A severance after 30 years of employment sounds like a substantial sum — yet as the case of a 61-year-old employee shows, it is no guarantee of a successful fresh start. The court upheld the termination even though the employee had spent three decades with the same company. The ruling raises questions: When is a termination valid despite long tenure? And what role does the severance play?
The Case: Termination After 30 Years of Tenure — What the Court Decided
In the reported case, the employee had worked in an office for 30 years. At age 61, he received notice of termination. The court approved the termination and awarded him a severance of €60,000. The exact background — whether the termination was for operational, personal, or conduct-related reasons — is not known. But the ruling shows: Even long tenure does not automatically protect against termination.
For many employees, such a decision comes as a surprise. After all, they have contributed their labor for decades and feel connected to the company. Yet labor law does not require a “reward” for long loyalty. The sole decisive factor is whether the termination is socially justified.
When Is a Termination After Long Tenure Legally Valid?
Under the Protection Against Unfair Dismissal Act (KSchG), a termination is socially justified only if it is based on reasons relating to the person of the employee, their conduct, or urgent operational requirements. These three categories — personal, conduct-related, operational — are the only legitimate grounds for an ordinary termination.
With long tenure, courts examine particularly carefully whether the employer has exhausted all possibilities to continue employing the worker. For example, in an operational termination, the social selection must be carried out correctly. Employees performing similar duties are compared against each other. Criteria such as age, tenure, and maintenance obligations play a role. However: Even a long-serving employee can fall within the social selection if other colleagues are more worthy of protection. More on the topic of social plan severance and age scaling can be found in our article Social Plan Severance and Age Scaling.
In the case of the 61-year-old, the long tenure could even have been a disadvantage. In social selection, older employees are often given preferential protection — but not always. If the employer can prove that continued employment is impossible for operational reasons, a termination after 30 years can also be valid.
Severance after 30 Years: How to Assess €60,000
The severance of €60,000 raises the question of whether this amount is appropriate. There is no statutory formula for the level of severance. In practice, however, a rule of thumb has become established: roughly 0.5 to 1 gross monthly salary per year of employment. With 30 years of tenure and an assumed monthly gross salary of €3,000, that yields a range of €45,000 to €90,000. €60,000 therefore falls in the middle range.
However, this rule of thumb is only a benchmark. The actual amount depends on many factors: the employee’s negotiating power, the company’s financial situation, the employer’s offer, and not least whether an unfair dismissal action has been filed. Often a severance is negotiated in a court settlement. The employer offers a severance to avoid the risk of protracted proceedings.
A severance after 30 years of tenure is therefore not a fixed figure but the result of negotiations. Anyone who accepts the first offer may be leaving money on the table. Learn more in our article Why Many Severance Packages Are Too Low and What Good Lawyers Do Differently.
Your Rights: Filing Deadline and Options After Termination
Anyone who receives a termination must act quickly. The deadline for filing an unfair dismissal action is three weeks from receipt of the termination notice. If this deadline is missed, the termination is deemed valid without any review of whether it was socially justified. This is one of the most important traps in labor law.
Within this deadline, you should decide whether to accept the termination or challenge it. An unfair dismissal action aims to establish the invalidity of the termination. In many cases, however, the proceedings end in a settlement that provides for a severance. Even if you are seeking a severance, filing an action is often the right way to put pressure on the employer.
Before suing, you should assess whether the termination has any prospect of success. This includes the question of whether the employer conducted the social selection correctly, whether the works council was consulted, and whether the notice period was observed. An independent assessment can be obtained from a specialist lawyer for labor law. Also note that you may be entitled to unemployment benefits during the proceedings — but the severance can be offset against unemployment benefits. More details can be found in our post Severance and Legal Aid: What Employees Need to Know After a Settlement.
What Long-Serving Employees Can Learn from the Ruling
The ruling shows that long tenure offers no absolute protection against termination. Anyone who has been with a company for 30 years should not rest in false security. Instead, employees should know their rights and act quickly in an emergency.
The level of a severance after 30 years is not fixed by law. It depends on the negotiation. It is therefore advisable not to accept the first offer but to obtain a realistic assessment. An experienced lawyer can help determine the value of the severance and conduct the negotiation.
In addition, employees with long tenure should examine whether their termination is actually socially justified. Formal errors often render a termination invalid. For example, the works council must be consulted before every termination. If this consultation is missing, the termination is invalid. Compliance with the notice period is also crucial — the longer the tenure, the longer the period. At 30 years, the notice period can amount to several months.
Negotiating Severance: Realistic Expectations and Strategies
Anyone negotiating a severance should be clear about the benchmark. The rule of thumb of 0.5 to 1 monthly salary per year serves as orientation. Yet the actual amount depends on many factors. A realistic expectation is important to avoid demanding too much and jeopardizing the negotiation.
One strategy is to file an unfair dismissal action first. This signals to the employer that you are prepared to fight. In many cases, the employer then offers a higher severance to avoid a trial. The employer calculates the risk of losing the case and potentially having to continue paying the salary.
Anyone aiming for a severance after 30 years should seek legal advice early. A specialist lawyer can assess the prospects of success and conduct the negotiation. They can also examine whether the severance can be structured tax-efficiently. Note that severance payments are generally subject to income tax but may be taxed at a reduced rate under certain conditions.
Independent Advice: When It Pays to Consult a Specialist Lawyer
Not every termination requires a lawyer. If you already have a new job lined up and wish to accept the termination, a termination agreement with severance may make sense. In most cases, however, legal advice is recommended — especially with long tenure, because a lot is at stake.
A specialist lawyer for labor law can assess your chances, monitor the filing deadline, and negotiate with the employer. You bear the lawyer’s costs in the first instance unless you have legal expenses insurance. Alternatively, there are litigation funders like RechtStark that cover the costs of the action if the prospects of success are good. RechtStark is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice — the advice is always provided by the lawyer you choose.
If you are unsure whether an action is worthwhile, you can initially obtain free information from a legal aid office or a lawyer. The key is to keep the three-week deadline in view — miss it, and the termination becomes automatically valid.
The ruling on the €60,000 severance shows: Even after 30 years of tenure, a termination is possible. But there are ways to fight back and achieve an appropriate severance. Don’t be discouraged — but act quickly and with care.
Note: This article is for general information purposes only and does not replace individual legal advice. For a free initial assessment of whether litigation funding may be an option for your case, you can contact RechtStark.