The most common reasons for arguments or fights in a workplace are listed as “unfair distribution of work, competition, excessive stress, gossip, mobbing, complaining about a colleague to the manager, attributing all success to oneself and not to the team, hypocrisy, disagreeing with decisions”.

A fight at the workplace may not necessarily involve physical violence, but verbal taunting has the same result as a fight, so the employer recognizes the employment contract for just cause, i.e. without seniority and without notice.

According to the researches; discussions in the workplace

33 percent is between the manager and the employee,
25 percent among employees in the same position,
22 percent are between people working in different departments,
Another 20 percent occur between employees working in the same departments.
According to the Court of Cassation, just cause termination, i.e. termination without seniority and without notice, can also be made if a relative of the employee comes to the workplace and bullies another employee or has an actual fight and the bullying is outside the workplace.

Differences between Termination for Just Cause and Termination for Valid Reason
In the justified termination of the employer, the employee cannot deserve and receive the receivables related to the termination (severance and notice pay). However, in the case of a valid termination, the employee is entitled to severance and notice pay.
There are procedural differences between justified termination and valid termination. While the employer must clearly and precisely notify the employee in writing of the grounds for valid termination, the employer is not obliged to apply this method in just cause termination.
The grounds for the employer’s valid termination and the behavior of the employee are of a milder nature compared to the behavior in the just cause termination.
For example, while the dismissal of the employee due to poor performance may be a valid reason for termination, the unfair personal benefit of the employee in the workplace is a justified reason for termination of the employment contract. Damaging the employer, borrowing money from colleagues to cause unrest in the workplace, provoking other workers against the employer, not doing his/her job properly despite warnings, constantly making phone calls in a way that disrupts the work, coming late to work frequently, surfing and sharing on the internet, social media such as facebook, twitter, etc. in a way that disrupts the work, having frequent and unnecessary discussions with colleagues are lighter behaviors that do not fall within the limits of immediate just cause termination specified in Article 25 of the Labor Law.

In the termination of the employer for just cause, it is stated that termination can be made according to the definite periods specified in Article 26 of the Labor Law. In valid termination, it is stated that the employer will exercise the right to terminate within a reasonable time, but no definite period is specified.
In the case of termination for justified and valid reasons, the employee has a 1-month grace period for the employee to exercise his/her right to file a reinstatement lawsuit against the employer. In case of termination for just cause, a reinstatement lawsuit must be filed within one month from the date of termination, while in the case of termination for valid reasons, the employee has the right to file a reinstatement lawsuit within one month from the date of receipt of the notice of termination.
In fights at the workplace, the following criteria are taken as basis in determining whether the type of termination that the employer will apply to the employee will be termination for just cause or termination for valid reason:

Who did the worker fight with?
If the employee’s incompatibility with the employer, the employer’s representatives or other workers harms the normal functioning of the workplace, the employer may use the right of termination. If the employee utters harsh words within the scope of Article 25 of the Labor Law as a result of the provocation of the employer or his/her deputy, this should be considered a valid reason for termination.

Pursuant to Article 25 (II-d) of the Labor Law No. 4857, the employee’s teasing of another employee of the employer is considered a just cause for termination. As long as it is not in the nature of teasing, engaging in continuous and unnecessary discussions with other workers and showing serious discord with coworkers are valid grounds for termination. On the other hand, without any assault or insult, the employee’s behavior such as “showing serious discord with his superiors or coworkers, engaging in frequent and unnecessary arguments”, as stated in the justification of the Law, is a valid reason for termination if it causes negativity in the workplace.

According to the decision of the 9th Civil Chamber of the Court of Cassation dated 23.02.2009 and numbered 2008/12809 E., 2009/3211 K.; the employee’s teasing another employee of the employer is considered a just cause for termination pursuant to Article 25/II-d. As long as it is not in the nature of teasing, engaging in continuous and unnecessary discussions with other workers and showing serious discord with coworkers are valid grounds for termination.

If the incident has not reached the level of insult, force, threat and battery, the employer may resort to valid termination, but if the incident involves insult, force, threat and battery, the termination to be made is just cause termination.

Another problem that comes to mind here will arise when the employer dismisses only one of the workers involved in the argument or fight and gives only a warning to the other. What can the dismissed employee do in this case?

In the decision of the 9th Civil Chamber of the Court of Cassation dated 07.03.2013 and numbered 2010/50084 E. and 2013/8211 K., this situation was discussed. In the events subject to the decision; the employer terminated the employment contract of the employee who had an argument with another employee at the workplace and the employee filed a lawsuit for compensation.

When the Court of Cassation examined the file, it was decided that the employee’s employment contract was not terminated for just cause on the grounds that it was the other employee who started the fight, not the plaintiff, and that the non-termination of the other employee’s employment contract violated the employer’s duty of equal treatment.

Where did the worker fight?
This fight may occur in the workplace or outside the workplace.

What was the impact of this fight on the employer?
If the fight between the two workers took place at the workplace, the worker can be dismissed only because of the fight, without any other reason.

If the fight between the two workers took place outside the workplace, then the fight must have a negative impact on the workplace for the worker to be dismissed.

Worker’s fight with a third party
If the worker has a fight with a third party outside the workplace, the worker may be dismissed if this fight has a negative impact on the workplace.