The Supreme Court of the Commonwealth of Valencia (TSJ), Social Court No. 1 of Benidorm, to Juan Jose Noguera, general secretary of the Citizens’ Services Federation in l’Alacantí-Les Marines, workplace harassment of unionized worker. The new decision considers that it did not violate the employee’s rights, therefore exempting both the worker and the trade union organization from paying the 12,000 euros imposed on the complainant as compensation.
The worker in question, Rafael García, filed a complaint in 2016, and the court ruled that Juan José Noguera repeatedly said: exhibited abusive behavior towards the plaintiffthat go beyond the boundaries of an employment contract-specific relationship of subordination and affect the physical and moral integrity of the employee. In this sense, he sentenced both himself and CC OO to pay compensation.
However, the decision was appealed to TSJ. reached an agreement with the accusedbased on the fact that they did not see signs of violation of fundamental rights in proven facts, as they “describe specific conflicts and not repeated harassment.”
As stated in the decision, objective, clear, repetitive and consistent data is required for the restrictive interpretation of harassment, to qualify it as an attack on the physical and moral integrity of the worker, “so that not a single act constitutes harassmentand this cannot be derived from isolated concrete actions.
Thus, the TSJ interprets that the issue under review presupposes a contradictory situation that “could produce, but add to, the depressive symptomatology partially presented in the plaintiff”. It does not mean that the fundamental right of the worker is violated.».
In a statement from CC OO, they expressed their satisfaction with this sentence, while also criticizing the previous one for the damage done personally and organizationally, up to this point. led to the resignation of Juan José Noguera for the post. The union reported that after learning of his acquittal, he was re-elected as the general secretary of the federation, confirming the democratic mandate given by the congress held in March 2021.
In this sense, both the union center and Juan José Noguera himself denounced that the case brought at the time by this employee took place in a context in which one of the witnesses supporting the complainant was suing before the federation’s own internal elections. announced his candidacy for the post of general secretary. “Actually—explains Noguera— various leaders of this union section were harassedwe have received articles of serious disqualification, among other things».
The secretary-general adds that the internal conflict has resulted in several suspensions of militancy and that the reporter is still in the union, despite being on sick leave.