The National Industrial Court on Monday, July 20, faulted the dismissal of an employee of the United Bank for Africa (UBA) by the management over the disappearance of money from the account of a customer.
Justice Rabi Gwandu of the Lagos division court declared the dismissal of the employee, Segun Lawal, as illegal, null and void and of no effect.
The judge held that UBA failed to show that Mr Lawal was afforded a fair hearing before he was dismissed, and also that the bank failed to show that it followed its own disciplinary guidelines in suspending and later dismissing him.
She ordered the bank to calculate and pay the employee all the money he would have been entitled to if his employment had been lawfully terminated, including the salaries from November 2014 to March 2015, and salaries from April 2015 until judgment at the applicable monthly rate, together with his gratuities and pension.
According to available court documents, Mr Lawal submitted that UBA failed to comply with its disciplinary process and sanctions policy regulating the employment relationship and wrongfully dismissed him without following the disciplinary procedure prescribed under the policy.
In its defence however, UBA averred that it received a complaint from a customer concerning the disappearance of money from his account, suspended Mr Lawal during its investigation and subsequently dismissed him after concluding its investigation.
The bank added that Mr Lawal was notified of the allegations against him, appeared before its disciplinary process, exercised his right of appeal and was therefore accorded a fair hearing before the dismissal, and consequently urged the court to dismiss the suit.
Opposing the argument, Mr Lawal’s counsel posited that an employer cannot dismiss an employee based on false, faulty, or unsubstantiated allegations, and that where the dismissal of an employee is based on an allegation of a crime, it must first be proved before the dismissal can stand.
The counsel further argued that the Nigeria Police investigated the allegation and exonerated his client of any wrongdoing, yet the bank ignored both the police report and the provisions of its own disciplinary policy by suspending and dismissing him.
Delivering judgment, Justice Gwandu held that UBA failed to show that Lawal was afforded a fair hearing before his employment was dismissed and equally failed to establish that it complied with its own disciplinary procedures governing suspension and dismissal.
The judge further stated that where an employee is dismissed based on an allegation of crime, it must first be proved, the employee must be given ample opportunity to be heard, and the employer must establish sufficient reasons justifying the dismissal in accordance with the contract of employment and the rules of natural justice.
Justice Gwandu held that the bank failed to prove that Mr Lawal’s dismissal was carried out in accordance with the terms of his employment, noting that it also ignored the Police Investigation Report which exonerated him and fingered another person in relation to the allegation.
She further held that UBA failed to justify the dismissal of Lawal in accordance with the terms of his employment, having failed to establish that the disciplinary process complied with its own Human Resources Policy and the requirements of a fair hearing before dismissing the employee.
