UNDT/2013/068 | SYSTEM OF ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE

UNDT/2013/068, Atana

UNAT Held or UNDT Pronouncements

Due Process: It is UNAT jurisprudence that based on the staff rules there is no mandatory right to counsel for staff members who are undergoing interviews during the preliminary investigation of allegations for misconduct. Ultra vires: The author of the decision in this case was not the person who signed the 15 August 2011 dismissal letter but, as referred to in the letter, was the Under-Secretary-General for Management who took the decision on behalf of the Secretary-General. Pursuant to ST/AI 371/Amend.1, the decision-maker had the proper authority to do so and the decision was not ultra vires. Fraud and misappropriation: Attempted fraud and misappropriation are at the serious end of misconduct. Each of the offences breaches staff regulation 1.2(b). The Applicant’s conduct in this case as established by the investigators and confirmed by the Tribunal legally justifies the findings of misconduct by the decision maker. The allegations of falsifying pay slips and misappropriation of money are both serious in their own right. Taken together they reveal a pattern of unlawful conduct which more than justified the decision to dismiss the Applicant. The sanction of dismissal was entirely proportionate to the behaviours which had been proven.

Decision Contested or Judgment Appealed

The Applicant was employed as an Administrative Assistant on a fixed-term contract with the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT) and was also the President of the Nairobi Staff Union (NSU). She challenged her dismissal for misconduct on 15 August 2011 by the Under-Secretary-General (USG) for Management following two investigations by the Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS). Her dismissal occurred as a result of the two investigations into her conduct. The first was into her use of falsified payslips. The second concerned her behaviour in relation to a cheque.

Legal Principle(s)

N/A

Outcome

Dismissed on merits

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The judgment summaries were generally prepared in English. They were translated into French and are being reviewed for accuracy of the translation.

Full Judgment

Applicants/ Appellants

Atana

Entity

UN-Habitat

Case Number(s)

UNDT/NBI/2011/079

Tribunal

UNDT

Registry Location :

Nairobi