NATIONAL LABOUR COMMISSION v. GHANA TELECOMMUNICATIONS LTD
2012
SUPREME COURT
CORAM
- WOOD (MRS,) C.J (PRESIDING)
- BROBBEY, JSC
- OWUSU (MS.), JSC
- YEBOAH, JSC
- BONNIE, JSC
Areas of Law
- Administrative Law
- Employment Law
2012
SUPREME COURT
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
The case involves the National Labour Commission's appeal against decisions from the lower courts regarding enforcement of its order against Ghana Telecommunications Ltd. The Commission had ordered the conversion of Appiahs dismissal to termination with benefits, which the company failed to comply with, leading the Commission to seek enforcement from the courts. The High Court refused enforcement, holding that the Commission's decision was incomplete and substituted its own charge for that of the petitioner. The Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court upheld this decision, emphasizing that the High Court has the duty to ensure that orders are justified in law and fact before enforcing them.
OWUSU (MS.) J.S.C:
This is an appeal against the decision of the Court of Appeal which affirmed the decision of the High Court refusing to enforce an order of the National Labour Commission under section 172 of the Labour Act of 2003, (Act 651.)
The commission as Applicant had gone to the High Court to seek enforcement of its order against Ghana Telecommunications Ltd, the Respondent herein after hearing a petition settling a dispute between the Respondent one Williams Hayford Appiah an Ex-employee of the Respondent.
Appiah was employed by the Respondent in January 2002 as Senior General Manager with the audit department of the company and later promoted to the rank of a chief officer.
Whiles in the employment of the Respondent, Appiah was asked to furnish management with his curriculum vitae which was to include but not limited to an outline indicated in the request.
In the outline is schools attended set out as follows:
“Name of Secondary/Technical/Commercial/Training College etc attended
Year of Entry
Year of completion
Sixth form?
Name of school
Year of entry
Year of completion”
Following this request, Appiah submitted a curriculum vitae indicating that between 1974 and 1981, he attended Benkum Secondary School, Larteh where he obtained his GCE “O” and “A” levels Certificates.
A follow up investigation revealed that Appiah did not attend Benkum Secondary School and indeed over the period stated by him, the school did not have a sixth form and has not offered a sixth form programme since its inception.
Rather, further investigations revealed that Appiah sat for and obtained the “O” and “A” level passes as a private student having attended private classes organized by some teachers of Benkum Secondary School. The passes were obtained one at a time between 1973-81.
For his conduct, he was charged in accordance with regulation 144 (iv) of the Staff Rules and Regulation of the company and a Board of Inquiry set up to investigate the matter found him guilty of the charge of fraud or other acts of dishonesty.
Following this, he was dismissed from the employment of the company by a letter dated 26th September 2007.
By a letter dated 5th February 2008, Appiah presented a complaint to the commission against his dismissal and prayed for the following orders –
“a. A declaration that the dismissal of the complainant from respondent’s employment is unfair.
b. An order compelling respondent to reinstate complainant with all his entitlements from 2