Court Rules Bank Abused Power by Reassigning Employee 52 km Away

A bank employee with 16 years of service resigned after being demoted and repeatedly reassigned to branches up to 52 kilometers from the original workplace. The worker sued for severance pay, arguing the transfers constituted constructive dismissal.

The local labor court ruled in favor of the employee, granting severance compensation. The bank appealed, citing contractual flexibility clauses and claiming the statute of limitations had expired.

“The employer's right to manage cannot be unlimited and must be exercised objectively.”

The Regional Court of Justice upheld the ruling, stating management rights are not unlimited and must be exercised objectively and in good faith. The court found the bank failed to justify the reassignments as a genuine operational necessity.

The decision establishes that employers cannot use transfer clauses to effectively force an employee to quit. The bank's appeal was rejected, finalizing the severance award.