A notice of termination of an employment contract should include a reason justifying the termination. This reason cannot be superficial – it must be specific and real. The question therefore arises as to whether citing poor sales results as a reason in the notice of termination can be considered justified.
According to the Supreme Court's case law, "the specificity of the reason for terminating an employment contract (Article 30 § 4 of the Labor Code) should be assessed taking into account other circumstances known to the employee that further specify that reason. An employer may justifiably terminate an employment contract, implementing the principle of selecting employees in a manner that ensures the best performance of tasks, if it can be expected that hiring new employees will allow for the achievement of better work results." (Supreme Court Judgment of September 2, 1998, I PKN 271/98)
The Supreme Court also addressed the issue of achieving sales results in its judgment of 4 April 2017 (III PK 93/16), indicating that if the employer cites failure to achieve the expected work results as the reason for terminating a contract concluded for an indefinite period, the justification for such a decision must be assessed from the perspective of the manner in which the employee fulfills his or her duties.
This ruling confirms that an allegation of failure to achieve required work results requires a thorough assessment of the employee's performance and the proper performance of their duties. Expecting results that exceed their actual capabilities, or are unrealistic given the economic or market situation, cannot constitute a valid basis for termination.
To ensure that the reason for termination is genuine, real, and specific, before making a decision, the employer should consider whether the employee has been adequately informed of their responsibilities and expected sales targets. If these responsibilities are not clearly defined or communicated, it is difficult to consider a lack of performance as a valid reason for termination.
Before submitting a notice of termination, it is necessary to carefully analyze the activities undertaken by the employee, his scope of duties and whether any irregularities in the performance of work actually translated into unsatisfactory sales results.
According to established case law, the mere failure to achieve specific sales results does not always constitute sufficient grounds for termination. The overall circumstances are decisive, in particular whether the unsatisfactory results were a consequence of inadequate performance of employee duties.
It should be emphasized that each situation related to the termination of cooperation is individual and requires a thorough analysis so that the indicated reason for termination is actually specific and true.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
The law is current as of February 13, 2026 .
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