Case date 2022-04-07
Case type Commercial Court, Labour Dispute
Delroy Duncan KC and Ryan Hawthorne were instructed by the Bermuda Public Service Union (representing the former employees of CI2) to intervene in these judicial review proceedings, which were an appeal against a decision of the Permanent Arbitration Tribunal in relation to its interpretation of section 23 of the Employment Act 2000 (the Act), namely whether severance pay is payable to an employee where he is offered “re-employment by the employer”.
Case outcome
The Court found that the reference to “re-employment by the employer” in section 23(4)(a) of the Act means the same employer before termination; where a new employer re-employs an employee, the old terminating employer does not fall within section 23 (4)(a) of the Act and may still have to pay severance pay.