Wakilii

Mulema v Stanbic Bank Kampala (Labour Dispute Reference No. 224 of 2018)

Industrial Court · [2022] UGIC 34 · 2022 Claim Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Labour dispute reference arising from claim of unlawful termination and constructive dismissal
Decision
Claimant's claim for unlawful termination and constructive dismissal dismissed; claimant found to have terminated her own employment by failing to return to work after reinstatement

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The Industrial Court held that the claimant was not constructively dismissed. The employer's temporary assignment of the claimant to a different role did not constitute unreasonable conduct, as her terms and conditions remained unchanged. The claimant herself proposed mutual separation and, after the employer withdrew the termination letter and reinstated her, she failed to return to work. By not returning after reinstatement, the claimant terminated her own employment. The claim failed with no order as to costs.

Outcome

Claimant's claim for unlawful termination and constructive dismissal dismissed; claimant found to have terminated her own employment by failing to return to work after reinstatement

Facts

The claimant worked for the respondent bank from October 1996 to May 2018, rising to Manager Projects at level SGB-13. In July 2017, she was temporarily assigned to head Business Support Recoveries for one year, which she later discovered was a lower-ranked position (SGB-11) supervising only one person instead of the promised 34. She proposed mutual separation with monetary compensation to cover her loan obligations with the bank. The bank offered compensation which she rejected as insufficient. On 17 May 2018, the bank issued a mutual separation letter terminating her services. Following intervention by her lawyers, the bank withdrew the termination on 28 May 2018 and reinstated her. The claimant did not return to work after reinstatement, last working on 31 May 2018, and instead issued notice of intention to sue.

Issues

  1. Whether the claimant's separation from the respondent's employment amounted to illegal and unlawful termination of her contract or constructive resignation from the respondent.
  2. What are the remedies available to the parties.

Orders

  • Claim dismissed.
  • No order as to costs.

Rules and key headnotes

Employment & Labour — Constructive Dismissal — Unreasonable Conduct by Employer
Constructive dismissal under Section 65(1)(c) of the Employment Act requires that the contract be ended by the employee as a consequence of unreasonable conduct on the part of the employer towards the employee.
Employment & Labour — Temporary Assignment — Employer's Right to Assign Work
An employer reserves the right to assign employees work and to determine how and where the work should be executed. A temporary assignment that does not affect the underlying terms and conditions of a fixed-term contract does not constitute a demotion or unreasonable conduct, even if the assigned position carries a different job title or grade.
Employment & Labour — Termination — Employee's Failure to Return After Reinstatement
Where an employer withdraws a termination letter and reinstates an employee, and the employee fails to return to work without reasonable explanation, the employee is deemed to have terminated their own employment. Such termination is not unlawful or constructive dismissal.
Employment & Labour — Mutual Separation — Employee-Initiated Proposal
Where an employee proposes mutual separation and subsequently rejects the employer's compensation offer, the employer's conduct in initially proceeding with the separation cannot be attributed as unreasonable conduct for purposes of establishing constructive dismissal, particularly where the separation proposal originated with the employee.

Legislation cited (1)

Cases cited (1)

  • Ugafode Microfinance Limited v Mark Kyoribona (Labour Dispute Appeal No. 34 of 2019)

Full judgment

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The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

Mulema_v_Stanbic_Bank_Kampala_(Labour_Dispute_Reference_No._224_of_2018)_[2022]_UGIC_34_(19_August_2022)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.