If the question of the dismissal of Guillaume Meurice arose, the management of Radio France would not really have had a choice. The comedian has in fact benefited from the status of protected employee for several months. According to our information, he appeared on the SUD list in the last professional elections of staff representatives and would therefore be untouchable for the moment. As such, he would benefit from protection from the labor code which applies for varying durations depending on the mandates. Who can benefit from it and under what conditions?
Any employee “having representative functions in the company benefits from special protection against dismissal”, recalls the official website of the French administration, which emphasizes that “in addition to the usual dismissal procedure, dismissal is subject to with the prior authorization of the labor inspector. Concretely, any employee only needs to have been a candidate in a professional election, to be the holder or former holder of a staff representative mandate to be concerned by this protection against dismissal. The occupational physician also benefits from specific protection, particularly in the event of termination of his permanent contract by dismissal or as part of the conventional termination procedure (individual or collective), or termination or non-renewal of his fixed-term contract.
Other employees may also benefit from this protection under a mandate external to the company, “the existence of which may not be known to the employer”. A special status which may in particular apply for example to members of the board or administrator of a social security fund, to members of the board of directors of a mutual, union or federation.
But there is no question of abusing this protection for too long a time, since it only applies for a period of six months for former staff representatives, former works council elected officials and former union representatives having exercised their mandate for at least two years, former elected members of the staff delegation of the social and economic committee (CSE) as well as former union representatives having exercised their mandate for at least two years. But also for former members of the inter-company CSE staff delegation, former local representatives and the employee who served on the CHSCT as a staff representative.
Candidates for staff representative elections also benefited from this six-month protection, upon receipt of their candidacy by the employer, as well as candidates not elected in the last works council elections, upon sending the lists of candidates to the employer. It is in this context that the comedian Guillaume Meurice would thus be “protected”. Former union delegates, former representatives of the union section and former advisors of the employee, having held their position for at least one year, are protected for one year. Please note, however, that in the event of serious misconduct, the employer can, according to the Labor Code, “immediately dismiss the person concerned”.
When it concerns a union delegate, a mandated employee, an employee advisor, a representative of the union section or the CSE, this decision must be “notified to the labor inspector within 48 hours of its decision of effect”. And if the dismissal is refused by the labor inspector, “the layoff is canceled and its effects removed”.