Compensation for unjustified transfers

The Tribunal for the Investigation of Injustices yesterday upheld an application filed by Peter Thake against Kalaxlokk Co. Ltd and recommended that he be awarded Lm1,500 in compensation.

Thake claimed that he had sustained an injustice when he had been transferred to different departments at Kalaxlokk Co. Ltd and had been denied promotion after the 1987 general election.

He requested the tribunal, presided over by Mr Justice Lino Farrugia Sacco, to provide him with a remedy.

Applicant claimed he had commenced work in 1984 with Harbour Construction Co. Ltd and had then moved to Xlokk Co. Ltd which had been amalgamated into Kalaxlokk. He had always performed his work as a clerk in a diligent manner and had never received any complaints.

After the 1987 election and change in administration, the personnel manager at Kalaxlokk had been replaced by a person of known Nationalist sympathies. The new manager had made Thake do jobs that were below his grade and applicant had then been transferred numerous times to different departments at Kalaxlokk.

With each transfer, Thake lost his seniority and was also bypassed for promotions.

The tribunal noted in its judgment that it could not enter into the merits of Thake's complaints regarding lack of promotion for he had not made any mention of any specific promotions apart from the case of Carmen Borg who had been promoted to executive officer in October 1995.

The law establishing the tribunal limited its jurisdiction to examining acts or omissions that took place between May 9, 1987 and May 15, 1995.

As a result, the tribunal could not investigate whether an injustice had occurred when Borg had been promoted.

When referring to the transfers Thake had experienced, the tribunal reiterated its stand that any transfer had to take place for a valid reason and preferably in writing. At no stage had Kalaxlokk given a valid reason for the large number of transfers imposed on Thake and the tribunal therefore upheld Thake's complaint on this issue.

Mr Justice Farrugia Sacco recommended that Thake be awarded Lm1,500 by way of compensation.