Court Orders N5Million Compensation For Employee Slapped By Boss, Illegally Fired
The case was instituted by Mr. Omene Robinson, a former company employee, who approached the court through his counsel, Mr. Femi Aborisade.
The National Industrial Court in Ibadan has awarded N5 million in damages against Shongal Technologies Limited and its Operations Manager, Mr. Nasarvali Dudekeh, for harassing an employee and unlawfully terminating his appointment.
The case was instituted by Mr. Omene Robinson, a former company employee, who approached the court through his counsel, Mr. Femi Aborisade.
Dudekeh and Shongal Technologies were listed as the first and second respondents respectively.
Robinson told the court that while on duty on September 8, 2019, he was assaulted by Dudekeh, who slapped him—a violent act that led to his hospitalisation at the company’s medical facility.
He further alleged that on June 27, 2020, he received a letter terminating his employment, although the letter was backdated to September 2019, the same month his salary payments ceased.
The claimant sought the court’s intervention to declare the harassment unlawful, order payment of outstanding salaries from September 2019 to June 2020, cover his N52,000 medical expenses, and award N6 million in general damages.
In his ruling on Wednesday, Justice John Peters held that the slapping incident constituted harassment, which violated both the Nigerian Constitution and labour laws, including the company’s employee manual.
He described the act as “unlawful and a clear affront to human dignity.”
“The operations manager, acting on behalf of the company, subjected the claimant to violence and intimidation at the workplace. Such conduct is unacceptable and condemnable,” Justice Peters ruled
He further stated that both the company and its manager are jointly liable for the harassment, noting that employers bear responsibility for the actions of their senior staff conducted in the line of duty.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Justice Peters ruled the claimant remained an employee of the company until June 2020, when his appointment was formally terminated.
The judge held that the claimant was entitled to unpaid remuneration from September 2019 to June 2020.
“I order the defendants to pay the sum of N812,614, being the outstanding entitlement for the said period,” the judge declared.
He further directed the payment of N52,000 as special damages to cover the cost of drugs and medical treatment incurred by the claimant.
In addition, both defendants were ordered to jointly pay N5 million as general damages and N200,000 as the cost of instituting the suit.
Justice Peters dismissed the counterclaim filed by the second respondent’s counsel, Mr. J. Oguniyi.
The first respondent was not represented by legal counsel during the proceedings.
Following the judgment, the claimant’s counsel, Mr. Aborisade, expressed gratitude to the judge for upholding justice and reinforcing public confidence in the judiciary. Mr. Oguniyi, counsel for the second respondent, also commended the judge.
