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UNAT noted there was a pattern of withholding annual performance reports and salary increments, and that those delays were coupled with the denial of a post for which the Appellant was short-listed but was not filled prior to the Appellant’s retirement. UNAT noted the Appellant was also denied his post, which was abolished due to restructuring. UNAT held that the Appellant was not treated conscientiously and fairly and deserved compensation. UNAT granted the appeal in part and ordered that the Appellant be paid three months’ net base salary as compensation.

UNAT noted that the parties freely made an agreement, the Appellant received benefits under it and then she sought additional benefits on the basis that she had not received proper notice. UNAT noted that, as UNDT found, the Appellant received notice of her termination date when she signed the MOU, some four months prior. UNAT held that the fact that a formal letter was received later neither abrogated the MOU nor gave rise to any further compensation. UNAT found no error in the UNDT judgment. UNAT held that UNDT correctly determined that the Appellant was not entitled to compensation in lieu...

UNAT considered an appeal by the Secretary-General. UNAT held that it was satisfied that the UNDT’s conclusion that Ms Frechon was incapable of further service, based on the findings of the Medical Board, was not tantamount to UNDT having stepped into the shoes of the UN Medical Director. UNAT held that there were no grounds to disagree with the finding of UNDT that Ms Frechon’s contract was, in fact, terminated for medical reasons. UNAT held that the procedure which should have been invoked was that set out in ST/AI/1999/16. UNAT held that UNDT was correct in rescinding the decision to...

UNAT considered an appeal by the Secretary-General. Regarding the evidence on which the disciplinary measure was based, UNAT held that UNDT had failed to appreciate the fact that the women who had been sexually exploited or abused came from a highly sensitive cultural background and were socially vulnerable. UNAT held that UNDT failed to consider the fact that the staff member, as Officer-in-Charge of Security of MINURSO, had a particular duty of care towards women and children, pursuant to Section 7 of ST/SGB/1999/13. UNAT held that the established facts amounted to sexual exploitation. UNAT...

UNAT considered the Secretary-General’s appeal. UNAT held that, in the present case, UNDT had not recorded any reasons for holding that this was indeed an exceptional case, warranting an award higher than two years’ net base salary. UNAT held that the award of full salary payable between separation and the date of the UNDT judgment was fraught with ambiguity and uncertainty since the staff member might have been separated from service on other non-disciplinary grounds. UNAT held that it would be adequate, fair, and reasonable to award compensation in lieu of reinstatement in an amount equal to...

UNAT considered an appeal by the Secretary-General limited to the amount of compensation. UNAT held that, in the present case, UNDT had not recorded any reasons for holding that this was indeed an exceptional case, warranting an award higher than two years’ net base salary. UNAT held that the award of full salary payable between separation and the date of the UNDT judgment was fraught with ambiguity and uncertainty since the staff member might have been separated from service on other non-disciplinary grounds. UNAT held that it would be adequate, fair, and reasonable to award compensation in...

UNAT considered the Secretary-General’s appeal. UNAT held that, in converting on its own motion an application for suspension into an application on the merits, UNDT had taken an ultra petita decision, ordering measures not requested of it. UNAT held that, in taking the contested decision while a management evaluation was under way, UNDT had breached the provisions of Article 8 of its Statute, which makes prior management evaluation compulsory whenever one is requested. UNAT held that, in ordering the placement of the application for suspension on the list of cases to be considered on the...

UNAT held that the complaints against the Appellant were very serious and intolerable for any employer. UNAT held that UNDT had correctly concluded that the case against the Appellant stood substantiated and corroborated and the evidence sufficiently supported the charge of improperly soliciting and receiving money from local people in exchange for their recruitment and service as UN staff. UNAT held that during the teleconference the Appellant had produced two impostors as witnesses, who testified that they had lied to the investigators and made false allegations against the Appellant. UNAT...

UNAT considered an appeal by the Secretary-General against the judgment on the merits (UNDT/2011/054) and two further appeals by both the Secretary-General and the Applicant of the judgment on compensation (UNDT/2011/131). Relying on its previous holding in Bertucci (2011/UNAT/114), UNAT held that UNDT erred in finding that the Administration violated the Applicant’s due process rights, as no actual prejudice was found. UNAT held that the established facts, as admitted by the Applicant, clearly demonstrated that he engaged in the sexual harassment of local employees and used his position of...

UNAT considered an appeal, in which the Appellant claimed that UNDT committed procedural errors in allowing the Secretary-General to embark on a de novo fact-finding inquiry and that the disciplinary measure of separation was disproportionate. UNAT held that it was within the competence of UNDT to hold oral hearings as well as to order the production of evidence for fair and expeditious disposal of the proceedings. UNAT held that the Administration bears the burden of establishing that the alleged misconduct, for which a disciplinary measure has been taken against a staff member, occurred and...