A labour court has ordered a medical centre to pay a cosmetic surgeon more than BD38,000 in unpaid salaries, paid time off (PTO) compensation and end-of-service benefits.
After his work relationship with the medical facility ended amicably, the Egyptian doctor sued his former employer at the High Labour Court for not paying his outstanding wages and indemnity.
After hearing the case, judges took the side of the surgeon, represented by lawyer Hanan Bin Hammooda, and ruled that the owner of the centre owed her client a total of BD38,383.
Judges also ordered the defendant to pay the court BD932.700 in legal fees while the plaintiff was asked to pay BD53.700, which would go into the court’s coffers.
As per the two-year contract, the 42-year-old plaintiff’s monthly salary was BD3,000, but he had not received it for nearly a year.
The court heard that he was owed BD35,100 in unpaid wages, BD3,583 in unused PTO, a BD3,250 end-of-service payout, along with BD50 in lawyer’s fees.
While the former employer agreed that the Egyptian was not given his wages, he dismissed the demand for PTO and indemnity, stating that the surgeon was only additionally entitled to a flight ticket back to his home country.
The defence lawyer also claimed that the surgeon’s salary was BD1,000 and not BD3,000, but did not submit any documents as evidence, while Ms Bin Hammooda had attached a copy of her client’s contract.
Although the Labour Dispute Directorate attempted a mediation, no friendly settlement was reached between the surgeon and his former employer, and the case was brought before the court.
Ms Bin Hammooda initially asked the court for BD6,000 in PTO compensation, but the court did its own calculations and came up with BD3,583, as per the verdict.
Lawyer Ms Bin Hammooda
To back the legitimacy of her client’s demands, she provided to the court a Labour Market Regulatory Authority document indicating that his work visa was issued with the medical centre as his sponsor.
She also attached a copy of his licence to practice medicine, residency permit and a certificate of competence issued by his former employer, the same day his employment ended.
The centre had reportedly allowed him to change workplaces in March 2024, having begun his tenure at the cosmetic medical facility in November 2021.
In the verdict, judges broke down the calculations that were behind their award, citing laws about vacation time compensation and end-of-service payments.
“According to the Labour Law, an employee not under social insurance law is to be given compensation at the end of their service, equal to half a month’s salary for the first three years of their employment, then a month’s salary for every year they were employed at the workplace after that,” read the ruling.
“The employee is to receive a compensation in fractions if so required.
“Since no Release of Liability letter was provided by the defendant, and the plaintiff’s duration of service at the centre was between January 1, 2022 and February 29, 2024, the court concludes that he is entitled to BD3,250 end of service payout.”
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