JOHN DANSO TURKSON v. AFRICAN MINING SERVICES
2015
COURT OF APPEAL
GHANA
CORAM
- E. K. AYEBI, J.A. (PRESIDING)
- I. C. LARBI (MRS), J.A.
- A. M. DOMAKYAAREH (MRS), J.A
Areas of Law
- Employment Law
- Constitutional Law
- Administrative Law
2015
COURT OF APPEAL
GHANA
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
The appeal by the defendant/appellant against the judgment of the High Court, Sunyani, was upheld. The judgment of the Learned Trial Judge dated 20th June 2012 was set aside in its entirety.
J U D G M E N T
A. M. DOMAKYAAREH (MRS), J.A.
1. This is an appeal by the defendant/appellant against the judgment of His Lordship Justice D. K. Ofosu-Quartey J. sitting at the High Court, Sunyani dated 20th June 2012 whereby he gave judgment for the plaintiff/respondent herein.
2. The Plaintiff’s Claim:
The plaintiff/respondent (hereinafter called the plaintiff) claimed against the defendant/appellant (hereinafter called the defendant) in the Court below, three reliefs per his Writ of Summons filed on 11/8/2010 namely: -
• That the plaintiff has been unlawfully purportedly dismissed by the defendant which is against the plaintiff’s fundamental rights and natural justice;
• An order of the Honourable Court setting aside the purported dismissal of the plaintiff and a further order that all monies due the plaintiff be paid to the plaintiff with interest;
• Further orders as the Honourable Court may deem fit.
3. The facts of the plaintiff’s case:
The plaintiff’s Statement of Claim disclosed that he was employed by the defendant in 2004 as a Driver Off-sider and that he rose to the position of Shift Supervisor. As Shift Supervisor, he was in charge of nine (9) people made up of two drillers, one mechanic and six off-siders. He said on 4/6/10, while he was assigned work at Newmont Ghana Ltd at Kenyase in the Brong Ahafo Region, there was a problem at the work in relation to equipment sample hose for exploration drilling and all methods were applied to get the sample hose function but to no avail. He said there was therefore the need to use appropriate technology which is largely applied anytime other methods fail. He indicated that “that method is usually used in times of difficulties as taught by the whites who originally operated the system.” As an example, the plaintiff averred that the sample hose once blocked and the method of freeing it did not work so the hose was “chopped” and the length shortened thereby getting the normal length was a problem. He averred that as a result of this shortened length, on 4/6/10 when the hose got blocked, the hose was put on the ground to be beaten and while the driller and the off-sider were hammering the hose, it suddenly removed from the pegs that were used to brace it and it hit the driller and the off-sider. They sustained what he termed “FIRST AID MINOR injuries”. The plaintiff further averred that apart from statements that he and the injured wrote on the incident, the defendant gave he the plaintiff a pu