Grameen Kalyan case: HC stays labour tribunal's verdict against Dr Yunus

The High Court (HC) on Tuesday stayed for six months a labour appellate tribunal order against Grameen Kalyan that allowed paying a 5% dividend of the company to its 106 sacked employees.

Following a petition by Grameen Kalyan founder Nobel laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus, the court also issued a rule to know why the labour appellate tribunal's verdict would not be declared illegal.

The HC bench of Justice Zafar Ahmed and Justice Md Bashir Ullah on Tuesday passed the order after hearing a petition filed by Dr Yunus, challenging the verdict.

With this order, the effectiveness of the Labour Appellate Tribunal verdict will remain halted for the aforesaid period, said the lawyers of Dr Yunus.

Advocate Khurshid Alam Khan and Advocate Golam Rabbani Sharif moved for the sacked employees of Grameen Telecom in the court.

"On 3 April, the Labour Appellate Tribunal ordered Grameen Kalyan to pay the company's 5% dividend to 106 sacked employees as per the Labour Act," Advocate Golam Rabbani Sharif said.

Dr Yunus then challenged that decision of the labour appellate tribunal with the High Court.

According to court sources, the sacked 106 employees worked at Telecom Kalyan from 2006 to 2013. Later, they were sacked on different grounds. However, the company did not provide 5% of the company's dividend for the fiscal years between 2006 and 2013 to the workers.

According to labour law, the company has to provide 5% of its dividend to the workers' participation fund as well as the welfare fund.

As the company refused to distribute workers' dividends among them, the aggrieved employees sent a legal notice to Grameen Kalyan. As the company did not respond, they filed a case with the labour court.