“Evolution Georgia ” lost a case in the Supreme Court against a member of the Labor.

Karina Shonia was employed at Evolution Georgia as a game presenter from September 8, 2021, to September 7, 2022. On August 4, 2022, Karina learned that her colleague, T.Ch., became upset with her on June 27 due to a missed break. T.Ch. spoke poorly of Karina and insulted her to other colleagues, falsely claiming that Karina had taken her break away. This led to a verbal conflict between T.Ch. and the colleagues she had insulted Karina in front of. T.Ch. threatened the employees with informing the managers, firing them, and creating problems.

After learning this, Karina contacted T.Ch. via Messenger and sent a voice message, warning that if the threats didn’t stop, she would demand a response from the company. She also insulted and warned T.Ch. not to let security into the building. T.Ch. filed a complaint against Karina with the company over the voice message. In response to T.Ch.’s complaint, Karina was asked by the company to provide an explanation and mention the people who had witnessed T.Ch.’s insults. Since Evolution Georgia operates 24/7 with video recording, the company could have reviewed the footage from that day to confirm that T.Ch. was interacting aggressively with employees, but the company claimed that the relevant footage was not recorded.

T.Ch.’s aggression, foul language, and inappropriate communication continued in the following days, as indicated by witnesses in their statements. However, the employer took no action, and instead, T.Ch. was given easier working conditions, being placed in a different building to avoid interacting with those who had raised concerns about her behavior. Meanwhile, the employer prohibited Karina and others from approaching or contacting T.Ch. Finally, on September 7, 2022, Evolution Georgia dismissed Karina Shonia for gross violation of employment obligations.

Karina is a member of the “Labor”. With their support, she initially filed a complaint with the Labor Inspection, but the inspection found no violations in the company’s actions. Subsequently, with the union’s help, Karina filed a lawsuit.

On May 18, 2023, the City Court fully ruled in Karina Shonia’s favor. According to the court, the employer’s decision was excessively harsh and disproportionate to the employee’s actions. The employer should have taken into account that the complainant had not previously been disciplined, was a vulnerable, socially disadvantaged, single mother of a minor child, for whom this job was crucial as it allowed her to combine work with caring for her child. After her dismissal, Karina Shonia was left without income, relying solely on state benefits and support from her parents.

Moreover, the court immediately reinstated Karina to her position and ordered the employer to pay compensation for forced unemployment, calculated as the monthly salary of 1,136 GEL, from the dismissal date until the enforcement of the decision. Evolution Georgia appealed the decision in the appellate and cassation courts, but lost in both higher instances.

The interests of Karina Shonia were represented by Labor lawyer Tamila Gabaidze .

Due to discriminatory treatment and poor working conditions, Karina has been on strike since July 12, 2024, continuing to fight against the company’s unfairness.