Publié le 12/06/2026

French labour law - Contagious grounds – Dismissal of an employee for failing to inform her employer of her pregnancy = void dismissal (cass soc June 3rd, 26, 24-22.719)

Article juridique - Droit du travail

An appeals court violates paragraph 3 of the preamble to the Constitution of October 27, 1946, and Articles L1225-2, L1225-4, L1132-1, and L1132-4 of the French Labor Code when, in dismissing the employee's claim for annulment of her dismissal, it holds that by failing to inform her employer of her pregnancy, the employee exposed herself to a risk to her health that could entail the civil, or even criminal, liability of her employer and did not faithfully perform her employment contract.

This is what the Court of Cassation affirmed in a ruling dated June 3, 2026, No. 24-22.719, published in the Bulletin.

An employee working in contact with products hazardous to her health and that of her fetus does not commit a disciplinary offense by knowingly failing to inform her employer of her pregnancy.

The employer must avoid any mention of the pregnancy in the dismissal letter, otherwise the dismissal will be deemed null and void.

This constitutes a "contagious ground" for dismissal null and void, meaning that other grounds for dismissal are not considered by the judge, because it contains grounds for discrimination, harassment, or a violation of a fundamental freedom.

IV- Analysis

This ruling of June 3, 2026, follows the recent ruling of March 25, 2026 (No. 24-14.766), which required employers to justify the termination of a pregnant employee's probationary period with reasons unrelated to her pregnancy.

Indeed, these rulings reaffirm and strengthen the protection of pregnant employees.

While it is not new that a pregnant employee is under no obligation to declare her pregnancy to her employer, as stipulated in Article L.1225-2 of the French Labor Code, the question arose when the employee's work is likely to harm her health as well as that of her fetus.

The Advocate General's opinion also highlighted a two-part line of reasoning: firstly, on whether or not the employee was obligated to inform the employer of her pregnancy when her work posed a risk to her health and that of her unborn child.

Secondly, the question was: “If the pregnancy-related grievance is not valid, does it render a dismissal based in part on that pregnancy null and void?” The Court of Cassation, in its ruling, provides an answer to this question: a pregnant employee is never obligated to disclose her pregnancy, and this deliberate omission cannot be subject to disciplinary action without incurring nullity.

The Court of Cassation bases its reasoning on a combined reading of Articles L1132-1 and L1132-4 of the French Labor Code. The first article prohibits any discrimination based, in particular, on her “pregnancy status,” while the second article renders null and void any measure taken in violation of this prohibition.

By recognizing the nullity of a dismissal partially based on the employee’s pregnancy, this ruling follows a line of reasoning that has established a contagious basis for dismissal (exercise of freedom of expression; right to strike; private life). Thus, since the dismissal letter must state the reason(s) for this measure (Article L.1232-6 of the French Labor Code), it is sufficient for a discriminatory reason to be among those invoked for the dismissal to be declared null and void.

This was the case here, as the reason related to the employee's breach of the duty of loyalty in not disclosing her pregnancy and exposing herself to health risks was discriminatory because the dismissal was indirectly linked to the pregnancy.

Pregnancy is therefore added to the list of potentially discriminatory reasons that an employee can invoke to request the annulment of a dismissal based on various grounds.

Ultimately, the employer cannot invoke a breach of an employee's duty of loyalty to justify her dismissal based on her pregnancy and thus circumvent the protections established for pregnant women.

To read the full article, click on the link below.

https://www.village-justice.com/articles/motif-contaminant-licenciement-une-salariee-pour-avoir-omis-informer-son,57825.html

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