Wakilii

Wubo v Century Bottling Company Limited (Labour Dispute Reference 50 of 2020)

Industrial Court · [2021] UGIC 108 · 2021 Claim Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Labour dispute reference arising from dismissal for alleged dishonesty
Decision
Claimant's claim for unlawful dismissal dismissed; no remedies awarded

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Held that an employee who voluntarily absents himself from a disciplinary hearing after being properly notified of the charges, date, and time cannot claim he was condemned unheard. Where the employee admitted to receiving night-out allowances but sleeping at home instead, this constituted dishonesty and breach of trust justifying dismissal under the employer's code of conduct. The dismissal was lawful.

Outcome

Claimant's claim for unlawful dismissal dismissed; no remedies awarded

Facts

The Claimant was employed as Route to Market Manager by the Respondent until 2019. He was suspended for two weeks without pay for reckless driving after a prior reprimand. He was subsequently dismissed for dishonesty and breach of trust after he applied for and received UGX 1,333,000 in night-out allowances for visits to OCCDs in July 2019 but slept at his home in Bulenga instead. The Claimant claimed his supervisor gave him additional assignments increasing visits from 12 to 47 OCCDs, but he did not request additional funds. He was notified of a disciplinary hearing on 2 September 2019 but did not attend, claiming he was engaged with a distributor in Mityana. The Respondent proceeded with the hearing in his absence and dismissed him. The Claimant appealed internally but the decision was upheld.

Issues

  1. Whether the Claimant was unlawfully and unfairly dismissed?
  2. Whether the Claimant was unlawfully suspended for two weeks without pay?
  3. What remedies are available to the Claimant?

Orders

  • Claim dismissed.
  • No order as to costs.

Rules and key headnotes

Dismissal — Fair Hearing — Employee's Voluntary Absence from Disciplinary Proceedings
An employee who is properly notified of disciplinary charges, the date and time of the hearing, and given adequate time to prepare, but voluntarily absents himself from the hearing, cannot later claim he was condemned unheard. An employer is not barred from proceeding with a disciplinary hearing in the absence of an employee who was duly notified and chose not to attend.
Dismissal — Squandering Internal Grievance Mechanisms
An employee who squanders the internal grievance handling mechanisms provided by the employer cannot come to court and claim he or she was not heard. It is not the role of the court to supervise the disciplinary mechanisms of the employer but to ensure that such disciplinary mechanisms are carried out in accordance with the law.
Dismissal — Dishonesty — Misuse of Allowances
Where an employee applies for and receives night-out allowances for work-related travel but sleeps at home instead and does not refund the allowance or apply to use it for another authorised purpose, this constitutes dishonesty and breach of trust justifying dismissal under the employer's code of conduct.
Dismissal — Admission of Wrongdoing
Where an employee admits to wrongdoing that constitutes a fundamental breach of the employment contract, the admission is sufficient to entitle the employer to summarily terminate the employee, and the employee is not entitled to a hearing.
Dismissal — Procedural Requirements under Employment Act
Before dismissing an employee, an employer must comply with sections 66, 68, and 70(6) of the Employment Act 2006 by explaining the reason for contemplating dismissal, giving the employee an opportunity to respond in the presence of a person of the employee's choice, and proving the reason for dismissal on reasonable grounds. The employer must act reasonably based on facts known at the time of the decision and honestly believe on reasonable grounds that the employee was guilty.

Legislation cited (4)

Cases cited (8)

  • Ebiju James v UMEME Ltd (High Court Civil Suit No. 133 of 2012)
  • Irene Kharono v Action Aid International (Labour Dispute Claim No. 196 of 2014)
  • Mathew Lucy vs Poverelle Sisters of Begamo t/a Blessed Louis Palazzalo health Centre, Industrial Cause number 1845 of 2011
  • Akeny Robert v Uganda Communications Commission (Labour Dispute Claim No. 23 of 2015)
  • Kabojja International School v Godfrey Oyesigye (Labour Dispute Appeal No. 3 of 2015)
  • Nyakahuma Allan Paul v Umeme Ltd (Labour Dispute Reference No. 22 of 2014)
  • Hilda Musinguzi v Stanbic Bank (U) Ltd (Civil Appeal No. 5 of 2016)
  • LAWS VS LONDON CHRONICLE (1959) WLR 698

Full judgment

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

Wubo_v_Century_Bottling_Company_Limited_(Labour_Dispute_Reference_50_of_2020)_[2021]_UGIC_108_(9_February_2021)
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.