Industrial Court Awards Ex-Manager RM800k for Unfair Dismissal

After almost two years of court proceedings, an ex-manager for a government agency was awarded over RM800,000 after the Industrial Court found the agency guilty of unfair dismissal.

According to Malay Mail, Thomas Kuruvilla, the claimant who worked at MDEC from September 2007 to May 2018, was awarded about RM810,628. The amount is to be paid within 30 days of the award date.

Lawyer T. M. Varughese represented the claimant, while Shariffullah Majeed and Amardeep Singh Toor represented the government agency. Augustine Anthony, who is the Industrial Court chairman, presided over the case. 

During the trial, which started on February 28, 2019, the agency claimed that the Kuruvilla's work performance began to deteriorate from 2015 onwards, forcing it to place him under a few performance improvement plans (PIP) which ended in 2017.

Despite guidance given to the claimant to achieve his key performance indicators and job scope, the agency ultimately rated the former manager's performance as unacceptable. It is said that he failed to make the necessary improvements, which led to his dismissal in May 2018. 

The agency was found guilty of unfair dismissal.

On the claimant's part, he argued that when he started working in the company in September 2007 in a senior managerial position, there was no report for any unsatisfactory issues related to his performance in the first seven years. He claimed that when a new chief executive officer took over in September 2014, he was transferred to a different department in April 2015. 

Kuruvilla claimed that he was not a poor performer and should have never been placed under the PIPs. He added that in the new department he was:

• Given several objectives not related to his job scope,
• Made subordinate to a few other different managers,
• Given limited or no guidance at all, and
• Placed under humiliating situations at times. 

In his argument, the company attempted to dismiss him as an employee, and in doing so, they engaged in unfair labour practices by victimising and then terminating him. He said that it was a decision that was tainted with bad faith and done without just cause or excuse.

Following the court proceedings over 23 months, with various similar unfair dismissal cases from 1981 to 2019 cited throughout, the Court determined that the claimant was indeed not given sufficient time to complete the tasks given to him. The Court also decided that he was not accorded enough opportunity to improve, and was not provided adequate guidance and assistance during his PIPs.

The Court also determined that Kuruvilla's frequent transfers in a short period of fewer than four years after his September 2014 transfer to another department and his placement under several performance managers are clear evidence of the agency putting him under extreme pressure and creating difficulties and frustration to his work performance. 

As such, the Court deemed the agency's cumulative conduct not to aid in improving Kurufilla's performance but instead driven to cause its decline instead. The Court ruled that the company failed to prove on the balance of probabilities that the claimant's dismissal from employment was done with just cause or excuse.

The claimant's awarded sum includes 24 months of back wages amounting to RM572,208, and compensation in place of reinstatement for ten months totalling RM238,420.

Learn more about us!

Articles that might interest you

HR Guide: Procedure and Templates for Leave Administration
What is Emergency Leave and How Does it Work in Malaysia?
Which Employees are Covered under the Employment Act?