A sick note, then silence. For a small employer, that is not just a human concern, it is a cash flow issue, a planning problem and a legal risk at the same time. Work stops. Wages may continue. The team absorbs the pressure. And you are left asking: how long can this go on?

Earlier this month, the District Court of Noord-Holland ruled on exactly that situation . An employee reported sick and then vanished. He did not respond to the company doctor, did not attend appointments, did not answer letters. Even a missing person report to the police led nowhere. The employer asked the court to terminate the contract and to confirm that no transition payment was owed.

The court allowed the termination. Not because the employee had clearly done something wrong, but because the employment relationship had effectively become impossible to continue . There was no contact, no cooperation, no way to assess reintegration, and no prospect of improvement. In plain terms: a business cannot be expected to keep a contract alive when there is no one on the other side.

But here is the part that matters for small business owners. The court did not agree that the employee had acted “seriously culpably” . And without that high threshold, the statutory transition payment remains due . The reason is simple: no one knew why the employee had disappeared. Illness was not ruled out. Fault was not proven. And Dutch dismissal law is careful when uncertainty exists.

For a micro-entrepreneur, this distinction is crucial. Termination may be possible, even during sickness, if the reason for ending the contract is not the illness itself but the breakdown of the relationship. But avoiding the transition payment requires clear, demonstrable misconduct. Silence alone is not enough. That difference shows up directly on your balance sheet.

There is also a quieter lesson here. The employer in this case documented every step: contact attempts, letters, involvement of the company doctor, even publication in the Staatscourant . That is not bureaucracy. That is protection. In small companies, we often rely on informal communication and trust. That works, until it doesn’t. When contact breaks down, structure becomes your ally.

Most small business owners will never face such an extreme situation. But the pressure points are familiar: unclear sick reports, missed appointments, partial communication. The answer is rarely dramatic. It is steady. Confirm conversations in writing. Involve the arbodienst early. Separate frustration from legal qualification. And always ask yourself: if this ends up before a judge, can I show what I did, and why?

The law does not assume the worst of either side. That is both its strength and its cost. For small employers, the practical takeaway is not fear, but clarity. When uncertainty enters the employment relationship, tighten your documentation, stay proportionate, and prepare for the financial reality that not every difficult exit will be a cheap one.

COURT RULING 06-02-2026 ECLI:NL:RBNHO:2026:487