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Lagos – His Lordship, Hon. Justice Nelson C.S. Ogbuanya of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, sitting in Lagos, Lagos State, on Friday 11th January 2018 via judgment delivered purported dismissal of FATAI OYEKUNLE (claimant) as Unjustified and wrongful, ordered ABEL SELL LTD and Anor (defendants) to pay claimant the sum of N500, 000.00 as a pay-off package within One (1) month
The Claimant approached the court vide a General Form of Complaint dated 18th March 2016, sought for recovery of outstanding owed salaries, entitled gratuity, and declaration as unlawful, his dismissal on allegation of crime of stealing which was never proved against him in any court of competent jurisdiction.
The Claimant sought among others; The sum of Forty-three thousand nine hundred naira (N43,900) only being the salary due to the Claimant for the months of February and March 2015 which he worked for but he is yet to be paid for. A Declaration that the dismissal of the Claimant from the 1st Defendant’s employment on the ground of crime of stealing which was never proved in any court of competent jurisdiction was wrongful and unlawful.
Likewise, A Demand for the sum of ten million naira (N10,000,000.00) only being amount for diligent service rendered and the Claimant’s final entitlement (gratuity) from the 1st and 2nd defendants jointly and severally.
From the pleadings, the case of the Claimant is that he was employed by the Defendant in 1992 as a factory worker and later was converted to a security man and deployed to the factory sites. However, sometime on 12th December 2014, some machines were declared missing, of which the Claimant was maliciously accused of masterminding, which led to his detention by the police, but it turned out that it was the 2nd Defendant’s son who instructed the security supervisor, to release the machines for sale.
He contended that the criminal allegation against him was a ploy to carry out a sinister plan to send him away from the Defendant company empty-handed, after working for the Defendant since 1992. That such move was earlier made when the Defendant’s Accountant, offered him the sum of N250,000 as layoff money, but which he rejected.
He went on to testify that since his dismissal on 5th March 2015, he has not been paid his salaries for the months of February and March 2015, despite his Solicitor’s letter of demand, which was rebuffed by the Defendant, believed such act by the Defendant was calculated to cheat him being an elderly illiterate man. He prayed the court to grant his reliefs.
Defendant further testified that Claimant was paid all salaries due to him for the months he worked, except the months of February and March 2015 when he was detained by police. To the Defendants, it was at the time the 1st Defendant was about to be shut down that the long service award event was held, and the Claimant was presented with a Refrigerator and the sum of N200,000.00. And that the Claimant was later offered the sum of N250,000.00 on humanitarian grounds seeing that he has advanced in age, which would make it difficult for him to secure an alternative job, and also considering his years of service with the 1st Defendant.
Counsel submitted that the Claimant was a Casual Worker and was paid his entitlements up to the time of his retirement in accordance with the stipulations of the National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Act 2011. Counsel further submitted that the Claimant upon his arrest and detention tendered his letter of Resignation.
He pointed that in the instant case, the Claimant admitted being involved in criminal acts of stealing and the Defendants merely petitioned the police, of which complaint was later withdrawn by the Defendants out of magnanimity of the 2nd Defendant following several pleas of the employees’ families.
Counsel to the claimant urged the court to discountenance all arguments set up about criminality against the Claimant for their failure to discharge their burden of proof in respect of the criminal allegation and that the criminal allegation ought to be dealt with in a court before using it as basis for dismissing the Claimant.
After careful analysis of all the processes filed, and the submissions of the learned Counsel from both sides. The Court presided by Hon. Justice Nelson Ogbuanya expressed thus;
“From the pleadings and evidence led, I find that the Defendants merely denied the claim of non-payment of two months’ salary to the Claimant, but did not provide any detailed particulars of the payment or any evidence thereof.
“1st Defendant generally denied owing the Claimant any arrears of salary but also alluded to not paying after the incident of the alleged theft.
“Therefore, in absence of any credible evidence by the Defendants on when and how the claimed salaries were paid to the Claimant or legally acceptable justification for withholding the Claimant’s salaries, I find that the Claimant is entitled to recover the payment of the two months outstanding salaries before his exit from the 1st Defendant in the sum of N43,900 (forty three thousand nine hundred naira.
“To say the least, the term, ‘casual worker’ is demeaning, otiose and no longer an acceptable terminology of description of any Nigerian worker no matter how lowly placed within the current Nigerian Labour & Employment legal regime.
“It is hereby ordered that the Claimant is entitled to be paid the sum of N43, 900.00(forty three thousand nine hundred naira) being the two months outstanding salaries before his exit from the 1st Defendant.”
The court declared that the purported dismissal of the claimant is not justified and wrongful, ordered that the sum of N500, 000.00 payable as a pay-off package to the Claimant by the Defendants within One (1) month.
