[2020] KEELRC 1318 (KLR)
The court found that the suit was filed after the expiry of the collective bargaining agreement that governed the employment relationship and long after the alleged infractions occurred. Entertaining such a claim would waste judicial time and resources. The court exercised its discretion to strike out the suit for...
Source-derived case information.
- Citation
- [2020] KEELRC 1318 (KLR)
- Parties
- Applicant: Kenya Universities Staff Union; Respondent: The Council of Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture & Technology; Respondent: Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture & Technology
- Court
- Employment and Labour Relations Court
- Court Station
- Employment and Labour Relations Court at Nyeri
- Jurisdiction
- Kenya
- Case Number
- Cause 107 of 2018
- Procedural Posture
- Employment Cause / Judgment
- Outcome
- suit struck out
- Judges
- AN Makau
- Legal Topics
- Collective Bargaining Agreements, Limitation of Actions, Judicial Discretion
- Source Language
- en
Source-derived case record
Summary, issues, holding and outcome
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Parties
Kenya Universities Staff Union
Applicant
The Council of Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture & Technology
Respondent
Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture & Technology
Respondent
Procedural Posture
Employment Cause / Judgment
Legal Issues
- 1 Whether the suit was filed within the appropriate time frame as per the applicable collective bargaining agreement and statutory requirements.
- 2 Whether the court should entertain a dispute filed after the expiry of the relevant collective bargaining agreement.
- 3 Whether the claim constitutes a waste of judicial time and resources.
Ratio Decidendi
The court found that the suit was filed after the expiry of the collective bargaining agreement that governed the employment relationship and long after the alleged infractions occurred. Entertaining such a claim would waste judicial time and resources. The court exercised its discretion to strike out the suit for being hopelessly unmerited and for failing to meet the threshold for timely and justiciable claims under employment and labour law. No order as to costs was made, and the judgment's execution was stayed for 14 days in line with COVID-19 mitigation practice directions.
Court Disposition
suit struck out
Orders
- The suit is struck out for being a waste of judicial time and being hopelessly unmerited.
- No order as to costs.
Full Case Text
Judgment text and source record
17 paragraphs
REPUBLIC OF KENYA
IN THE EMPLOYMENT & LABOUR RELATIONS
COURT OF KENYA AT NYERI
CAUSE NO. 107 OF 2018
KENYA UNIVERSITIES STAFF UNION........................................CLAIMANT
VERSUS
THE COUNCIL OF JOMO KENYATTA UNIVERSITY
OF AGRICULTURE & TECHNOLOGY.............................1ST RESPONDENT
JOMO KENYATTA UNIVERSITY
OF AGRICULTURE & TECHNOLOGY............................2ND RESPONDENT
JUDGMENT
1. The Claimant sued the Respondents in respect to actions that allegedly took place in August 2016 and 14th April 2015. This suit was filed on 14th March 2018 after the expiry of the Collective Bargaining Agreement in force at the time expired. It ran from 2013 to 2017 and had expired at the time of filing suit. It would be a waste of scarce judicial time and resources to delve into the dispute that was filed so long after the alleged infarctions. The suit is struck out with no order as to costs for being a waste of judicial time and being hopelessly unmerited.
2. This decision was rendered online in keeping with the express consent by parties to the waiver of Order 21 Rule 1 and 3 of the Civil Procedure Rules and in line with the Chief Justice's Practice Directions to Mitigate COVID-19 dated 16th March 2020 and the Kenya Gazette Notice 2357 of 20th March 2020 issued in Vol. CXXII No. 50. In line with the Practice Directions of the Chief Justice and the statement he made in the NCAJ address to the Nation of Kenya when the Judiciary and the other stakeholders in the administration of justice agreed to scale down operations to mitigate the effects of COVID-19, execution of the judgment is automatically stayed for 14 days.
It is so ordered.
Dated and delivered at Nyeri this 30th day of March 2020
Nzioki wa Makau
JUDGE