The Labour Court has ordered Peterhouse Group of Schools to reinstate former deputy head Mirriam Shumba after ruling that her dismissal was unfair and procedurally flawed.
In a judgment handed down in Harare on April 8, Labour Court judge Justice Garudzo Ziyaduma found that the private school acted unlawfully by appointing another deputy head while Shumba’s fixed-term contract was still running, despite her having a legitimate expectation that the contract would be renewed.
“It is declared that the purported appointment of another deputy head whilst the
employment contract of the applicant still subsisted amounts to unfair dismissal.
“The respondent is directed to reinstate the applicant to her position of Deputy Head,
failing which the first respondent is directed to pay the applicant damages in lieu of
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reinstatement, which shall be quantified by the Labour court in the event that parties do
not agree on the quantum of damages,” the court ruled.
Shumba had approached the court after challenging the school’s decision not to renew her contract, which had been signed on September 18, 2024. She argued that another person was appointed to the same post before her contract expired and was introduced at a school assembly while she was still employed.
She further submitted that the school had not conducted any performance appraisal or informed her of any shortcomings that would justify the decision not to renew the contract.
Peterhouse opposed the application, arguing that the contract was for a fixed term and clearly stated that Shumba should not expect renewal. The school also challenged the Labour Court’s jurisdiction to grant declaratory relief.
However, Justice Ziyaduma dismissed the jurisdictional objection, holding that the matter was properly before the court under Section 12B(3)(b) of the Labour Act, which deals with unfair dismissal in cases where an employee on a fixed-term contract had a legitimate expectation of re-engagement but another person was hired instead.
The judge found that Shumba’s expectation of renewal was supported by both the school’s recruitment advertisement and verbal assurances allegedly made by the head of school when she signed the contract.
According to the judgment, the advertisement described the post as an opportunity for someone aspiring to progress to headship in a few years, noting that the previous deputy head had been promoted after five years in office.
The court said those representations created a reasonable belief that the school intended a long-term employment relationship.
Justice Ziyaduma said labour relations must be guided by fairness, reasonableness and dignity in line with constitutional protections on fair labour practices.
The court consequently declared the termination of Shumba’s contract irregular and the appointment of another deputy head during the subsistence of her contract to be an unfair dismissal.