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JUDGMENT
JUDGMENT
FACTS
The Plaintiffs herein are former workers of the Defendant Company Ameen Sangari
Industries Limited. As a result of the company’s dwindling fortunes, it embarked on
a redundancy exercises which affected the Plaintiffs. The company informed the
Industrial and Commercial Workers Union (ICU). However, after series of meetings
between the ICU and the Defendant on the redundancy packages to be given to the
affected workers, there was a deadlock as to the quantum of severance pay, as no
consensus could be reached. The matter was referred to the National Labour
Commission (NLC) for resolution, who subsequently referred the parties to voluntary
arbitration. The arbitration panel in its ruling settled on two (2) months’ salary for
each completed year of service, pro rata. The Defendant has still not complied with
the award of the voluntary arbitration and it is this situation that has necessitated this
action.
The three main issues to be discussed are (1) whether or not the Defendant has paid
other colleagues of the Plaintiffs (2) Whether or not the Defendant has failed to pay
the Plaintiffs their entitlements and (3) whether or not the Plaintiff can execute the
award by the Labour Commission.
Whether or not the Defendant has paid other colleagues is an issue which is a matter
of fact, in paragraph 16 of the Plaintiff’s witness statement, it was stated that fifty of
the members gave up the fight and accepted the token of Two (2) weeks salary for
each year of service the Defendant offered. In the submission by Ameen Sangari
Industries Limited to the Arbitration Panel set up by the National Labour
Commission, they also stated that several workers have contacted management
individually and accepted the package offered to them.
Whether or not the Defendant has failed to pay the Plaintiffs their entitlements is also
a matter of fact which will be answered with the discussion of the third issue.
A holistic perusal of the Labour Act 2003 (Act 651) indicates that part VIII mainly
deals with redundancy. Section 65 of the Act is captioned Redundancy, pertinent to
the issue at hand are clauses (1) (2) (3) and (5) it provide:
“When an employer contemplates the introduction of major changes in production,
programme, organisation, structure or technology of an undertaking that are likely to entail
terminations of employment of workers in the undertaking the employer shall
(a) Provide in writing to the Chief Labour Officer and the tr