CHIEF Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku yesterday expressed concern over the welfare of the 39 former Fleximail firm employees who were unlawfully dismissed eight years ago, but are yet to receive their severance packages.
CHARLES LAITON
Their former employer insists on giving them the long abandoned and worthless Zimbabwe dollar as packages.
Chief Justice Chidyausiku said although he understood that the company was facing several challenges according to its lawyer Advocate Fadzayi Mahere, the firm had an obligation to at least pay its former workers for the services they rendered to it. The company has said it wants to pay them a total of ZW$12 500 as retrenchment packages.
The Chief Justice urged Mahere and the employees’ lawyers Caleb Mucheche and Munyaradzi Gwisai to urgently find common ground to resolve the impasse.
“Surely, you cannot say these people, who worked for the company and were unlawfully dismissed, cannot be paid for the time they worked for your client. Do you think it would be reasonable to pay them in Zimbabwe dollars?” Chidyausiku queried while addressing Advocate Mahere.
The Chief Justice’s sentiments were echoed by Supreme Court judge Justice Vernanda Ziyambi.
Following a brief adjournment, Advocate Mahere told the bench, comprised of Deputy Chief Justice Luke Malaba, Justices Paddington Garwe, Bharat Patel and Ziyambi, that his client was still insisting on compensating its former employees in Zimbabwe dollars.
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After over four hours of deliberations, the parties agreed with the help of the court and the “friend-of-the-court” Advocate Thabani Mpofu, to draft a consent order for the referral of the matter to the Labour Court, for quantification of damages and the currency to be used thereof.
Fleximail took the matter to the Supreme Court on appeal following an order by High Court judge Justice Andrew Mutema ordering the company to pay its former employees damages in lieu of reinstatement in US dollars.
The employees were charged with misconduct and dismissed following a disciplinary hearing in 2005.
They, however, challenged their dismissal and the Labour Court ruled in their favour ordering their reinstatement or that they be paid damages in lieu of reinstatement.
