Legal basis
Our review is based on the Swiss Code of Obligations and on federal and cantonal case law from the Omnilex corpus. The most important sources are listed below. All sources can be accessed directly via Omnilex Mind or the Federal Supreme Court. 30.09.2026.
Statute
| Art. 335 OR | Termination, duty to state reasons on request |
| Art. 335b OR | Notice period during the probation period (7 days) |
| Art. 335c OR | Notice periods: 1, 2 and 3 months to the end of a month |
| Art. 335d bis 335g OR | Mass redundancy: consultation and notification |
| Art. 336 OR | Unfair (abusive) dismissal |
| Art. 336a OR | Compensation of up to 6 months' salary |
| Art. 336b OR | Objection by the end of the notice period, legal action within 180 days |
| Art. 336c OR | Termination at an inopportune time by the employer: protection periods |
| Art. 336d OR | Termination at an inopportune time by the employee |
| Art. 337 OR | Summary termination for good cause |
| Art. 337c OR | Consequences of unjustified summary dismissal |
| Art. 337d OR | Consequences of unjustified failure to start work or abandonment of the job |
| Art. 328 OR | Duty of care, protection of the employee's personality |
| Art. 330a OR | Employment reference (Arbeitszeugnis) |
| Art. 341 OR | Non-waivability of mandatory claims |
| Art. 340c OR | Lapse of the non-compete clause |
Case law
Protection periods and nullity
- 4C.198/2002Inability to work through no fault of one's own is never good cause (Art. 337 para. 3 CO); compensation under Art. 337c para. 3 CO is the rule
- 1C_296/2008Dismissal during the protection period is void; a new, unrelated illness triggers a new protection period
- 4A_47/2008Pregnancy during a running notice period: the period is suspended and extends to the next end date
- 8C_607/2021A medical certificate is not absolute evidence; incapacity for work at the time of dismissal must be proven
- 4C.383/1999A termination agreement during illness must not undermine continued salary payment and protection against dismissal at an improper time without consideration in return
Unfair (abusive) dismissal
- BGE 132 III 115Age-related dismissal: heightened duty of care towards long-serving, older employees shortly before retirement
- 4A_117/2023Dismissal of a cook 11 months before retirement after 30 years of service was unfair
- 4A_44/2021No automatic protection for older senior staff: for executive management with high responsibility, no duty to hold a hearing or look for alternatives
- 4A_384/2014Unfair: no discussion and no last chance for a long-serving, older employee
- 4A_186/2022Restructuring with a short period for reflection, garden leave and no farewell is not yet unfair
- BGE 125 III 70Dismissal due to conflict: unfair if the employer took no reasonable measures to defuse the conflict
- 4A_39/2023Conflict and retaliatory dismissal must be substantiated specifically; an untrue reason alone does not make the dismissal unfair
- 4C.215/2005Unfair: dismissal of an employee with 44 years of service without an attempt to resolve the conflict, six months' salary in compensation
- 4C.103/2000Retaliatory dismissal: the assertion of claims must have been decisive for the dismissal
- 4A_402/2023Retaliatory dismissal affirmed: dismissal after the employee requested a waiver of the limitation defence for overtime
- 4A_368/2023Dismissal on suspicion: the internal investigation must be careful but need not offer criminal-procedure guarantees; if the suspicion later proves false, the dismissal is not unfair per se
- 4A_387/2016Employee representative: loss of trust can be a justified reason; burden of proof lies with the employer
- 4A_415/2011An employee representative may be dismissed for economic reasons if there is no connection with the representative activity
- 4A_571/2008Mass redundancy: consultation must take place before the final decision, otherwise compensation is due
- 4C.135/2004Assessment of compensation under Art. 336a CO: fault, manner of dismissal, length of employment, age, economic consequences
Summary dismissal
- BGE 130 III 28Summary dismissal: response period of 2 to 3 working days after learning of the good cause, otherwise the right is forfeited
- 4A_477/2011Summary dismissal: for legal entities with a multi-member governing body, around one week may still be timely
- 4A_109/2016Summary dismissal only for an objectively and subjectively serious breach of duty; reasons may be added later only if they were unknown at the time
- 4C.109/2003Minor misconduct justifies summary dismissal only after a clear warning
- 4C.198/2002Inability to work through no fault of one's own is never good cause (Art. 337 para. 3 CO); compensation under Art. 337c para. 3 CO is the rule
- 4A_569/2010Summary dismissal justified: lying in the job interview for a senior position at a bank
Form, receipt and objection
- 4P.169/2000Receipt of a dismissal sent by registered post: receipt theory, the recipient bears the risk of late collection
- 4A_347/2009An objection under Art. 336b CO must be received before the notice period expires, even with a short probation-period notice
- 4A_199/2026Anyone claiming compensation must assert and prove a timely written objection
- 4C.36/2006Legal action on the 181st day after the end of the employment relationship is time-barred
Termination agreement
- BGE 118 II 58Termination agreement: permissible if both parties make concessions and mandatory dismissal protection is not circumvented
- 4A_673/2016A termination agreement is a genuine settlement if the concessions are roughly equivalent
- 4C.383/1999A termination agreement during illness must not undermine continued salary payment and protection against dismissal at an improper time without consideration in return
- 8C_94/2020Termination agreement and unemployment insurance: employer payments must cover the loss of earnings until the earliest possible end date
- 4C.230/2005An implied termination agreement must not be assumed lightly
The key rules at a glance
- Freedom to terminate: An open-ended employment relationship may be terminated without giving reasons. On request, the reasons for the dismissal must be given in writing (Art. 335 CO).
- Notice periods: 7 days during the probation period; thereafter 1 month in the 1st year of service, 2 months in the 2nd to 9th year, 3 months from the 10th year of service, in each case to the end of a month. The contract or a CLA may provide otherwise, but never less than one month and only equally long for both parties (Art. 335b, 335c CO).
- Receipt: The notice takes effect as soon as it reaches the recipient's sphere of control. Registered letters are deemed delivered once they can be collected.
- Protection periods: No dismissal by the employer during military service, illness or accident (30, 90 or 180 days depending on the year of service), pregnancy and 16 weeks after giving birth, and during certain parental leaves. A dismissal given during this time is void; a notice period already running is suspended (Art. 336c CO).
- Unfair dismissal: Dismissal because of personal characteristics, the exercise of constitutional rights, the assertion of claims, military service, trade union activity, or without consultation in a mass redundancy. Case law adds: a hurtful manner of dismissal, failure to resolve conflicts, lack of consideration for older, long-serving employees. Consequence: compensation of up to 6 months' salary, no reinstatement (Art. 336, 336a CO).
- Objection: In writing by the end of the notice period, legal action within 180 days of the end of the employment relationship (Art. 336b CO).
- Summary dismissal: Only for good cause that makes continuing the relationship unreasonable; minor misconduct only after a warning. Response within 2 to 3 working days. If unjustified: salary until the ordinary termination date plus compensation of up to 6 months' salary (Art. 337, 337c CO).
- Termination agreement: Permissible if both parties make concessions. A waiver of mandatory claims without consideration in return is ineffective (Art. 341 CO).