MM v Eurocity Hospital Kisumu & another (Cause E007 of 2024) [2025] KEELRC 81 (KLR)
The bottom line
#A Kenyan court awarded an employee Kshs 2.4 million after unpaid wages and sexual harassment forced her resignation, holding the hospital and manager jointly liable.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Constructive dismissal
The elements of constructive dismissal were made out; the Respondents created circumstances forcing the Claimant to resign through non-payment of salary and sexual harassment.
Applying Coca Cola East & Central Africa Ltd v Maria Kagai Ligaga, the court found a repudiatory breach: two months' unpaid salary went to the root of the contract. The 2nd Respondent's recorded conduct, conditioning payment of dues on sex, showed the employer no longer intended to be bound by essential terms. The 1st Respondent failed to protect the Claimant or remedy the wrong after a demand letter, and the resignation followed promptly, establishing causation and no acquiescence.
Sexual harassment
The audio recording established sexual harassment; the 2nd Respondent abused his position to the Claimant's detriment, and both Respondents were jointly and severally liable.
The court listened to the audio recording, certified as electronic evidence, and found the conversation unaltered, with repeated requests for sex linked to payment of the Claimant's withheld wages. The 2nd Respondent knew of the unpaid dues and leveraged them. Her dues were never paid, presumably because she did not accede. The 1st Respondent's failure to pay wages and respond to the demand letter made both Respondents jointly and severally liable.
Reliefs and compensation
The Claimant was awarded unpaid wages, notice pay, damages for sexual harassment, and six months' compensation under section 49 of the Employment Act, with costs and interest.
The Respondents acknowledged the two months' unpaid salary, justifying the award of Kshs. 200,000/-. The unconscionable sexual harassment warranted general damages of Kshs. 1,500,000/-. Wrongful termination attracted six months' gross salary as compensation under section 49. Notice pay of one month was awarded, with interest differentiated between pre- and post-judgment sums, and costs followed the event.
Legal principles established
#- The elements of constructive dismissal include a repudiatory breach of fundamental terms of the contract, an objective test of the employer's conduct, causation, no acquiescence by the employee, and the burden on the employee.
- Where an employer withholds wages and a senior person conditions payment of dues on sexual intercourse, the resulting resignation amounts to constructive dismissal.
- Victims of sexual harassment should document incidents and preserve electronic evidence.
Court orders
#- 1.Kshs. 200,000/- being 2 months' unpaid wages
- 2.Kshs. 100,000/- as notice pay
- 3.Kshs. 1,500,000/- damages for the sexual harassment
- 4.6 months' compensation in terms of section 49 of the Employment Act for the wrongful termination – Kshs. 600,000/-
- 5.Costs of the suit
- 6.Interest on the wage and notice pay sums at court rates from the date of filing suit till payment in full
- 7.Interest on the sexual harassment damages and compensation sums at court rates from the date of judgment till payment in full
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Employment and Labour Relations Court jurisdiction over employment disputes (Employment Act)
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "MM v Eurocity Hospital Kisumu & another (Cause E007 of 2024) [2025] KEELRC 81 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2025). Not stated in the judgment as provided (Memorandum of Claim dated 30th January 2024). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2025/81/eng@2025-01-21
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.