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...
Reassignment or transfer
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The UNDT noted that the contested decision had been rescinded by the Prosecutor, ICTY, and hence the application was moot.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...
The Tribunal concluded that the filling of the post by lateral transfer on the retirement of the incumbent was in breach of ST/AI/2003/8. Lateral transfer: The Tribunal held that as a lateral move is a discretionary measure, its use must be in accordance with the established procedural rules and must not be arbitrary or motivated by factors inconsistent with proper administration or based on erroneous, fallacious or improper motivation. The Tribunal concluded that the use of a lateral transfer in this case was an arbitrary use of the discretion conferred by ST/AI/2010/3 in light of the fact...
Legitimate expectation: The Tribunal held that while a legitimate expectation can be created by an express promise on the part of the Organization, given the special nature of fixed-term contracts within the Organization an expectation of contract renewal may also be based on the surrounding circumstances, including the practices of the Organization. In view of the foregoing, the Tribunal concluded that since there was a practice of renewing the Applicant’s fixed-term appointment, he was entitled to expect its continued renewal unless there was a legitimate reason for not renewing the...
The UNDT found that the two posts in question were available only temporarily and therefore the Administration’s decision to advertise them as temporary vacancies was lawful. With respect to the first vacancy, the UNDT found that, as the successful candidate declined the offer, it was appropriate for the Administration to fill the temporarily vacant post through a lateral transfer. The UNDT further found that this decision was made by a person with proper delegation of authority. With respect to the second vacancy, the UNDT found that the selection exercise was also lawful. The application was...
The Assistant Secretary-General for Human Resources Management and the CRB correctly determined that it cannot be in the interest of the Organization nor of its operational activities to grant permanent appointments under the circumstances in force. UNDT rejected the Application to rescind the decision of the Respondent not to grant the him a permanent appointment. There was no indication that the ICTR was afforded delegation of authority to convert a staff member to a permanent appointment; Section 3.3 of SGB/2009/10 only gives power to the responsible officer of Human Resources at a duty...
The Applicant contended that the transfer decision was unlawful in that it was arbitrary and adopted and implemented in breach of mandatory procedures and that UNCTAD senior management acted in bad faith and with ulterior motives when doing so. The Respondent submitted that the UNCTAD senior management acted within its margin of discretion and on properly reasoned grounds based on the Applicant’s skills and qualifications and the operational needs of UNCTAD both in New York and Geneva. The Tribunal found that the reasons provided to the Applicant for his transfer were not justified by the...
An “effective remedy” under ST/SGB/2008/5: The Tribunal concluded that the Administration is obliged to provide an effective remedy where a complaint of harassment under ST/SGB/2008/5 is substantiated. The breadth of possible remedies that may be granted includes, but is not limited to, monetary compensation, rescission and injunctive or protective measures.