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The UNAT held that the former staff member failed to provide evidence to prove entitlement to compensation for harm suffered.  In particular, the UNAT found that no evidence was submitted proving a nexus between the illegality committed and any harm suffered by the former staff member as a result.  The UNAT highlighted that the medical report submitted by the former staff member recorded that she had complained of lack of sleep and headaches “for several years” and that such symptoms were consistent with a previous diagnosed medical condition.

As to the costs of the appeal, since there was no...

On anonymization Article 11.6 of the Tribunal’s Statute provides in its relevant part that its judgments shall be published while protecting personal data. A similar provision is contained in art. 26.2 of the Tribunal’s Rules of Procedure. Given that the present case relies on medical evidence to support a claim for moral harm, the Tribunal finds that it is reasonable to redact the Applicant’s name from this judgment. On the merits Based on the evidence on record, the Tribunal concluded the following. First, the Tribunal found that the two charges against the Applicant were established as per...

Home leave: The Tribunal concluded that there is nothing in staff rule 5.2 which indicates that the extension or the duration of the extension of a contract of employment is to be decided along with the sick leave entitlements of a staff member. Extension and sick leave cannot be merged to motivate a decision on whether to extend a contract or not. The entitlement to home leave is premised on 12 months service at a designated duty station with the sole condition that the service of the staff member is expected to continue at least three months after the staff member returns to the duty station...

UNDT held that the separation of female and male candidates for their comparative assessment and ranking at the Second Round constituted a fundamental error in the implementation of the Promotions Policy, and could not be justified by the High Commissioner’s decision to award an equal number of promotions to female and male staff members which was, in any event, announced towards the end of said Round. UNDT held that the exclusion of the e-PADs from the Panel members’ comparative assessment of the candidates during the Second Round constituted another fundamental procedural error in the...

UNDT held that the separation of female and male candidates for their comparative assessment and ranking at the Second Round constituted a fundamental error in the implementation of the Promotions Policy, and could not be justified by the High Commissioner’s decision to award an equal number of promotions to female and male staff members which was, in any event, announced towards the end of said Round. UNDT held that the exclusion of the e-PADs from the Panel members’ comparative assessment of the candidates during the Second Round constituted another fundamental procedural error in the...

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The Tribunal concluded that the non-renewal of the Applicant’s fixed-term appointment (FTA) was unlawful because he was erroneously subjected to a recruitment and selection process after he had been successfully transitioned from UNMIS to UNMISS as the sole candidate for the post of State Coordinator in Aweil. The Applicant was awarded compensation of one year’s net base salary. Lateral transfer: The Tribunal noted the absence of important terms in the 19 December 2010 letter regarding the length of the assignment and reabsorption and concluded that the Applicant had, in fact, been laterally...

The Tribunal concluded that the decision to separate the Applicant was discriminatory, constituted abuse of authority and was therefore unlawful because of the apparent bad faith on the part of the Applicant’s supervisor in initiating and concluding a new recruitment contrary to the Civilian Staffing Review recommendation, and her unauthorized nationalization of the Applicant’s post one year before the approved date. To ensure the Applicant’s continuity of service when decisions are being made about her eligibility for a continuing appointment and after service health insurance, the Tribunal...

If all candidates are treated in the same manner, there is no discrimination. The candidates for the job opening were treated equally with regard to the notice given to scheduling of interviews and taking of the written assessment. This may not have been ideal and represents poor managerial practice, but without evidence in support of any ulterior motive or how the failure to give the five working days’ notice prejudiced the Applicant, the Tribunal does not find that this failure amounted to discrimination per se (see Lennard UNDT/2014/044, at paras. 34 to 37). The definition of an “assessment...

In circumstances where an applicant is not provided with the whole of the documentation involved in a matter sought to be brought before the Tribunal, it is essential that as material is provided to an applicant there be a right to amend an application. To not allow the amendment of the application would not “do justice to the parties” or “lead to the fair disposal of the case”. Clearly, not permitting an amendment of the application when the true state of affairs is revealed for the first time by the Respondent would offend the inherent obligations of the Tribunal consistent with the...