Menengai Oil Refineries ordered to pay guard Sh1.4m for unlawful dismissal

Menengai Oil Refineries has been ordered to pay Sh 1.4 million compensation to its security guard who was illegally dismissed from employment.

Bramwell Wafula had worked at the refinery company as a security guard for the better part of nine years.

 According to him he had started working at the company in March 2017 and his employment started as an informal job and later became a short-term contract lasting three months.

As time went by, he kept on renewing the contracts, however sometimes they were delayed and even at times they were absent. Bramwell had a very demanding role that required him to take on 12-hour shifts.

His main roles were monitoring entry points, keeping occurrence records, and clocking in and out of work as part of his daily routine.

On May 20 2024, Wafula received a letter informing him that his employment would come to an end. The explanation was brief and blunt; his services were no longer required.

Feeling aggrieved, Wafula made his way to court seeking a declaration that his dismissal was unlawful. In addition to this he also sought compensation, unpaid overtime, public holiday dues, and other benefits he claimed had accumulated during his years of service.

In their defense, Menengai Oil Refineries said that Wafula was on a short-term fixed contract and that his contract had simply come to an end and they were under no obligation to renew it. Therefore, his termination was not unfair.

However, upon close inspection the court found discrepancies with Menengai Oil Refineries.

They failed to produce the actual contract that it claimed had expired in May 2024 and without this the court could not verify the company’s allegations that the employment at the specified time.

Additionally, the termination letter did not state the reason as to why he was fired, furthermore the contract requires at least one month notice before termination, yet Bramwell was given far much less.

Another thing that stood out was the fact that Wafula testified that he worked for 12-hour shifts without overtime pay. His employer denied this, however one of its own witnesses, admitted that the company-maintained attendance records and biometric clock-in systems but none of those records were produced in court.

In light of these issues, the court declared Wafula’s termination unfair and unlawful.

He was awarded compensation for unfair termination, one month’s salary in lieu of notices, and substantial payments for unpaid overtime and public holidays accumulated during his years of service.