Judicial schizophrenia

Luniniec district court supported the dismissal of a trade union activist, although admitted that he was fired illegally from the Granit enterprise in Mikashevichy.

A charter97.org’s correspondent reports that it took five court sessions to reach a decision at the suit of an excavator operator’s assistant from the Granit enterprise Leanid Dubanosau against the Granit enterprise. Leanid turned to be the last activist of the Belarusian Independent Trade Union that the Mikashevichy enterprise’s management got rid of, having fired him right after he returned from a vacation. The reasons for the dismissal were alleged violations on his part within several days. At the same time in the case Dubanosau was on sick leave, in the second – on another vacation. By the way, the representatives of the defendant testified in a confusing manner during the hearings on the issue of whether Dubanosau had actually violated the safety measures.

In the end the chairman of Luniniec district court Mikhail Dzianisovich had to admit that the activist of the independent trade union was fired illegally and a rider was sent to Granit’s management. Apart from that the court obliged the enterprise’s administration to pay Leanid Dubanosau an allowance of 1 million roubles as it is provided by the collective agrrement (although Granit’s representatives attempted to prove that Dubanosau himself did not appeal for the allowance). According to the court’s verdict, Leanid also has the right to demand a compensation for the moral damage from the enterprise.

It is curious that, having admitted the fact of the activist’s illegal dismissal, the judge at the same time claimed: the revealed violations of the Labour Code do not provide Dubanosau with a reason of getting his job back. His other claims were also declined, precisely – the claim against the discrimination according to his belonging to a trade union (which Leanid especially insisted on) and the claim to recover the salary for the forced missed working time. In the course of the hearings Dubanosau directly claimed that he had started having problems right after joining the independent trade union. According to him, Granit administration representatives repeatedly warned him that in case he continued trade union activities he would be fired. After he had refused to quit the trade union, regular inspections started, which were aimed at finding violations in Leanid Dubanosau’s work.

After the Luniniec court’s decision was announced Dubanosau and the representatives of the Belarusian Congress of Democratic Trade Unions, who were helping him to maintain a stand, claimed that they were going to appeal against the verdict to higher authorities.