Judgment No. 122
Decision
1. The decision of the Management Committee of the English Language Group notified by letter of the Director-General of the World Postal Union dated 14 August 1967 is quashed.
2. The case is referred back to the World Postal Union (English Language Group) for a new decision on his application for a permanent appointment in the aforesaid group in accordance with the present judgment.
3. Mr. Chadsey is awarded costs in an amount of 5,000 Swiss francs.
On the substance
Extract:
The complainant was denied appointment to a permanent post because of objections expressed by a Member State aroused by the complainant's refusal to do his military service. The decision was tainted by an error of law; the organisation did not exercise its discretionary power. The decision is quashed and the case is referred back to the organisation "for a new decision to be taken, with reasons stated, on [the] complainant's request, after consideration of all the relevant circumstances of the case, including [the complainant's] professional qualifications [...] and disregarding the fact [...] that he is a persona non grata to one of the States members."
Keywords
grounds; member state; military service; contract; fixed-term; permanent appointment; non-renewal of contract; persona non grata; flaw; refusal; titularization
On the substance
Extract:
In determining whether to appoint an employee to a permanent post, the relevant body must take into account, inter alia, both the employee's professional qualifications and "his suitability as an international official from the standpoint of morality, integrity and character."
Keywords
qualifications; fitness for international civil service; condition; definition; elements; titularization
Considerations
Extract:
The Staff Regulations are, as a whole, applicable only to those categories of persons expressly specified therein. However, some of their provisions are merely the translation into written form of general principles applicable to any employees having any link other than a purely casual one with the organisation. These principles may not lawfully be ignored in individual contracts. "This applies in particular to the principle that any employee is entitled in the event of a dispute with his employer to the safeguard of some appeals procedure."
Keywords
locus standi; status of complainant; right of appeal; general principle; law of contract; enforcement; contract; safeguard
Considerations
Extract:
The decision not to renew his contract was notified to the complainant on 6 March and again on 15 June following his request for a review. On 25 June the complainant addressed a request to the organisation based on new arguments and directed to securing reconsideration of his case. Following this request the Director-General communicated to the complainant on 14 August a decision definitely confirming the previous decision, but in part on new grounds. The time limit for the filing of the complaint began to run only from the date of the notification of the decision of 14 August.
Keywords
complaint; decision; confirmatory decision; grounds; receivability of the complaint; time limit; date of notification; start of time limit; amendment to the rules; contract; fixed-term; non-renewal of contract; date
The Merits
Extract:
"While the Universal Postal Union, which has legal personality, is alone competent to represent the organization as a whole before the Administrative Tribunal, it appears from the provisions governing its internal relations with the language groups set up within the Union that it is the management committees of the respective groups which are responsible for appointing the staff and that the role of the Director-General of the UPU is confined to notifying the persons concerned, on behalf of the management committees, of the decisions taken by them."
Keywords
organisation; competence; iloat; declaration of recognition; executive head; limits
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