Josephat Otieno Okwedo v Villa Care Management Limited [2018] KEELRC 45 (KLR)
The bottom line
#Kenya's Employment Court ruled an employee dismissed after leaving work unauthorised was lawfully terminated, so his Kshs.252,500 claim failed.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Questions the Court framed
#The issues the Court set itself to decide, in its own words.
- 1.Whether the termination of the employment of the claimant by the respondent was wrongful, unfair and unlawful?
- 2.Whether the claimant is entitled to the relief sought?
- 3.Who bears the costs of this claim?
Key legal issues
#Whether the summary dismissal was wrongful, unfair and unlawful
The termination was lawful; the claimant was away from duty without authority and his explanations were unsupported by evidence
The court reviewed the respondent's documentary evidence including the letter on negligence and desertion of duty, the claimant's unsigned response, and the receipt of final dues. It found the claimant was not a reliable employee, occasionally deserted duty, and was absent without authority on the material date. His explanation of notifying a supervisor and being unable to restrain the contractor's workers was deemed farfetched. The claim collapsed.
Whether the claimant is entitled to the relief sought
The claimant is not entitled to the relief sought because he failed on the unfair termination claim
Having determined that the termination was lawful, the court found the consequential claims for salary, notice pay, leave, and service pay could not stand, since they flowed from a finding of unlawful and unfair dismissal which was not made.
Legal principles established
#- Where an employer demonstrates the employee deserted duty without authority and the employee's explanation is unsupported by evidence, the termination is lawful
Court orders
#- 1.Dismissal of the claimant's claim with orders that each party bears their costs of the claim
The bench
#One judgment of the whole court — no separate or dissenting opinions.
Wrote the judgment
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Employment and labour relations jurisdiction over a claim of unfair termination under the Employment Act, 2007
Relief refused
#Declaration of unlawful and unfair dismissal, payment of terminal dues and compensatory damages totaling Kshs.252,500/= with interest
The claimant failed to prove unfair termination; having lost on the first issue, he became disentitled to relief
Costs
Each party to bear their own costs of the claim
Quotable passages
#Verbatim from the judgment, each located to the page it appears on in the official PDF — so these can be cited and checked directly.
On the material date of the skirmishes by the workers of the contractor, the claimant was away from duty without authority. His attempt to explain these are farfetched and not supported by any evidence.
The claim therefore collapses and I hold a case of lawful termination of employment in the circumstances.
Having lost on a case of unlawful termination of employment, he becomes disentitled to the relief sought.
I am therefore inclined to dismiss the claim with orders that each party bears their costs of the claim.
Issues in the judgment
#The judgment cites a constitutional article inconsistently, with a question mark indicating uncertainty
The claimant's return-to-work date is inconsistently stated as 2011 in a judgment concerning events in 2014
The date of judgment is left blank in the 'Dated and signed' clause and appears only in the delivery clause
The 'Dated and signed' clause names D.K. Njagi Marete while the 'Delivered and signed' clause names Maureen Onyango, without explanation
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Josephat Otieno Okwedo v Villa Care Management Limited [2018] KEELRC 45 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2018). Cause No. 1535 of 2014. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2018/45/eng@2018-12-20
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.