Courtroom orders Alcon Nigeria Restricted to pay ex-Employees over N39 million for employment breach
Justice Muhammad Hamza of the Port Harcourt Judicial Division of the Nationwide Industrial Courtroom has ordered Alcon Nigeria Restricted to pay its former worker N39,707,607 for breach of contract.
In an announcement on Monday, the court docket declared that Alcon Nigeria Restricted’s non-payment of Mr. A. Ikenna’s wage from October 2021 to January 2022 constituted a breach of the employment contract.
The court docket additional ordered Alcon Nigeria Restricted to pay Mr. Ikenna N16,781,500 as pension contributions for the interval from January 2017 to January 2022, N5,762,267.4 as wage for October 2021 to January 13, 2022 (much less one month’s fee in lieu of discover), N11,289,600 as Finish of Service/Gratuity, and N5,874,240 as depart allowance for the 2019/2020 and 2020/2021 durations, plus a 50kg bag of rice, amongst different funds.
Info of the case
The claimant acknowledged earlier than the court docket that he was compelled to resign from Alcon Nigeria Restricted as a result of firm’s failure to pay his excellent advantages.
The claimant’s authorized group argued that their consumer’s obligation to adjust to Alcon Nigeria Restricted’s exit protocols solely arises when the corporate has totally settled all excellent salaries, allowances, and pension contributions owed to Mr. Ikenna previous to his resignation.
The claimant contended that, since Alcon Nigeria Restricted admitted to breaching the employment contract, it couldn’t declare that he had failed to stick to exit protocols following his resignation.
The claimant urged the court docket to grant aid for the varied excellent funds.
In response, Alcon Nigeria Restricted’s authorized group argued that Mr. Ikenna’s entitlements have been withheld as a result of he had not accomplished the exit course of or returned firm property.
The protection added, “Withholding these properties and property is a transparent violation of the collective Treaty signed between the events,” claiming that the claimant’s “self-help” actions in withholding Alcon Nigeria Restricted’s property hindered the corporate’s capability to settle his entitlements as stipulated within the collective Treaty.
What the court docket stated
In delivering judgment, Justice Muhammad Hamza held that, based mostly on the proof offered, the claimant was entitled to wage funds from October 2021 to January 13, 2022, minus one month’s pay in lieu of discover as specified within the firm’s collective Treaty.
The court docket additional dominated that “Mr. Ikenna has confirmed his entitlements for unremitted pension contributions and Finish of Service/Gratuity from Alcon Nigeria Restricted to the satisfaction of the court docket. The assertion that Mr. Ikenna had been employed by Alcon Nigeria Restricted since 2004 requires no additional proof.”
- On the matter of damages, Justice Hamza held that though Alcon Nigeria Restricted breached the employment contract by not paying the claimant’s month-to-month wage, Mr. Ikenna was not entitled to normal or exemplary damages as he had retained firm property after his resignation.
- Justice Hamza subsequently ordered the agency to pay the claimant his dues whereas Mr. Ikenna was ordered to return all Alcon Nigeria Restricted property in his possession, together with a Lexus automobile and a laptop computer, in good situation inside seven days.
- The Nationwide Industrial Courtroom of Nigeria, established in 1976, presides over instances associated to labor disputes, civil issues, youngster trafficking, employment points, entitlements, allowances, and office sexual harassment.
