In the case ‘Clayton Zammit vs Erica Pantaleon’ decided by the Industrial Tribunal on the 07th August 2024, the Tribunal decided that the case lodged by the plaintiff was presented fuori termine.
The employee in this case submitted her resignation from Savewise Discount Store on the 16th March 2023, as was also confirmed by the Jobsplus Employment History. Apart from being informed of this resignation in virtue of correspondence dated the 16th and 18th March by the employee, Jobsplus also officially informed the employer of such resignation on the 16th June 2023.
Although the employee resigned from her employment in March, the defendant lodged a case before the Industrial Tribunal on the 04th December 2023, that is almost nine (9) months after the employee’s resignation. This case was lodged so late despite what is stipulated in Article 75 of Chapter 452 of the Laws of Malta, the Employment and Industrial Relations Act which states that cases before the Industrial Tribunal are to be lodged within four months from the effective date of the alleged breach.
The plaintiff argued that the four months as indicated in the law should have started accruing from the 11th August 2023, that is when the employer decided to take legal action against the employee. The plaintiff also argued that he did not accept the employee’s resignation in March and therefore, the four months duration stipulated by law could not have started counting from that time.
The defendant argued that the law is very clear on this matter as it explicitly states that the case is to be lodged within four months from when the alleged breach takes place. The defendant also emphasised that one cannot argue that the four months start counting from when the employer decides to accept the resignation or otherwise, since the law does not give the employer the authority to accept an employee’s resignation or otherwise.
The Industrial Tribunal agreed with the defendant and considered the resignation of the employee to have taken place on the 16th March 2024. To this end, the case was declared to have been lodged fuori termine and therefore, it ordered that the case should not continue to be heard.
Av. Charlene Baldacchino Gauci – Senior Associate
Julian Mifsud – Legal Intern
Mifsud & Mifsud Advocates
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