The Tribunal recalled that the burden of proof lay on the Applicant and there was nothing on record to show that the contested decision was made on the ground of improper motives against the Applicant. On the contrary, it found that OCHA had acted in good faith.
The Tribunal finds that the restructuring constituted a valid exercise of the Respondent’s discretionary authority, that the Applicant’s post was not abolished as he was in fact reassigned against the same budgeted post, and that his reassignment was lawful. Definition of a “post”: A “post” may be defined as the financial authorization given for a job to be performed, irrespective of the fact that it may be funded through budgetary or extra budgetary sources. Discretion of the Secretary-General in the organization of work: The Secretary-General enjoys broad discretion in the organization of...
The Tribunal held that the Applicant had not raised a prima facie case as to warrant a suspension of action.
Management evaluation: Claims against decisions that have not been the subject of a request for management evaluation are not receivable before the Tribunal. An applicant may not seek any rulings or relief in relation to these decisions. The events surrounding them may be part of the factual matrix of the application but they are peripheral at best. Project document: There is no mandatory requirement in the rules or any Administrative Instructions for a project document to be finalised prior to the responsible staff member taking up the project post. Authority for lateral transfers under ST/AI...
The Tribunal found that the initial imposition of the reprimand was justified based on the Applicant’s own admitted supervisory failings. However, the Tribunal found that the withdrawal and subsequent reinstatement of reprimand were improper, as was the decision to transfer the Applicant from his post. The Tribunal directed the parties to confer on the issue of compensation.
The UNDT found that the Applicant’s claims with regard to the issue of lien and loan were without merit. With respect to the issue of placement on special leave without pay, the UNDT found that the Applicant should have been placed on sick leave on half salary and half annual leave for a period of up to three months. The UNDT ordered the Respondent to make appropriate adjustments, including any related payments and adjustments to benefits and entitlements, to reflect the placement of the Applicant on three months of sick leave on half pay combined with half-day of annual leave commencing 22...
The Dispute Tribunal shall not award exemplary or punitive damages. The Tribunal did not find any procedural flaws in the competitive review process as it was implemented in the Applicant’s case. All three candidates for the PIO posts were assessed against the same methodology and criteria adopted by the CRP. The Applicant was not accorded full and fair consideration for the second P-3 PIO post in UNMISS contrary to the policy adopted by the CRP. In this regard, there were both substantive and procedural irregularities on the part of the Respondent.The Applicant is entitled to compensation for...
The Respondent was required to act in the best interests of the Organization, when reassigning the Applicant, and it was principally for the Respondent as the Chief Administrative Officer of the Organization, pursuant to art. 97 of the United Nations Charter, to define what those interests were in the context of the administration of the Organization Outcome: For respondent (merits).
Non-renewal The Chief Administrative Officer’s decision not to renew the Applicant’s contract was arbitrarily taken. Downsizing In cases of downsizing, there is generally some established criteria put in place to ensure accountability and transparency of the process. In the present case, there was no evidence of such criteria and the Tribunal found that the Applicant was deliberately reassigned to another unit in order to make it possible for the downsizing axe to fall on him. Expectancy of renewal Applicant had a legitimate expectancy of renewal of contract considering that the Personnel...
The UNDT noted that the contested decision had been rescinded by the Prosecutor, ICTY, and hence the application was moot. The Applicant contended however that the decision had already been implemented since she was no longer assigned any appeals-related work. The UNDT examined whether her new functions were commensurate with her functional title of Senior Appeals Counsel (P-5), and whether the Prosecutor, ICTY, was entitled to assign her to such tasks. It found that pursuant to staff rule 1.2 (c) and Annex IV to ST/AI/234/Rev.1, the Administration had broad discretionary powers when it comes...
