UNDT/2010/082, Applicant
The applicant joined the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) of the United Nations in September 2005 on a two-year contract as a P-4 level legal officer. Between July 2006 and January 2007 the applicant was admitted to several hospitals to receive alcohol-related treatment and, in January 2007, she was medically evacuated to her home country and subsequently placed on special leave without pay. On 1 August 2007, the applicant was informed that her contract would not be extended beyond its expiration date of 2 September 2007. The applicant filed an appeal contesting the decision not to extend her contract. UNDT found that only the applicant’s claim with respect to the non-extension was receivable as the claims concerning the medical evacuation and the placement on leave were time-barred. UNDT found that the decision not to extend her appointment was lawful and that, even if the applicant’s claims with respect to the medical evacuation were receivable, she would not have succeeded on the merits. UNDT further concluded that the respondent’s calculation of the applicant’s sick leave days, resulting in the placement on special leave, was correct. Outcome: The application was rejected in its entirety.
The applicant contests the decision not to extend her fixed-term contract.
Receivability: Section 4.3 of ST/SGB/2009/11 (“[d]ecisions made by the Secretary-General between 2 April 2009 and 30 June 2009 on appeals . . . may be challenged before the Tribunal”) was intended to serve as a transitional measure to ensure that no appeals filed between 2 April and 30 June 2009 are left unaddressed. It is not a necessary condition for the Tribunal to exercise its jurisdiction. The Tribunal’s review is not limited to the propriety of the decision of the Secretary-General to accept or reject the recommendation of the JAB; it can review the original contested decision. Requests for administrative review and management evaluation: Under the former system of internal justice, as well as under the system in place since 1 July 2009, requests for administrative review and management evaluation are mandatory first steps in the appeal process and cannot be waived. Sick leave: Calculation of sick leave days is based on any period of twelve consecutive months, not on calendar years. Medical fitness for work, health status: In order to determine whether an employee is medically fit an employer needs to make a considerate assessment, in consultation with the employee and the medical practitioner, of what the illness is, the seriousness of the illness and its prognosis. This necessarily implies a certain degree of information sharing.