In a landmark employment ruling, the Trinidad and Tobago High Court has rejected a registered nurse’s legal challenge against the South-West Regional Health Authority (SWRHA) regarding salary deductions following her extended medical absence. Justice Westmin James delivered the decisive verdict on January 26, affirming the health authority’s actions as both lawful and contractually justified.
The case centered on Nicolia McLean-Kelly, a nurse employed at San Fernando General Hospital since 2018, who contracted mycoplasma pneumonia while on duty in July 2020. Her condition deteriorated critically, requiring multiple weeks of hospitalization including three weeks in intensive care where she suffered cardiac arrests and underwent emergency lung surgery.
Despite the severity of her medical crisis, Justice James determined that SWRHA acted within its contractual rights when it reclassified portions of her sick leave as unpaid absence. The court found that McLean-Kelly had exhausted her contractual entitlement of 14 working days of paid sick leave per year by late July 2020. Subsequent payments made during her extended absence constituted overpayments that the authority was legally obligated to recover under the Exchequer and Audit Act.
The judge systematically dismissed the claimant’s arguments that the deductions were unlawful or unfair. He emphasized that the employment contract explicitly granted the employer discretion in determining whether extended sick leave should be paid, and that this discretion was exercised rationally and consistently with established HR policies. Justice James further noted that the contract expressly required employees to comply with applicable institutional policies, making it implausible that a senior nurse would be unaware of such regulations.
The court also addressed the timing of the deductions, acknowledging that medical certificates could only be issued upon hospitalization completion, which delayed the reclassification process. Once overpayments were identified, recovery became legally mandatory.
In addition to dismissing the claim for recovered salary totaling $63,482.08, the court rejected claims for gratuity losses ($13,917), aggravated and exemplary damages, and interest. Justice James ordered McLean-Kelly to pay the SWRHA’s prescribed costs of $19,479.80 (excluding VAT) while granting a 90-day stay of execution.