ORF is under legal dispute: Termination of Sagmeister illegally!

ORF is under legal dispute: Termination of Sagmeister illegally!

In the legal dispute between ORF and journalist Sonja Sagmeister, there was a sensational judgment on Wednesday: The Labor and Social Court declared the termination of Sagmeister by the ORF to be legally ineffective. As oe24.at , it is clear that the termination, which was pronounced in autumn 2023, was not lawful. Sagmeister, who felt disadvantaged in the course of the procedure, prevailed, even though the ORF tried to justify the termination of the employment relationship with supposedly unauthorized side jobs.

However, the court saw the termination a "motive termination" due to Sagmeister's resistant behavior, especially in connection with an interview that affects a ministerial spokeswoman. ORF General Director Roland Weißmann was surprised by the judgment and announced that it would take action against the decision in the nearest instance. The ORF remains convinced of the validity of its arguments. Although the defendant allegations of bullying and the disadvantage of Sagmeister could not be underpinned, the development shows that the case has been a persistent right drama for almost two years, as the reported.

Litigation with far -reaching consequences

The focus of the process is not only the termination, but also the questionable circumstances that led to this decision. Sagmeister had protested internally and defended himself against the alleged intervention of ministry representatives, which she considered illegally and regarded as the basis for her termination. The ORF defended itself against the allegations until the end and claimed that there were no interventions in Sagmeister's journalistic activity. Nevertheless, the argument between the journalist and radio will continue, since appeal was filed against the court ruling.