A former employee of Bomas of Kenya has been awarded Sh584,895.36 after a court ruled that his termination was both procedurally unfair and without valid grounds.
The Employment and Labour Relations Court, presided over by Justice Christine Noontatua Baari, delivered the judgment on July 4, 2025, in a case filed by the Kenya Union of Entertainment and Music Industry Employees on behalf of Evanson Ndegwa.
Ndegwa, who had worked at Bomas since 1991 and had risen to the rank of supervisor, was interdicted on February 5, 2015. The interdiction followed allegations that he was found in possession of scrap metal from the company’s premises. Ndegwa claimed the materials had been cleared for release by a manager, Joseph Njoroge, a claim the company denied. Bomas insisted the items belonged to third parties and had been taken without proper authorisation.
Despite responding to a show cause letter, Ndegwa was placed on half salary and subsequently charged with theft. He was acquitted in 2020 after key witnesses failed to appear in court.
The court heard that Ndegwa was never invited to a disciplinary hearing and only learned of his termination during court proceedings. Although Bomas claimed he was summoned to two disciplinary meetings in 2015, no evidence was presented to support the claim.
Justice Baari ruled that Bomas failed the procedural fairness test, highlighting that Ndegwa was not given an opportunity to defend himself, as required by Section 41 of the Employment Act.
“The grievant’s services were unfairly terminated,” the judge said.
While Ndegwa was awarded compensation for unfair dismissal, including one month’s salary in lieu of notice (Sh36,120), three months’ salary (Sh108,360), half-pay arrears (Sh216,720), house allowance arrears (Sh151,695.36), and commuter allowance (Sh72,000), the court rejected his claims for gratuity and full salary during interdiction. The court found that Ndegwa had not worked during that period and failed to prove entitlement to gratuity under his contract or any collective bargaining agreement.
Each party was ordered to bear its own legal costs.
