Dr Yunus secures bail

Nobel Laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus has secured bail in three cases filed over sacking of three employees of Grameen Communications.

Dhaka 3rd Labour Court Acting Chairman Zakia Parveen passed the order after Dr Yunus surrendered before it on Sunday.

The Labour Court has three judges who are led by its chairman, reports UNB.

On October 28, the High Court ordered the authorities concerned not to harass Dr Yunus at the airport.

Yunus was granted till November 7 to surrender upon his return home.

Earlier on October 14, the High Court stayed a lower court order until October 25, which had issued an arrest warrant for Yunus in three cases filed over dismissing the three employees.

On July 3, three employees of Grameen Communications filed the cases against Yunus, and two others with the Labour Court.

According to case statements, the trio was sacked for trying to form a trade union at their workplace.

On October 9, the Dhaka Labour Court issued an arrest warrant for Dr Yunus when he failed to appear before it, in response to its previous order.

Meanwhile, Grameen Communications, in a statement issued on Sunday, said there was no incidence of termination of its staff from services.

“All Grameen Communications employees, including those who filed the cases, were hired on contract basis. The application made for forming the trade union in Grameen Communications was rejected by the Registrar of Trade Unions, as contractual employees cannot form a trade union,” reads the statement, signed by Nazneen Sultana, managing director of Grameen Communications.

The question of terminating them on the ground of holding positions in the trade union does not arise, it claimed.

The company discontinued the services of some of these employees as per the employment contract, and it did not renew services for some others after the expiry of their service contract, it added.