Court awards former Co-operative Bank employee Sh3.5m for unfair dismissal

The Employment and Labour Relations Court has awarded Edward Bengi, a former employee of Co-Operative Bank of Kenya, Sh3.58 million in compensation after ruling that his 2014 dismissal was unfair and unlawful.

The court’s ruling emphasizes the need for employers to follow due process and maintain fairness when terminating employees, particularly in cases of alleged misconduct.

Mr Bengi, a telecommunications engineer, was employed by the bank from 2001 until his dismissal in 2014.

During his tenure, he rose through the ranks, ultimately reaching a senior managerial position. Mr Bengi consistently earned excellent performance reviews, with multiple bonuses awarded for his contributions to the bank.

By 2014, he was a key player in the bank’s Information Technology and telecommunications infrastructure, overseeing large-scale projects aimed at modernizing its systems.

However, in May 2014, Mr Bengi’s career took a sharp turn when he was suspended by the bank following allegations of negligence.

These allegations stemmed from an audit that claimed Bengi had caused the bank a loss of 15, 358,040 on various dates from October 2012 to February 2014 due to his oversight of the procurement process for voice cabling of 19 branches and an IP telephony project.

The bank suspended Mr Bengi, accusing him of failing to properly supervise the ICT infrastructure projects between 2012 and 2014.

Although the bank issued a show-cause letter to him, the court found that the allegations were vague, with little evidence provided to support the claims.

The court heard that Mr Bengi requested to see the relevant documents to respond to the accusations, but his requests were ignored. 

He was also barred from entering the bank’s premises, which further hindered his ability to defend himself.

Despite these obstacles, Mr Bengi responded to the show-cause notice on June 5, 2014, denying any wrongdoing.

He argued that he had not been involved in the procurement decisions or the management of the property and supplies department, where the alleged negligence occurred.

However, the bank did not take his responses into consideration and proceeded with his summary dismissal on August 22, 2014.

Following his dismissal, Mr Bengi filed an appeal, but the bank failed to address it, further breaching its own disciplinary policies.

With his efforts to resolve the matter internally exhausted, Mr Bengi filed a lawsuit against Co-Operative Bank for wrongful dismissal, seeking compensation for the unlawful termination.

In her ruling, Lady Justice Monica Mbaru found that the bank had violated Mr Bengi’s rights under the Employment Act, 2007.

The judge noted that while an employer may have genuine concerns about an employee’s conduct, the dismissal must be conducted in a fair and transparent manner.

The court concluded that he had not been given a proper opportunity to respond to the accusations, as the bank had failed to provide him with the necessary evidence or documents for his defense.

Additionally, the court found that he was not informed of the specific charges against him, which made it impossible for him to adequately address the allegations.

The court also emphasized that Mr Bengi had a strong work record with the bank, having received multiple performance bonuses and positive reviews throughout his career.

This fact, the judge noted, made the sudden dismissal highly questionable and indicative of a lack of procedural fairness.

As a result of the court’s findings, Mr Bengi was awarded a total of Sh3,585,700 in compensation for the unfair termination, calculated based on ten years of his salary, and Sh358,570 in notice pay.

The court also ordered the bank to cover his legal costs.