Health clinic sued for breach of contract

A physician hired by the Pacific Medical Center yesterday sued the health clinic for breach of his employment contract.

Dib Caed brought the action against Micronesia Health Systems Ltd. dba Pacific Medical Center seeking payment of his salary for the remainder of his employment contract, which was terminated on Nov. 16, 1998.

Caed sought the court’s help after he was informed by the Department of Labor and Immigration that because he held an IR permit, the administrative process does not apply to him.

Caed entered into an employment contract with PMC in November of 1997 that was signed by its medical director, Ahmad Al-Alou.

The contract stated that Caed would begin working for PMC upon his arrival on Saipan and will work for one year at a salary of $75,000 per annum.

He arrived on Saipan Dec. 4, 1997 and started working three days later at the salary stated in his contract.

On March 20, 1998, both parties amended the employment contract. The original contract stated that it could be terminated on 30 days advance notice for cause, however, pursuant to negotiations the amendment provided that the contract would be terminated on Dec. 31, 1998.

Al-Alou represented to Caed that he would get the amendment to the contract approved by the Division of Labor but upon information and belief, Al-Alou never provided the document to the labor office.

Pursuant to the amendment, Caed’s salary would be increased from $75,000 to $100,000 and would be extended from Dec. 7, 1997 until Dec. 31, 1998.

The increase in salary raised his bi-weekly payment from $2,884.62 to $4,075.09 which was reflected in his pay checks.

In Nov. 10, 1998, Al-Alou verbally informed Caed that Nov. 12, 1998 would be his last day of work. The medical director sent a letter to Caed informing him of his termination in writing.

Caed received the notice on Nov. 16, 1998 and Al-Alou gave Caed his last pay check which provided for payment until Nov. 24, 1998.

Caed claimed that PMC’s early termination of his employment violated the terms of the amended contract which stated that Caed would work until Dec. 31, 1998.

As a result of the early termination, Caed has been deprived of the salary owed to him for the final 37 days of the contract which amounts to $10, 769.96.

His contract also provides that the employer will furnish him a repatriation ticket to his point of origin but he never received a plane ticket or compensation for the ticket which amounts to $1,000.

Caed, through lawyer John Chambers, is seeking payment of the wages, an equal amount of liquidated damages and his repatriation ticket totaling $22,539.92.