Inclusion of Paid Leave in the Calculation of Overtime: A Confirmed Reversal
Soc. Jan 7, 2026, n°24-19.410

The Cour de cassation confirmed its reversal of September 10, 2025 (No. 23-14.455), in which it ruled that an employee subject to a weekly work-time accounting may claim payment for overtime premiums even when, during the period in question, they were partially on paid leave. The Supreme Court thus establishes the principle that paid leave days must be included in the calculation of overtime. By the confirmation judgment of January 7, 2026, it extended this principle to employees subject to work-time accounting over a two-week period.

A new judicial approach to assessing freedom of expression in the workplace
Soc. Jan 14, 2026, n°24-13.778, n°24-19.583, n°23-19.947

Confronted with issues concerning the safeguarding of employees’ freedom of expression, the Court of Cassation has introduced a new analytical framework for trial judges in a series of rulings dated January 14, 2026. Traditionally, in assessing the lawfulness of a measure taken in response to a potential abuse of this freedom of expression, judges were required to determine whether the employee’s statements were insulting, defamatory, or excessive.
From now on, under the newly proposed method, judges must balance freedom of expression against the protection of the employer’s interests by analyzing the necessity, appropriateness, and proportionality of the measure taken, in light of the content of the statements, their context, their scope, and their impact within the company.

A dismissal for gross misconduct based on breaches that occurred prior to the suspension of the employment contract is valid.
Soc. Jan 21, 2026, 24-22.852

An employee was dismissed for gross misconduct during the suspension of her employment contract due to sick leave resulting from an occupational illness. She argued that a dismissal during the suspension of the employment contract could not be based on conduct that occurred prior to that suspension. Relying on Article L. 1226-9 of the French Labour Code, the Court of Cassation clarified that nothing prevents the employer from relying on any breach of obligations arising from the employment contract that occurred before the suspension, in order to justify a dismissal for gross misconduct during the suspension of the contract.

A dismissal procedure can be valid even if the employee has not signed the acknowledgment of receipt for the invitation to the pre-dismissal meeting.
Soc. Jan 21, 2026, 24-16.240

In the context of a dismissal procedure, an employee had refused to sign the acknowledgment of receipt for his invitation to a pre-dismissal meeting. The French Supreme Court clarified that sending the invitation by registered letter or delivering it by hand against a receipt is merely a legal means of preventing any dispute regarding the date of the convocation. Therefore, the absence of a signature on the acknowledgment does not affect the validity of the dismissal procedure.