From part-time struggler to full-time winner

After almost five years of employment, a social worker demanded a full-time position. Over the past 12 months, she had worked 377 hours more than her agreed-upon workload.

Despite her workload, the company denied her request. She was informed that two newly hired fixed-term employees would cover the extra workload.

No proof that temporary employees solved the issue

The Dispute Resolution Board concluded that she was entitled to a full-time position. It referred to the main rule that companies must be able to document that there is no longer a necessity for added work at the time of a request.

The Board found that the company’s documentation was insufficient. Instead of documenting that its need was resolved, it was clear that the need for added work was consistent – not temporary. It emphasised that the company had not attempted to show that the new temporary employees resolved the issue.

IUNO’s opinion

The decision shows how important it is to meet the documentation requirements when handling requests for an increase in working hours. Otherwise, companies may need to accept a request to change the working time for a part-time employee. 

IUNO recommends that companies establish clear routines to handle such requests. Having procedures in place will help companies better understand the workload and make it easier to plan future actions.

[The Dispute Resolution Board's decision of 19 December 2024 in case 115/24]