Senior Reporter
derek.achong@guardian.co.tt
The State has been ordered to pay $370,000 in compensation to a medical laboratory technician whose transfer to a regional health authority was delayed for over 16 years.
Delivering a judgment late last month, High Court Judge Avason Quinlan-Williams upheld Charmaine Quashie’s case, alleging that her constitutional rights were breached by the protracted delay.
According to the evidence in the case, Quashie joined the public service under the Ministry of Education in 1995 before transferring to the Ministry of Health.
In 2007, Quashie applied under the Regional Health Authorities Act (RHA) to be transferred to the South West Regional Health Authority (SWRHA).
Although Quashie’s application was reportedly approved by the Public Service Commission (PSC) in 2013, she was not officially informed.
The ministry later admitted that the transfer was not transferred due to an administrative oversight and took steps to rectify the issue.
Quashie refused the transfer and continued performing her duties at the ministry.
Quashie, who was 57-years-old when the ministry sought to rectify the issue, claimed that the inordinate delay meant that she would not be entitled to a pension under the RHA as such is only provided for staff who are between 17 and 55-year-old.
She was not paid a salary for several months, leading her to file the lawsuit through her lawyers.
In determining the case, Justice Quinlan-Williams rejected claims that the delay and subsequent effort to transfer Quashie was due to oversight as claimed.
“The court is satisfied that to describe what occurred after 2016 as an administrative error is a misnomer,” Justice Quinlan-Williams said.
“The ill-conceived efforts to transfer the claimant in 2023 were all the doing of the Permanent Secretary,” she added.
Justice Quinlan-Williams suggested that Quashie’s views should have been sought before belatedly enforcing the transfer, as her position on the issue would have evolved based on her circumstances. She found that Quashie’s right to a fair hearing was breached.
“The delay was so unjustifiable and excusably excessive that the court is satisfied that the decision made to approve the transfer in 2013 cannot be enforced on the claimant in 2023,” she said.
She noted that the delay was unfair and unreasonable and the ministry failed to explain why it occurred.
“There was no evidence about the volume of matters the Ministry had to deal with or any policy in relation to timing of the transfer,” Justice Quinlan-Williams said.
While Justice Quinlan-Williams found that Quashie’s right to protection of the law was breached, she ruled that Quashie failed to prove that she missed out on promotion due to the delay.
“Promotion is not a right and the claimant has not adduced evidence to demonstrate that she applied for the position and was bypassed,” she said.
Justice Quinlan-Williams awarded Quashie $200,000 for the breaches of her rights and $150,000 in vindicatory damages based on the conduct of the ministry.
“The Defendant’s failure to inform the claimant of the transfer and delaying to transfer the claimant 10 years later without good reason and without allowing her the opportunity to be heard requires an additional award to reflect the sense of public outrage at the wrongdoing, emphasise the gravity of the breach and to deter further similar breaches,” she said.
Quashie was represented by Farai Hove-Masaisai, Chelsea Edwards and John-Paul Belmar, of Hove and Associates. The Office of the Attorney General was represented by Stefan Jaikaran and Adana Hosang.
