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If an employer dismisses an employee without just cause or imposes leave, suspension, pay reduction, or other disciplinary actions, the employee can seek remedies for unfair dismissal through the following three methods.
① Submit a complaint to the Ministry of Employment and Labor: Upon submitting a complaint regarding unfair dismissal to the local labor office with jurisdiction over the workplace, a supervising labor inspector will be assigned to summon both the employer and employee to the Ministry of Employment and Labor office, investigate and verify the facts, and if unfair dismissal is recognized, order the employer to reinstate the employee to their original position. Failure to comply results in criminal penalties.
② Apply for unfair dismissal remedy to the Labor Relations Commission: An employee who has suffered unfair dismissal must file an unfair dismissal remedy application with the local Labor Relations Commission having jurisdiction over the workplace within 3 months from the date of the unfair dismissal to seek relief. Upon submission of the remedy application to the local Labor Relations Commission, the commission assigns a reviewing officer to summon the employer and employee, conduct an investigation, hold a hearing to verify the facts, dismiss the case if unfair dismissal is not established, or if established, issue a remedy order requiring the immediate reinstatement of the employee to their original position and full payment of wages for the period of unfair dismissal. Related parties may attend the hearing to present their opinions or call witnesses, and appoint a lawyer or certified labor consultant as a representative for argument. Related parties dissatisfied with the local Labor Relations Commission's dismissal decision or remedy order may request a review by the National Labor Relations Commission within 10 days from the date of receipt of the order or decision. Those dissatisfied with the National Labor Relations Commission's review decision may file an administrative lawsuit within 15 days from the date of receipt of the review decision. If a review is not requested or a lawsuit is not filed in the high court within the above periods, the remedy order, dismissal decision, or review decision becomes final. Once the remedy order, dismissal decision, or review decision becomes final, related parties must comply. Violation results in criminal penalties.
③ File a lawsuit for confirmation of dismissal invalidity in court: An employee who has suffered unfair dismissal, in addition to following the special remedy procedures under labor law as above, may file a lawsuit for confirmation of dismissal invalidity in court to seek relief. If unfairly dismissed, the employee may choose one or more of the above three methods, but primarily filing a complaint with the Ministry of Employment and Labor or applying for remedy with the Labor Relations Commission is more advantageous for the employee in terms of time and costs compared to a dismissal invalidity confirmation lawsuit.