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The court has exclusive jurisdiction in civil causes and matters relating to or connected with any labour, employment, trade unions, industrial relations and matters arising from workplace, the conditions of service, including health, safety, welfare of labour, employee, worker and matter incidental thereto or connected therewith.

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[Judgment] Unpaid Terminal Benefits: Industrial Court Orders Firm To Pay Sum of N34 Million Within 30 Days


1195 Wednesday 16th January 2019

 

Portharcourt – His Lordship, Hon. Justice F. I. Kola-Olalere of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, sitting in Portharcourt, Rivers State, on Tuesday 8th January 2019 in a judgment delivered, ordered Nigerian Wire and Cable Plc(defendant) to pay Deborah A. Adeyinka and three others (claimant) the sum of N34,808, 671.95 as the terminal benefits of their father, late Olusegun Michael Adeyinka within 30 days.

 

This case emanated from the High Court of Justice Oyo State, Ibadan Judicial Division, filed on November 18, 2008, and was transferred to this Court on December 21, 2011. The parties regularized their processes in line with the Rules of this Court and by his complaint;

 

The claimant claimed against the defendants, A brand new Mercedez Benz car and The sum of N38,854,051.95 being the terminal benefits.

 

The case of the claimants is that their deceased Husband and Father, (Mr. Olusegun Micheal Adeyinka) was employed in November 1982 by the Defendant as a Sales Manager and that after series of promotions; he became Managing Director.

 

They averred further that in 2003 senior members of the Board of Directors of the Defendant approached the deceased and persuaded him to turn in his retirement letter in order to pave way for intending new investors who had allegedly insisted that they have a controlling interest in the company.

 

Hence, the deceased resigned from his appointment with the Defendant as a sacrifice to resuscitate the Defendant while the defendant undertook to pay his terminal benefits (including other entitlements) latest within thirty days from his resignation. Regrettably, his terminal benefits remained unpaid despite repeated demands; therefore, he instituted this case against the company for his entitlements before he died.

 

The case of the defendant is that the deceased/Claimant was an ex-staff of the defendant who resigned from his appointment with the defendant on December 31, 2003. the company pleaded that the conditions of service relied upon by the deceased were made by him and his colleagues without the authority of the Board of Directors of the defendant and its shareholders in a general meeting; and so, it was fabricated and concocted by the deceased/Claimant in cohort with other management staff to defraud the company.

 

It continued that the defendant never made any promise to pay the deceased/Claimant neither did defendant receive any letter of demand from the deceased/Claimant.

 

Claimants Counsel noted that the defendant in the instant case did not call any witness and that the deposition of its proposed witness was not adopted at trial as evidence. Therefore, counsel urged the Court to deem the deposition as having been abandoned and to discountenance same.

 

It is worthy of note that after entering an appearance and filing its statement of defence, the defendant in this case only cross-examined the Cross witnesses through its counsel Mr. T. Idenyi; thereafter, its counsel stopped coming to Court despite several adjournments granted the defendant by the Court for this purpose.

 

After careful analysis of all the processes filed, and the submissions of the learned Counsel from both sides. The Court presided by Hon. Justice F. I. Kola-Olalere expressed thus;

“The testimonies of witnesses under cross-examination are not of any assistance to the defendant to prove that the claimant and some other Management staff of the defendant fabricated the conditions of service for the senior staff of the defendant without the authority/approval of the Board of Directors and those of the shareholders of the defendant.

 

“Consequently, I find and hold that; because the defendant failed to lead evidence in support of its pleadings before the Court, the defendant has voluntarily abandoned the said pleadings in this case.

 

“Since there is no evidence from the defendant to contradict those of the claimant in this case, the claimant’s evidence is accordingly accepted as presented before the Court.

 

The court held that claimants are entitled to only the sum of N34,808, 671.95 as the terminal benefits of late Olusegun Michael Adeyinka as admitted by the defendant, ordered defendant to pay within 30 days.

 

His Lordship also ordered defendants to give to the claimants a refurbished car on behalf of the late claimant as part of his total terminal emoluments in line with the terms and conditions of his employment.

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