This archive report was first published on 22 June 2020.
On March 31, Signature Holdings, a private members club, notified its employees that due to the pandemic, it was suspending all contractual benefits, save for health cover, and sent them on unpaid leave for an indefinite period of time.
Seven employees, including Moses Kamau, Nawire Wejuli, Shem Luchiri, Purity Gitonga, Wilfred Mugira, Paul Mukonza, and Wison Momanyi, moved to court, arguing that there had been no consultations before they were sent home.
Labour and Employment Court Judge Stephen Radido declined to grant the employees' request that Signature Holdings be forced to pay them their full salaries.
Instead, he urged the parties to sit and talk in good faith, noting that the court could issue orders at the tail end of the case if it finds that the law had been breached.
Justice Radido noted that the pandemic had put employers in an impossible situation, where they were doomed whether they acted or did nothing.
“While the primary duty of the court is to uphold the law and find if there is a breach of contract, the current situation created by the Covid-19 pandemic makes the task of the court perilous,” said the judge.
“The court may order the employer to meet its obligations under the contract but the ripple effect would be that the employer may be forced to declare redundancies,” he added.
