Woman fired for getting to work 40 mins early each day; court sides with firm

A woman in Spain earned herself pink slip by going to work early over a period of two years. Surprised and annoyed at the development, she dragged the company to court, challenging her termination. However, the court ruled against her.

So here’s what went down. The 22-year-old would apparently get to work 40 minutes before her shift started – i.e. between 6.45am and 7pm, reported Hindustan Times. She did this for about two years in spite of her line manager asking her to come on time rather than early. It made the employer uncomfortable because as an early staff member, she had nothing to do, said her former boss.

The frustrated boss then decided to fire her on the grounds of ‘serious misconduct’. Media quoted the employer as saying that by arriving early, she wasn’t being more productive, merely flouting instructions.

The angry young employee headed to the Social Court of Alicante in Spain, calling her dismissal unjust. However, upon seeing the evidence of multiple written and hearing about the numerous verbal warnings, it sided with the firm.

The woman had also reportedly tried to log in through the company app before getting to the firm’s premises, raising eyebrows. The manager accused her of breach of trust and the court found her to have exhibited a pattern of disloyalty.  

It stated that she breached Article 54 of the Spanish Workers’ Statute.