Spain: a Leroy Merlin employee fired after a theft reinstated by the courts

She was fired after 550 euros disappeared from her cash drawer. A Leroy Merlin hostess, employed for more than twenty years by the brand in Spain, finally won her case in court. After an initial favorable decision from the court of Vitoria-Gasteiz, in the Spanish Basque Country, the High Court of Justice of the region also considered his dismissal as unfair and confirmed his reinstatement, reports the Spanish media Noticias Trabajo.

The case dates back to September 2025. That day, two men came to the store and bought clothespins for only 1.09 euros through a cash register next to that of the employee. To create a diversion, the man leans against the counter while showing off a wad of bills. Taking advantage of the confusion, one of them manages to steal several 50 euro notes from the cash drawer. The cashier, who has worked for the company since 2004, does not notice anything at the time. It was only at the end of his day that a discrepancy of 550 euros was noted in his cash register.

Leroy Merlin then decides to dismiss her in the fall of 2025. The company suspects her in particular of possible complicity and accuses her of having failed in her obligations of supervision and vigilance. The employee, however, contests this version and takes legal action to obtain the annulment of her dismissal.

At first instance, the Vitoria-Gasteiz court ruled in favor of the cashier and declared her dismissal void. Leroy Merlin is then ordered to reinstate her, to pay her salary arrears as well as 10,001 euros in damages. The brand contests this decision and takes the case to the High Court of Justice of the Basque Country. But this in turn proves the employee right. The judges relied in particular on the video surveillance images, which show, according to them, that the employee was indeed the victim of deception on the part of the two men and did not participate in the theft.

The courts were also interested in his professional situation. The employee had worked part-time since 2011 and had recently obtained a further reduction in her working hours. In this context, it was up to the company to demonstrate that his dismissal was based on objective reasons that were completely unrelated to his personal situation. However, according to the magistrates, Leroy Merlin failed to provide this proof.

The court thus considered that the employee had been the victim of indirect discrimination based on sex and linked to the balance between professional and personal life, in particular because of her working time arrangements. The High Court of Justice of the Basque Country therefore rejected Leroy Merlin's appeal and confirmed the nullity of the dismissal as well as the reinstatement of the employee. Made on July 16, this decision is however not yet final: it can still be appealed to the Spanish Supreme Court.