Elvis K. Likobele v Kenya Airports Authority [2015] KEELRC 635 (KLR)
The bottom line
#Kenya's Employment Court upheld KAA's dismissal of a security warden for sexually harassing a passenger, awarding him only one month's unpaid salary.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Substantive fairness of the summary dismissal for sexual harassment
The dismissal was justified; on a balance of probabilities the Claimant sexually harassed the passenger
The tour guide John Nesta testified the passenger said she was hugged and kissed without her consent. The Claimant's account of a mere handshake was found untoward - the court questioned why a handshake was necessary. The failure by the supervisor and Duty Security Officer to record the incident in the occurrence book corroborated a cover-up. The Tamasha Afrika complaint stirred investigations that established the misconduct. The conduct contravened Section 6 of the Employment Act read with Article 28 on dignity.
Procedural fairness of the dismissal
The Claimant was accorded procedural fairness under Section 41 of the Employment Act
He was issued with a notice to show cause bearing the accusations, responded in writing despite complaining of short notice, appeared before a disciplinary committee, was represented by union officials, was dismissed and appealed, and the appeal was considered and dismissal upheld. Procedural fairness was therefore adhered to as far as the evidence shows.
Effective date of dismissal and salary for the interim period
The dismissal, being communicated on 29th November 2011 but stated effective 3rd October 2011, was irregular; the Claimant is owed November 2011 salary
The court noted the dismissal was stated effective from 3rd October 2011 while the letter was issued on 29th November 2011, which was 'not as it ought to be'. The Claimant remained in employment until the dismissal letter issued, entitling him to November 2011 salary. This was the only relief granted.
Legal principles established
#- A summary dismissal for gross misconduct need only be proved on a balance of probabilities, not beyond reasonable doubt
- A dismissal takes effect on the date the dismissal letter is issued, and salary is due up to that date
Court orders
#- 1.Suit dismissed
- 2.Respondent to process and pay the Claimant's salary for November 2011 as the dismissal was effective 29th November 2011
- 3.No order as to costs
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Employment and Labour Relations Court jurisdiction over employment dispute (Employment Act, 2007)
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Later judgments citing this (2)
#Judgments in the corpus that rely on this one. Where the Court said how it treated the authority, that is shown.
- Sitienei v Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (Cause 53 of 2019) [2022] KEELRC 98 (KLR)[2022] KEELRC 98 (KLR)5 May 2022
- Sitienei v Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (Cause 53 of 2019) [2022] KEELRC 1120 (KLR)[2022] KEELRC 1120 (KLR)5 May 2022
Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Elvis K. Likobele v Kenya Airports Authority [2015] KEELRC 635 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2015). Cause No 542 of 2012. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2015/635/eng@2015-07-21
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.