Judge Supports Employer Who Forges Trade Union Activist’s Signatures
Sources: www.charter97.org, www.praca-by.info
In a dispute between Anatol Askerka, a trade union activist and management of Joint Venture Frebor LLC that submitted counterfeit documents, Barysau court supported the employer.
Anatol Askerka, deputy chair of the city primary organization of the Belarusian Radio and Electronics Workers’ Union (REWU) has been dismissed on 30 January 2007 following his suggestion to employer to reconsider conditions of the contract. The only thing he wanted was to discuss terms and conditions of the contract at presence of a REWU representative. Instead, the employer dismissed the worker, having referred that he has disagreed to work in connection with changed conditions of work.
Anatol Askerka went to court. In the court representatives of management have declared that Anatoly is a member of Belkhim Trade Union” rather than REWU, and allegedly, therefore, he was refused to negotiate. As a proof of their statements, the management has shown the judge Askerka’s written statement to join Belkhim Trade Union, the registration form and documents on collection of trade union membership dues in 2002. Allegedly, Anatol Askerka has signed all these documents.
As graphological examination where the trade union addressed has shown, signatures have been made with imitation of Mr. Askerka’s original signature. In addition, in the court the REWU proved that management of Joint Venture Frebor LLC has forged the results of meeting of shareholders about necessity of transferring all workers to contractual form of employment. The employer has proved it by referring to a demand of management of the co-founder the German company. However, the German Trade Union IG Metal, where REWU activists addressed, has informed that the German side did not put forward such requirement, and personnel selection is entirely in the competence of Belarusians.
Despite of all these reasons, the judge supported the employer who has roughly violated the law, having refused to reinstate a high skilled worker at work. Alena Yaskova, a REWU lawyer stated: ‘We are sure that in this case the worker has suffered exclusively because of trade union membership and the civic stand. Anatol Askerka is a specialist of 6th category; he is a highly skilled worker who has worked at this enterprise from the moment it had been set up. The defendant committed obvious rough violations of the law. Even the public prosecutor stated that the fact of documents’ forging could lead to initiation of a criminal case.’
The trade union disagreed with the judge’s ruling. In the nearest future an appeal against this decision would be filed to the Minsk Regional Court.
