Kazakhstan court reinstates accompanist fired over 'poor voice training'

A city court in Atyrau has ruled unlawful the dismissal of a woman from a state institution where the grounds for terminating her employment contract were complaints about "insufficient voice training and a low level of musical education." The news was reported by infohub.kz.

According to the official Telegram channel of the Atyrau Region courts, the Atyrau City Court heard a civil case brought by the woman against a state institution. The plaintiff asked the court to declare unlawful the order terminating her employment contract, to reinstate her in her former position and to award her wages for the period of forced absence.

Under the employment contract, the plaintiff had been hired by the state institution as an accompanist. By a decision formalized in a protocol dated August 28, 2025, she failed a selection process: the grounds were complaints about insufficient voice training and a low level of musical education.

On the basis of that decision, the employer issued an order terminating the employment contract with the plaintiff, citing Subparagraph 6 of Paragraph 1 of Article 52 and Subparagraph 3 of Paragraph 1 of Article 49 of the Labor Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Disagreeing with the dismissal, the woman went to court, stating that the order terminating the employment contract had been issued in violation of labor law requirements. She therefore asked the court to declare the order unlawful, reinstate her in her former position and award her average earnings for the period of forced absence.

During the proceedings, the court established that the plaintiff's unsuitability for the position due to insufficient qualifications had not been confirmed by the results of an attestation. The court concluded that the employer had incorrectly applied the provisions of labor law.

In particular, where there are grounds for dismissal due to an employee's unsuitability for the position because of insufficient qualifications, Subparagraph 4 of Paragraph 1 of Article 52 of the Labor Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan should have been applied. That provision allows an employment contract to be terminated at the employer's initiative if an employee is unsuitable for the position or work due to insufficient qualifications confirmed by attestation results.

Since the grounds for dismissal provided for by law were not confirmed by proper evidence, the court found the employer's actions unlawful.

Following the hearing, the plaintiff's claims were upheld in full: the order terminating the employment contract was declared unlawful and annulled, the plaintiff was reinstated in her former position, and the employer was ordered to pay her wages for the period of forced absence. The court's decision has entered into legal force.