B.C. school operator linked to acquitted Air India suspect ordered to pay $75,000
Credit to Author: Keith Fraser| Date: Thu, 20 Feb 2020 01:15:03 +0000
The society that operates a large Sikh private school and that has acquitted Air India suspect Ripudaman Singh Malik as its school board chairman has been ordered to pay more than $75,000 in a wrongful dismissal case.
Surinder Virk, who was employed by the Satnam Educational Society of B.C. from September 1998 to June 2010, filed a lawsuit alleging wrongful dismissal and other employment breaches after being terminated from his job as a vice-principal at the Khalsa Primary School following the 2009/10 school year.
At trial, Virk, 50, claimed that he was an indefinite-term employee and that the society “unilaterally” put him on probation and withheld a raise before dismissing him without cause and without reasonable notice.
The society responded by arguing that he was a fixed-term employee and that his performance was not satisfactory and he was put on probation. It also alleged he did not meet the conditions of a wage increase and his fixed-term contract was not renewed after it expired.
Virk, Jasbir Singh Bhatia, a principal at one of the four campuses of the school, and Malik were the three main witnesses at the trial.
Malik, who was acquitted in 2005 in connection with the 1985 Air India bombing that claimed the lives of 331 people, was unhappy with Virk’s performance as a vice-principal.
He claimed that Virk was “non-caring,” accused him of being “in a clique” and urged him to take more “pride” and “ownership” in his job, the trial heard.
Bhatia, however, testified that he was satisfied with Virk’s job performance. Virk denied the allegations levelled by Malik.
In her ruling on the case, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Barbara Norell said that she was impressed with Bhatia as a witness, noting that he was no longer employed by Satnam and had no personal interest in the litigation.
She found that where there was a conflict in the evidence between Bhatia’s assessment of Virk’s performance and Malik’s assessment, she accepted Bhatia’s account.
“It was clear Mr. Bhatia was caught in the middle between Mr. Malik and Mr. Virk,” said the judge. “In my view, as a senior experienced teaching professional and the person who observed Mr. Virk the most and on a daily basis, Mr. Bhatia was the person best able to assess Mr. Virk’s performance.”
Malik became increasingly dissatisfied with Virk for reasons that coloured his perceptions of him, including that Virk was friendly with a former Satnam employee who had filed a lawsuit against the society, said the judge.
“I find that Mr. Virk was discouraged by the situation, and felt that he was in a no-win situation,” said the judge. “This may have appeared to Mr. Malik to be non-caring. However, Mr. Virk described his very busy job and the more than full-time hours he was working, and I accept he was working hard in favour of the school.”
The judge concluded that Virk was an indefinite-term employee, was entitled to a pay raise and a 12-month notice period and awarded him more than $75,000 in damages.
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