Court Orders School To Pay Teacher N2m For Unlawful Dismissal

Cursory: A court has ruled a case in favor of a teacher who was according to the rulings unjustly fired. The defendant however, argued that the plaintiff was a temporal staff and it was not obligated to follow stipulated rules when sacking her. After listening to arguments from both sides, the judge ruled in favor of the plaintiff, because the termination of her contract was illegal and infringed on the plaintiff’s right to fair hearing.

The National Industrial Court has ordered Trinity Model Academy to pay Mrs. Lucy Agabo, a former employee, N2 million in damages for psychological anguish brought on by the unjustified termination of her job.

The school’s actions were deemed illegal, invalid, and unlawful by Justice Isaac Essien in the verdict because they violated the claimant’s fundamental right to a fair hearing.

The defendant was further ordered by the court to pay the claimant N200,000 as litigation expenses within 30 days.The claimant stated, based on the circumstances, that she began working as a classroom instructor for the defendant in September 2017 and received a notice of termination on April 5, 2019, citing alleged gross misconduct.

She asserted that she never engaged in any act of misconduct and was never issued a query before her termination.

She said that she believed the firing was an attempt to ruin the teaching profession she had worked so hard to establish over the years and to further harm her chances of finding employment in the future.Agabo, according to the defendant, was found guilty of the offense of gross misconduct.

The school further stated that because the claimant’s appointment was only temporary in nature, it did not require strict adherence to legislative rules instead relying on the terms of service outlined in the employment contract.

Defence rested its case by urging the court to dismiss the case in its entirety.The attorney for Agabo responded that the probationary period was expected to last for one academic year and that his client had become a permanent employee as of September 2018, when the new academic session began.

When the claimant’s appointment ended, he claimed, the claimant was no longer a temporary employee, and he urged the court to grant the requested reliefs.After considering the arguments made by both sides, the court concluded that the school’s refusal to confirm the claimant’s employment after one academic session and subsequent retention of her in that job constituted an unfair labor practice.

The claimant was deemed to have been confirmed by operation of law following one academic session, the court further determined.Essien further ruled that the defendant had violated the claimant’s right to a fair hearing under the 1999 Constitution as amended by failing to provide her with a query as required by the employment contract, which would have given her the chance to respond to the misconduct allegation made against her.

“The defendant painted a horrific picture of the claimant as a dangerous person who should not be allowed to go near school children but failed to substantiate the allegations.

“I agree with the claimant that if this termination is allowed to stand the claimant may have difficulty furthering her career in the future.

“The defendant cannot, by unlawful act, impede the claimant’s right to be gainfully employed in the future,” the judge ruled.

Source: Vanguard

Read Also: Lady Becomes First Black Valedictorian in UK University, Breaks 138-Year History

ALLSCHOOL TEAM