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ELRCDismissedNot stated in the judgment (ELC Cause, Employment and Labour Relations Court at Kisumu)· [2018] KEELRC 415 (KLR)

Stephen Edwin Okoth v Attorney General [2018] KEELRC 415 (KLR)

Employment and Labour Relations Court
6 December 2018
MOMaureen OnyangoMNMathews Nderi Nduma
2,846 words in judgment
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The bottom line

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A Kenyan court threw out a worker's Kshs.1 million unpaid-salary claim because work tickets showing only 79 days of casual work couldn't prove five years of employment.

What this practically means

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Executive summary

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The claimant sued the respondent (on behalf of the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure, formerly Ministry of Roads) claiming Kshs.1,020,000.00 as unpaid salary for five years (2008–2013) at Kshs.17,000 per month, alleging he was engaged as a casual plant operator at Kisumu operating a shovel wheel loader, registration G.K.A103M, and that the Ministry contravened the Employment Act by failing to confirm him after six months. The respondent denied any employment relationship, stating it had no record of the claimant, that the equipment was unserviceable from 2005 to 2010, that proper casual-engagement procedures were never followed, and that the claimant was only contacted when private clients hired the equipment, being paid Kshs.3,000 by the client per job; the respondent also raised limitation under section 90 of the Employment Act in the alternative. The court framed two issues: whether the claimant was in the respondent's employment and whether he was entitled to the prayers sought. Relying on the absence of any employment contract, sparse work tickets (79 days over five months in 2010–2011), and the respondent's evidence, the court found no proof of an employment relationship for which the respondent would be liable and dismissed the claim, with no orders for costs. Signed by Maureen Onyango J on 26 November 2018 and delivered at Kisumu by Mathews Nderi Nduma J on 6 December 2018.

Key legal issues

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01

Whether an employment relationship existed between the claimant and the respondent Ministry

Holding

No employment relationship existed; the claimant was engaged only when clients hired the equipment and was paid Kshs.3,000 by the client per job

Reasoning

The claimant produced no employment contract and only five work tickets covering scattered months in 2010 and 2011. The respondent's evidence showed the equipment was largely unserviceable and that proper casual-engagement procedures were never followed. The court found the arrangement was piece-rate work paid by hiring clients, not employment. The claim was therefore dismissed in its entirety.

p. 3

Legal principles established

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  • Sporadic work ticket entries over a few months do not constitute proof of continuous employment over a period of years

Court orders

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  1. 1.The claim is dismissed
  2. 2.No orders for costs (each party to bear own costs)

Authorities

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Legislation

  • Employment Act No. 11 of 2007section 10(7)
  • Employment Act No. 11 of 2007section 37
  • Employment Act No. 11 of 2007section 3(3)
  • Employment Act No. 11 of 2007section 10
  • Employment Act No. 11 of 2007section 90

Cases cited (2)

  • JOHN MUTISYA & 2 OTHERS -V- RAPID KATE SERVICES LIMITED
    (2016) eKLR
  • CHARLES JUMA OLENG -V- M/S AUTO GARAGE LIMITED AND ANOTHER
    [2014] eKLR
Jurisdiction invoked
Original jurisdiction of the Employment and Labour Relations Court under the Employment Act (specific provision not stated in the judgment)

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, "Stephen Edwin Okoth v Attorney General [2018] KEELRC 415 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2018). Not stated in the judgment (ELC Cause, Employment and Labour Relations Court at Kisumu). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2018/415/eng@2018-12-06

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