ETF employees without November salaries, Dean Velagić refuses to transfer workers to UNSA

By: A. Vrabac

Employees of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering of the University of Sarajevo did not receive their salaries for November because Dean Jasmin Velagić did not meet the deadline set by the UNSA Management Board to deregister and register workers from ETF to the University of Sarajevo, which other organizational units have done in accordance with the legal integration of UNSA. The deadline was November 15.

Status changes occurred on 07/01/2021, and several faculties decided to appeal the court's decision on the merger of organizational units, including ETF. The temporary measure requested by the faculties was also rejected, thus continuing the legal integration process.

UNSA Rector Rifat Škrijelj does not know the outcome of these appeals, but given that activities have been initiated to register two deans (Faculty of Law and Faculty of Medicine) at the Registry Office of the Municipal Court in Sarajevo, whose registration was linked to the filed appeals, although it is unclear why as these are separate processes, he expects the registration of the two deans to be completed by the end of the week.

“Professor Jasmin Velagić, as the Dean of ETF and at the same time the President of the UNSA Trade Union, whose mandate has likely expired, continues to abuse both positions to disrupt normal working relations at the University. He exceeded his authority and seriously abused his position and did not deregister the workers, which he was obliged to do as the previous employer under the Labor Law and register them with the new employer. He was also obliged to submit their employment contracts to UNSA with their consent. He tried to do this, but he changed the contract between himself and me on his own initiative, he wanted to propose to me as the rector what kind of contract we would sign, unlike other deans who signed. We returned the paperwork he submitted to him for revision, and he never returned it again. He changes the narrative and informs his collective about what he has done, but does not inform them that it was returned for revision and that it was never returned to the university again. He is consciously misleading his collective,” Rector Škrijelj stated emphatically.

For four months, the rector, in order not to harm the workers, wrote a special act to the Ministry of Finance of the Sarajevo Canton for the employees of ETF to be paid salaries. However, given the last decision of the UNSA Management Board and the deadline of November 15, the rector no longer had grounds to approve salary payments.

“The Faculties of Economics and Transport have acted according to the court's decision and have deregistered workers and registered them with the University of Sarajevo. The Faculty of Medicine informed us last week that the deregistration and registration of workers with the University has begun,” Škrijelj explained.

He also informed the Founder about everything and acted in coordination with them, and publicly warned the deans at the UNSA Senate to stop this practice.

The rector will also inform the UNSA Management Board about everything, which will hold a session tomorrow.

“I have to submit a report to the Management Board why I did not release ETF's salaries, but I had no legal basis to pay salaries to 110 people because they are not employed at the University,” said Škrijelj, who will seek further instructions from the Management Board, which has the authority to dismiss the dean and the rector.

“All options are on the table, Dean Velagić, through gross violation of regulations, incomplete information to the employees he leads, abuse of position both as dean and as president of the Trade Union at the same time through these mixed competencies, has jeopardized the employment status of the employees, because at the end of the year when the tax card is settled, I don't know how ETF employees will be treated and whether they will have a break in their employment history, the Tax Administration knows that,” Škrijelj told Patrija.

The rector is also surprised by the fact that the Tax Administration has not conducted an inspection at ETF and the Faculty of Medicine, although the University of Sarajevo has requested it several times.

Regarding the Trade Union, the UNSA rector held a meeting today with the newly elected president Amir Zahirović and members of the ETF Trade Union. He told them that it is necessary to initiate the process at the Tax Administration, obtain a code, and start deregistering and registering workers.

“I will immediately issue an order to enter the employees into the system and pay them their November salaries. If they do not start the process, I will have to report to the competent institutions to see what the problem is. Velagić is, in my opinion, an illegal president of the Trade Union in a conflict of interest. He sued the University and tried to stop the legal integration as the president of the Trade Union. He misled both the court and the Trade Union because such a decision was never made at the Trade Union bodies,” said the rector.

It is particularly problematic that Velagić announces strikes together with other trade unions, demanding an increase in the base for salary calculation without any agreement with the University, nor do his activities have support.

Dean denies guilt

Dean of ETF Jasmin Velagić sent a letter to ETF employees stating that he has filed a complaint about the "violation of workers' rights" with the Ombudsman institution, and that he is ready to take responsibility if he is considered even slightly guilty.

However, Velagić failed to inform employees that the University had returned the documentation to him for revision, which he never returned.

Employees also asked Dean Velagić why, after signing consents, no one deregistered them at the competent branches of the Tax Administration of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina so that they could exercise their rights as employees of the University of Sarajevo.