A former chief executive officer at Malta International Airport had breached “the full and unquestionable trust” underpinning his high office by leaking business secrets, thereby providing justification for dismissal.
Marcus Klaushofer filed proceedings before the Industrial Tribunal claiming that his contract of employment at MIA had been unilaterally terminated, for no valid reason in January 2015.
The applicant had signed a three-year contract with the company in 2012 and that agreement was subsequently extended up to June 2017 with a pay rise that resulted in an annual salary of €175,907.
Yet, MIA legal counsel argued that the termination had followed suspicion which first arose in 2014 when company officials sensed that Klaushofer was leaking confidential company information to third parties having an interest in acquiring shares in the consortium owning the airport.
Following an earlier incident concerning leaked sensitive information related to the sale of shares by SNC Lavalin to MMLC, the company had set up so-called “Chinese walls” so that any share transfer would be handled by an independent team bound by strict confidentiality obligations.
No member of the MIA board would be involved.
So when MIA high-ranking officials sensed that Klaushofer was leaking “business secrets” to Paris-based Antin Infrastructure, the board of directors decided to confront him about the matter hours before a board meeting scheduled to take place in Vienna in January 2015.
On that occasion, Klaushofer chose not to reply, turning down both the option of resigning, avoiding a humiliating situation, as well as the offer of a generous termination package.
After being offered the opportunity of addressing the members of the board, Klaushofer left the meeting.
A resolution for his dismissal was passed unanimously and the CEO was fired.
He later sued the company for unjustified dismissal, requesting compensation that was far higher than his entitlement had there been a sound cause for his termination of contract.
After assessing all evidence put forward, the tribunal concluded that the applicant’s confidentiality obligations were clearly laid out in his contract and other separate memos.
While share transfer negotiations between VIE and Antin were ongoing, Klaushofer had spent days in Paris between December 2014 and January 2015.
Present-day CEO Alan Borg testified that Klaushofer had been asking his own subordinates to provide information about traffic forecasts. Employees said that the CEO had been instructing them to inflate figures, thereby giving a more positive outlook.
There was evidence that MIA staff had forwarded Klaushofer data concerning the company’s 10-year business plan, annual investment volumes, long term economic development forecasts and MIA’s business partners - all of which were part of the company’s “business secrets”.
Meanwhile, it transpired that Klaushofer was trying to negotiate a new 10-year employment contract at double the salary, once Antin took over MIA shares.
When testifying, the applicant confirmed telephone conversations with Antin but was not sure whether there had been any personal meetings.
Asked whether any documents had been requested by Antin, Klaushofer’s reply was, “I can’t remember. I don’t know”.
After weighing all evidence, the tribunal, chaired by Edmund Tabone, observed that as CEO of a company having a strategic role in the country, the applicant had breached company policies which he was duty-bound to safeguard.
His behaviour went against his “very serious obligations”, placing the company at risk, said the tribunal, adding that the role of CEO was one of utmost importance, founded upon “the full and unquestionable trust”.
Klaushofer’s actions had led MIA to completely lose its confidence and trust in the applicant whose dismissal was thus deemed justified.
Lawyers Louis Degabriele and Ron Galea Cavallazzi assisted the company.