MIA employees awarded compensation for injustice

The Tribunal for the Investigation of Injustices yesterday recommended that three employees of Malta International Airport plc be awarded a total of Lm2,340 in compensation between them.

The three employees, George Falzon, John Calleja and Saviour Duca had filed their applications before the tribunal against Malta International Airport plc.

They all claimed that they had sustained an injustice in January, 1997, when they had been awarded promotion that in fact translated into a reduction in their earnings.

In their applications the three men claimed that on November 22, 1991, a call for applications had been issued directly to the employees at the Air Terminal Department for the appointment of a safety and security frisker.

The men, all of whom were already employed at the Air Terminal Department as airport attendants, had applied for this post and were awarded the promotion.

Accordingly, they were supposed to benefit from a pay increase and to receive a salary in line with that paid to a government employee at the same level.

However, instead, the opposite had occurred and the men had lost Lm90 each per annum from their salaries.

As this injustice still persisted, the men requested the tribunal to provide them with a remedy.

In its judgment the tribunal found that the three men had sustained an injustice.

According to the agreement reached, when the men were promoted, they were supposed to receive a Lm90 pay increase per annum, however, this increase had not been forthcoming, and it was only after the intervention of the union that they had received a Lm30 annual increase.

The discrepancy of Lm60 per annum still existed.

The tribunal therefore recommended that each applicant be awarded Lm780, representing the Lm60 discrepancy for 13 years, by way of compensation.