In its judgment of 24 June 2026, Case No. 21 Cdo 18/2026, the Supreme Court of the Czech Republic (the “Supreme Court”) considered whether a probationary period is also extended by a period during which the employer failed to assign work to the employee because of its mistaken belief that the employment relationship had already terminated.
In the case at hand, the parties had agreed on a probationary period which was originally due to expire on 30 November 2023. During the probationary period, the employee took two days of annual leave, as a result of which the probationary period was extended by operation of law until 4 December 2023. On 1 December 2023, the employer attempted to terminate the employment relationship during the probationary period, but failed to prove that the relevant legal act had been duly served on the employee. Subsequently, from 4 December 2023 until 21 February 2024, the employer did not assign any work to the employee because it believed that the employment relationship had already ended.
On 22 February 2024, the employee returned to work and, on the same day, the employer served him with a notice terminating the employment relationship during the probationary period. The employee subsequently brought an action seeking a declaration that the termination was invalid.
The Supreme Court stated that, for these purposes, the Labour Code does not distinguish between obstacles to work on the employee’s side and obstacles to work on the employer’s side. The probationary period is therefore extended by any relevant obstacle to work, irrespective of whether it was caused by objective circumstances, chance, the conduct of the employee or the employer, or by fault on either side.
During the period of an obstacle to work, the employee does not perform work and the very purpose of the probationary period — namely, the practical mutual assessment of whether the employment relationship meets the expectations of both the employee and the employer — cannot therefore be fulfilled. This conclusion also applies to an obstacle to work under Section 208 of the Labour Code arising where the employer fails to assign work to the employee, for example as a result of its mistaken belief that the employment relationship has already terminated.
HR Legal Update 07,08/2026 here.