Court of Auditors Orders Dismissed Managers to Cover Costs
In a recent ruling by the Regional Court of Accounts of Piedmont, three former managers of Centro estero per l'internazionalizzazione (Ceipiemonte) have been ordered to pay a total of 28,000 euros each to the public entity. The decision comes after a 12-year-long legal battle involving the former head of administrative management control, whose identity remains undisclosed.
The dispute began in 2013 when the official was asked to sign a document for entrusting a company with booking and travel services for collaborators and employees. However, she refused, citing the need for a public tender. This refusal allegedly led to a series of disciplinary actions, including multiple firings, reinstatements, and demotions.
The demotion, in particular, resulted in significant physical and psychological consequences for the official, leading to a ruling by the Court of Appeals of Turin that Ceipiemonte should compensate for the "biological damage from demotion." The Labor Court also established that the worker had suffered "permanent physical and psychological injuries" due to the treatment she received at work.
The three former managers, G.D., P.A., and I.C., have been ordered to pay a portion of the total damages. Initially, the total amount requested from all three managers was 374,635 euros, but they have been granted summary proceedings, allowing them to pay only 30% of the total immediately.
In addition to the compensation ordered by the Court of Accounts, Ceipiemonte is also seeking to recover the losses suffered by the public entity. The tender for the travel services, which was initially planned, was never held.
One of the managers, P.A., considers the case as closed, while the fourth manager, G.L., is set to be judged in a separate procedure without summary proceedings. The official, who was the head of administrative management control, was demoted to handling meal vouchers and entering employee hours.
Despite extensive searches, no information was found about a legal case involving a public entity employee who refused to sign a document and faced repeated firings, reinstatements, and demotions, culminating in a 12-year-long legal battle. The results mainly discussed unrelated issues such as lawsuits over mental health funding, travel bans, child exploitation sentencing, and state employee theft cases.
The dispute over a refusal to sign a document concerning finance and business matters led to a 12-year legal battle, resulting in three former managers being ordered to pay a portion of the damages to the public entity. In addition, the public entity is seeking to recover losses from an unheld tender related to the same finance and business matters.
