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ELRCDismissedCause No. 1118 of 2010 (Consolidated with Cause No. 113 of 2010)· [2013] KEELRC 754 (KLR)

Julius Gicheru Gachahi & another v Board of Governors Maragi Secondary School [2013] KEELRC 754 (KLR)

Industrial Court of Kenya
24 June 2013
MOMaureen Onyango
2,179 words in judgment
View original judgmentRead on Kenya Law Watch case
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The bottom line

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Two Kenyan school employees lost their overtime claims because they couldn't show exactly how they calculated the money they were demanding.

What this practically means

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Executive summary

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Two former employees of Maragi Secondary School, a night watchman employed from 1997 to 2009 and an office messenger employed from 1995 to 2010, claimed overtime against the school's Board of Governors, quantified by a Labour Officer at Kshs. 321,200 for the 1st Claimant and Kshs. 369,219 for the 2nd Claimant. The two causes were consolidated and heard on 28th January 2013. The Claimants testified that they worked beyond their contractual hours and were never paid overtime, while the Respondent, through the school Principal and Bursar, maintained that any overtime worked was paid monthly with salary, producing pay sheets showing overtime payments, and that the Claimants accepted their retirement benefits as final payments. The court framed a single issue: whether the Claimants were owed overtime and, if so, how much. Applying Rule 6 of the Regulation of Wages (General) Order, the court found both claims glaringly inaccurate because they covered all days of the years worked, including weekly rest days, annual leave and days on which overtime had in fact been paid. The Claimants admitted the calculations omitted non-working days, admitted they did not know how the figures were derived, and the signed pay sheets contradicted their denials of ever receiving overtime. Holding that it is not the court's duty to calculate claims for claimants, the court found the claims unproven and dismissed both claims with no orders as to costs. Judgment was read in open court on 24th June 2013.

Key legal issues

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01

Whether the Claimants proved entitlement to unpaid overtime

Holding

The claims were dismissed as unproven; the claims were inaccurate and the pay sheets showed overtime had been paid

Reasoning

Both Claimants admitted taking weekly rest days and 21 days annual leave, yet claimed for all days of the years worked. They also denied receiving overtime despite signed pay sheets showing payments. The calculations were done by a Labour Officer, and the Claimants could not demonstrate how the amounts claimed were arrived at. The court held that a claimant must demonstrate the basis of the amounts claimed, and the evidence fell short of proving the sums or any other sum.

p. 4
02

Applicable statutory rates for overtime under the Regulation of Wages (General) Order

Holding

Rule 6 provides overtime at one and one-half times the normal hourly rate for excess hours and twice the rate for rest days or public holidays, with the basic hourly rate deemed not less than 1/225 of the minimum monthly wage

Reasoning

The court set out the statutory framework governing overtime payment, including rates for excess hours, rest days and public holidays, the deemed hourly rate, and maximum weekly hour limits for night workers and other adult employees, applying it as the benchmark against which the claims and the Respondent's payments were measured.

p. 3

Legal principles established

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  • A claimant must clearly demonstrate how he has calculated any amount claimed in the Memorandum of Claim; it is not the duty of the court to calculate claims for claimants

Court orders

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  1. 1.The claims of both Claimants are dismissed
  2. 2.No orders for costs

Authorities

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Legislation

  • The Regulation of Wages (General) OrderRule 6
Jurisdiction invoked
Original jurisdiction of the Industrial Court over employment and labour relations disputes

Key timeline

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Practical implications

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Frequently asked questions

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Later judgments citing this (2)

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Judgments in the corpus that rely on this one. Where the Court said how it treated the authority, that is shown.

Cite this brief

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Cite this brief

Caselaw, "Julius Gicheru Gachahi & another v Board of Governors Maragi Secondary School [2013] KEELRC 754 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2013). Cause No. 1118 of 2010 (Consolidated with Cause No. 113 of 2010). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2013/754/eng@2013-06-24

Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.