Transport Malta Authority ordered to pay performance bonus to former employee

The Transport Authority was ordered to pay the former Director of Civil Aviation Ian Falzon a performance bonus of over €8,000 by the Court of Appeal.

In January 2015, the appellant said that the transport Authority owed him that amount as a performance bonus for ye period January 2013 to December 2013. The Magistrate’s court refused the request.

Falzon argued that the first court ignored the evidence he had presented, including his contract.

The court of appeals noted that the appellant’s employment had been terminated in March 2014, and that the performance bonus relates to 2013. The court noted that criminal procedures were being taken against the appellant, however also said that these had to do with events when he was employed with another company and not Transport Malta.

The court noted that an email showed that a decision to give the appellant a 10% bonus was already taken. The court also noted that the question as to whether Transport Malta still had trust in the appellant after criminal action had been instigated has nothing to do with the payment of a performance bonus.

The court noted that Transport Malta CEO James Piscopo said that since he assumed his position in 2013, he had not met with all the chief officers regarding their performance bonus. He said that since these are issued before Christmas, he sent an email on 19 December 2013 where he informed all chief officers that he was going to give them a provisional performance bonus of 10%and that he would then meet with everyone in January 2014 to conduct a normal exam to revise the bonus owed. The court noted that it was sent to all chief officers including the appellant, despite that in the media the appellants case had already been reported.

The court of appeal had ordered the company to pay the appellant €8,250.

Previously, Ian Falzon, a former financial director of Malta Air Traffic Services Ltd, and Lawrence Fenech, the former CEO, had been charged with fraud and misappropriation of funds amounting to over €150,000 after an investigation by the Internal Audit and Investigation Department revealed that he had used a governmentissued Visa card to purchase personal items and using the receipts these purchases to claim cash-back between 2008 and 2010. Fenech had received a suspended sentence and Falzon’s case is ongoing.