Judith Ejong started working as a security guard at Makerere Business Institute (MBI) in 2012.
In May 2013, she was given a formal contract by MBI after the institute said she had performed well. At first, she was paid Shs 150,000 per month, but later, due to good performance, her salary was increased to Shs 250,000.
When her salary increased, so did her responsibilities.
MBI had telecom installations belonging to MTN and Airtel on its rooftop, so Ejong was tasked with guarding those communication sites after the telecom companies removed their own security guards.
Everything appeared normal until September 2017. One night, thieves vandalised the telecom equipment on the institute’s premises and stole gadgets worth millions of shillings.
The incident caused tension at the workplace, and MBI held two meetings after the vandalism, where the then director, Nathan Twesigye Itungo, expressed disappointment with the quality of security.
Itungo is the current MP for Kashari South.
On September 10, 2017, a colleague telephoned Ejong and told her not to report for duty the following day because tensions were high. Confused, she called Itungo to ask what had happened. She was told to take a two-month leave as things were being sorted out.
However, she was only paid one month’s salary before being sent home. Ejong tried several times to contact Itungo to have the matter resolved, but she failed. She stayed put.
When the two months passed, Ejong attempted to return to work, but Itungo said her services were no longer needed.
With no clear answer from her employer, she went to the Kawempe Labour Office and filed a complaint. The labour officer sent two letters to MBI asking it to respond to the complaint, but it did not.
Because of that, the dispute was eventually referred to the Industrial Court, and here, the wheels came off.
In court, Itungo said Ejong had been responsible for guarding the telecom sites, and after the vandalism, they asked all security personnel to make statements to the police. He said Ejong did not and instead disappeared from work.
So, in the view of MBI, she had absconded from duty and had not been dismissed.
Through its lawyer Mark Mugasha, MBI told the court that Ejong had failed to prove that she was terminated from employment.
Mugasaha argued that she simply failed to return to work after the incident, and therefore, the claim of unfair termination could not stand.
Ejong’s lawyer, Erina Kawalya from Platform for Labour Action (PLA), told the court that her client had been pushed out of her job by the behaviour of MBI.
Kawalya argued that sending an employee on forced leave and then refusing to allow her to return amounts to unfair treatment.
She relied on provisions of the Employment Act, which recognise “constructive dismissal”, where an employee is forced out because of the employer’s unreasonable conduct.
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After listening to both sides, Justice Anthony Wabwire Musana and the panel found Ejong’s explanation more convincing.
Justice Musana noted that the institute’s story had several weaknesses. For instance, the director admitted during cross-examination that the vandalism incident was never reported to the police. He also pointed out that the institute never conducted a disciplinary hearing against Judith.
“The respondent’s (MBI) evidence is not believable,” Musana ruled
Justice Musana wondered why an employer who claimed to have lost equipment worth millions would fail to report the matter to the police or punish anyone responsible.
He also observed that the institute made no serious effort to contact Ejong after accusing her of absconding from work.
“The law, as it stands, is that where an employer alleges abscondment, a formal disciplinary process must be followed,” Justice Musana said.
He accepted Ejong’s testimony that she had been forced to take leave and was never allowed back to work, and that such behaviour made it impossible for her to continue working.
“After five years and seven months of work, she was entitled to believe she had been terminated when asked to go and rest,” he said.
The court therefore concluded that Ejong had been constructively dismissed and directed MBI to pay her Shs 4.3 million in compensation.
The amount includes Shs500,000 as notice pay, Shs1.39 million as severance pay, and Shs2.5 million in general damages.
