National broadcaster spent €10,000 on lunches in two years

PBS had spent €10,000 on lunches over two years, it emerged during John Bundy’s testimony before the Industrial Tribunal.

Bundy on Tuesday won an unfair dismissal claim against the public broadcaster, with the tribunal ordering PBS to pay him €226,500 in compensation as a result of losing the case. The case can still be appealed.

Bundy was sacked as CEO of the Public Broadcasting Services in 2017 after an audit had concluded that he had breached procurement regulations in a €500,000 car lease deal. The audit had also found that Bundy had “consistently bullied” the senior management. The leasing contract had been annulled after a public contracts review board had ruled that it was irregular and violated public procurement rules. PBS was subsequently urged to probe the contract and seek all legal action deemed appropriate.

Bundy, however, had filed an unfair dismissal case. The tribunal said, among other things, that it cannot understand how a unanimous vote of no confidence in an employee (Bundy) was taken before the investigation procedures that led to the termination decision were still to begin. It also believes that there were a number of people involved in the irregularity and notes that people in high positions had the chance to stop the leasing process.

During his unfair dismissal case, Bundy had highlighted a number of issues he had found while in his CEO role.

On 28 September 2016, he received an invoice for €1,477 that were spent on meals over ten days, the industrial tribunal’s judgement read. “He also said that he got to know from the financial controller that €10,000 was spent in two years on lunches.”

Bundy told the tribunal that, as CEO, he was expressing concern about this.

He had also stopped a board of directors’ meeting from taking place inside a Gozo hotel, that would have cost thousands, he told the tribunal. He said PBS had a professional boardroom available for use. He said that such a meeting in a Gozo hotel - the Kempinski - took place twice in the past. The first time was in 2013, where barter was made in exchange for advertising. The second time was in 2014, for payment. “The witness (Bundy) couldn’t accept that one night would cost the company €10,000.”

Another issue highlighted by Bundy to the tribunal was that he found out Malta had to pay for six countries attending the Junior Eurovision Song Contest. He said he tried to get out of this agreement, and managed with two countries, but the four that he didn’t manage cost the company €24,000.