The concept and scope of responsibility
Employee liability is all personal and property consequences provided for by law due to non-performance or improper performance of employee duties. It is divided into organizational and material liability, which includes liability for damage caused to the employer and liability for property entrusted to the employee by the employer. Material liability occurs when an employee, as a result of non-performance or improper performance of employee duties, causes damage to the employer through his or her fault. The grounds for liability are the fault and illegality (non-performance or improper performance of employee duties) of the employee’s behavior. The employee is liable within the limits of the actual loss, and only for the normal consequences of the act or omission that resulted in the damage. The Labor Code also provides two grounds for limiting liability. First, liability is limited when the employer contributed to its creation. The employee also does not bear any risk related to the employer’s activities. The burden of proof to prove liability rests with the employer. If several people contributed to causing the damage, they are liable for part of the damage depending on their contribution and the degree of fault. If it is not possible to determine the degree of fault and contribution of individual employees to the damage, they are liable in equal parts.
Amount of compensation
The amount of compensation depends on the type of fault. In the case of willful misconduct, which, according to the case law of the Supreme Court, occurs when an employee intends to cause damage, the employee is liable to the full amount. The maximum amount of remuneration cannot exceed three times the monthly salary. The employer is liable to a third party to whom the employee has caused damage through his or her conduct. If the employer repairs the damage, it has a recourse claim against the employee. It is possible to repair the damage by way of an agreement between the employer and the employee, under which, taking into account all the circumstances of the case, in particular the degree of the employee’s fault and his attitude to his employment duties, the amount of compensation may be reduced. As a side note, it is also worth adding that there is unanimity in the case law as to the issue of concluding contractual clauses allowing for the payment of a specific sum of money to repair the damage. In this case, the employer would bypass the statutory requirement to examine the degree of guilt and the circumstances of the case. A similar position was also taken by case law regarding bills of exchange issued in the event of damage caused by an employee.