the summary dismissal.

The Court of Appeal, however, took a different view. Although the court considered it inconsiderate to remove around a quarter of the fruit basket, this was not serious enough to justify summary dismissal. The court also took into account that it was Ramadan and that the employee was unable to eat until later in the evening. In those circumstances, a less severe measure — such as a warning — would have been more appropriate.

The Court of Appeal ultimately ruled that the employee had been wrongfully dismissed with immediate effect. The employee was awarded salary over the applicable notice period, as well as a statutory transition payment and an additional fair compensation payment.

Urgent cause

An urgent cause must be considered both objectively and subjectively “urgent”.

From an objective perspective, the law provides several examples of conduct that may justify summary dismissal, including theft.

The subjective assessment is more nuanced. In general, there is a subjectively urgent cause where the employee’s conduct is so serious for that specific employer that the employer can no longer reasonably be expected to continue the employment relationship.

When assessing whether an urgent cause exists, all circumstances of the case must be taken into account. In this particular case, the court found that there was neither an objectively nor a subjectively urgent cause for summary dismissal.

A risky measure for employers

This judgment once again confirms that summary dismissal remains a high-risk measure. For employers, it can be difficult to assess whether a summary dismissal is likely to hold up in court.

Do you have questions about summary dismissal or employment law issues more generally? Please feel free to contact us — we would be happy to assist you.