1. The subject of the dispute is the employee’s right to receive payments upon dismissal, namely compensation for unused vacation, severance pay, and average earnings for the delay in settlement.
2. The court of cassation upheld the decision of the appellate court, emphasizing that the payment of average earnings under Article 117 of the Labor Code of Ukraine has a compensatory nature, not a punitive one, and the courts must take into account the principles of reasonableness, fairness, and proportionality when determining the amount of compensation. The court noted that the establishment of a maximum six-month period for calculating average earnings does not negate the need to assess the proportionality of the amount of compensation to the circumstances of the case, the amount of debt, and the behavior of the parties. The court also agreed that the employer’s actions to cancel the bonus order after the employee’s dismissal do not affect the scope of rights acquired by the employee at the time of dismissal and are not an effective way to protect. The appellate court, by reducing the amount of average earnings for the delay in settlement in proportion to the satisfied claims, ensured a fair balance of the parties’ interests.
3. The court of cassation dismissed the cassation appeal, and the decisions of the previous courts remained unchanged.
**: The Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court departed from the conclusion of the Cassation Administrative Court in the ruling of December 6, 2024, in case No. 440/6856/22, regarding the impossibility of reducing the amount of average earnings for the delay in settlement upon dismissal due to the entry into force of the norm of Article 117 of the Labor Code of Ukraine in the new version.
