Protection against dismissal
The employer is not allowed to dismiss a female employee during the period from the start of the pregnancy to the end of the fourth month after the childbirth pursuant to Article 9 para. 1 MuSchG. This prohibition of dismissal only applies if the employer was aware of the pregnancy or the childbirth at the time of the dismissal or if he was informed about it within two weeks after receipt of the dismissal note. It is required, though, that the pregnancy must have already existed when the dismissal note was received.
If the woman becomes pregnant only after the receipt of the dismissal note, the prohibition of dismissal does not apply.
If special reasons apply (e.g. insolvency or a very serious breach of duties by the woman), then there are also exceptions from the prohibition of dismissal pursuant to Article 9 para. 3 MuSchG. But in these cases the dismissal must be agreed to by the supervisory authority. Any dismissal declared without such an agreement is not effective.
If the mother takes a parental leave after the childbirth, the protection against dismissal is extended beyond the period stated in the Maternity Protection Law (four months after the childbirth) up to the end of the parental leave.