The mayor dismissed Małgorzata Dłużyk in November 2011. As the reason, he cited the unreliable conduct of a tender and her loss of the ability to properly manage the institution, allegedly evidenced by a conflict with the staff. The director was given notice and sent on leave that she still had to take.
Małgorzata Dłużyk disagreed with the notice and, a year later, demanded reinstatement and payment of her salary for the period she was out of work.
The District Court in Bolesławiec accepted the mayor’s arguments. Based on witness testimony, it determined that there had been a conflict between the employees and the director and that she was responsible for a series of irregularities in the tender procedure. Although there had been no breach of public finance discipline, the mayor could regard the irregularities in the tender and the conflict with some of the staff as grounds for terminating the employment contract.
Małgorzata Dłużyk appealed the judgment. She was no longer seeking reinstatement, but compensation. In her view, the court in Bolesławiec had assessed the evidence incorrectly and ruled in the mayor’s favor.
Based on the same witness testimony, the Regional Court found that only two people had been in conflict. The rest of those who testified in the case, in the Jelenia Góra court’s assessment, confirmed that Małgorzata Dłużyk had been a good director. The court also found that the irregularities in the tender had been minor and that dismissal was an excessive penalty. According to the court, these irregularities could not constitute grounds for terminating the contract.
The Regional Court ruled that Małgorzata Dłużyk was to receive compensation plus reimbursement of the legal costs, totaling more than PLN 19,000.
The mayor did not appeal the judgment, and the money was paid.
(information: KG)