Court orders firm to pay guard Sh171,000 for unfair dismissal

The court ruled that the total underpayment which cover house allowance was Sh73,303. [Courtesy]

A court has ordered a private security firm to pay a former night guard Sh171,000 for allegedly dismissing him after he asked to be directed to a toilet for a short call.

Justice Bernard Odongo of the Employment and Labour Relations Court in Nairobi found that Johnson Otsieno Ogola was dismissed unfairly by his former employer Hatari Security Guards Limited.

Mr Odongo established that Ogola was not accorded procedural fairness in the process leading to his termination.

He issued a declaration that Ogola’s contract of service was terminated unlawfully.

The court said there was no evidence that the night guard proceeded on leave during two years of service.

The court noted that Ogola was underpaid as the wage order provided for a minimum of Sh10,954 for a watchman in Nairobi and its environs.

Inclusive of house allowance, the court said the consolidated wage bill ought to have been Sh12,597.90.

The court ruled that the total underpayment which cover house allowance was Sh73,303.