The Tribunal reviewed the documents submitted by the parties as well as the Respondent’s clarifications on the anonymity of the test and found that the Applicant’s allegation that the candidates’ responses were not anonymized was not supported by the evidence. The Applicant argued that the assessment panel was not properly constituted in accordance with sec. 1(c) of ST/AI/2010/3 as only two individuals, none of whom are female, graded the test results. The Tribunal acknowledged that the three-member composition of the assessment panel provided in ST/AI/2010/3 is not mandatory, as the...
Staff selection (non-selection/non-promotion)
Non-renewal of the Applicant’s FTA Given the financial situation, the Tribunal finds that the challenged decision is not ultra vires, being for the administration to evaluate the opportunity to renew temporary contracts according to the financial situation of that time. The lawfulness of the non-renewal decision must be evaluated with reference to the situation of the moment in which the decision was taken. However, in presence of a contract whose effects remain for a longer period, and which do not require non-renewal notices, the reason constituting the ground of the administrative decision...
The Respondent did not select the Applicant for GJO 71792 because he failed a competency-based interview. Passing a competency-based interview is a lawful requirement envisioned by art. 101.3 of the United Nations Charter and set by the Staff Regulations and Rules that form an integral part of the Applicant’s terms of employment. The Respondent complied with all the relevant statutory requirements in the selection process leading to the contested decision. It was clear from the jurisprudence that the Applicant’s argument that the Administration should have considered his previous scores in...
A mere assertion that the Applicant did not receive the notification on 16 November 2016 did not satisfy the requirement to show compliance with statutory deadlines. The reasons given by the Applicant to extend the filing of his application contained a misrepresentation. He suppressed material facts concerning proof of when he received the Management Evaluation Unit notification and that he in fact was not engaged in any formal dispute settlement process with UNFIL involving the United Nations Office of Mediation Services as he alleged. The Applicant was under an obligation to make a full and...
The irregularities detected in the selection process were of such gravity—not keeping any written record of the contested administrative decision, an undefined decisionmaker, and flawed reasons and justifications—that they cannot be regarded as minor procedural or substantive errors that did not impact the outcome of the non-selection decision. Accordingly, the Respondent was not been able to minimally show that the Applicant’s candidature for the post was fully and fairly considered. Four other candidates had been shortlisted for the written test for the relevant post. Had the Applicant...
The Tribunal held that the facts arose from the Applicant’s former employment relationship with UNHCR. Accordingly, the Tribunal found the application to be receivable.
The record provided to Central Review Panel (CRB) was incomplete. The Tribunal therefore finds that the Respondent has failed to demonstrate with a minimal showing that the Applicant’s job candidature was properly assessed by a CRB. The Respondent has failed to demonstrate with a minimal showing that the Applicant received a timely notification of her application being unsuccessful. The general principle provides that the responses to a written test should be graded on an anonymous basis to give full and fair consideration to the job candidatures. Copying members of an assessment panel into an...
The Tribunal found that the Applicant was wrongly evaluated against unpublished criteria, discretionary authority to cancel the RFR job opening was misused and abused and the Applicant was not afforded a fair chance at adequate and impartial consideration, the Tribunal finds that the applicable Regulations and Rules were not applied in a fair, transparent and non-discriminatory manner. The Applicant met and exceeded the requirements for the JO but the RFR was improperly cancelled. The Tribunal found that the presumption of regularity of the hiring manager’s actions has been rebutted and that...
The Tribunal ruled that the assertion that the Applicant was entitled to automatic appointment since he had a continuous appointment and was on the roster for Senior Transport Officer, P-5 was without basis. The Tribunal agreed with the Respondent that the obligation under staff rule 9.6(e) is only triggered where there has been a decision to terminate a staff member’s appointment due to the abolition of a post or the reduction of staff. The Tribunal found that the provisions of staff rule 9.6(e) were not applicable to the circumstances of this case and could therefore not be complied with...
The Tribunal finds that the Applicant’s motivations for accepting his appointment to the P-3 post have no bearing on the lawfulness of the decision. The Applicant was cautioned in advance of his right to apply for other vacant posts, and he voluntarily decided to apply for a lower-level post. The Applicant, upon selection for the P-3 level post, was cautioned that he would be appointed at the P-3 level regardless of the grade of the post he encumbered at the time. This course of action was open to the Organization under UNFPA’s staffing policy. The Applicant then proceeded to accept this...