A union is in court to block Tusker Mattresses Limited from sacking 400 employees.
In an urgent application, the Kenya Union of Commercial Food and Allied Workers claims that firm trading as Tuskys supermarket has unlawfully given letters of redundancy to the workers.
The union wants the court to stop the sackings pending the hearing and determination of the case.,
It further wants the court to issue an order suspending the termination letters dated between September 17 to 21 until the requisite notices under the law and the collective bargaining agreement are served.
The union also wants the court to order the supermarket to allocate duties to the targeted employees to continue working pending the determination of the suit.
In an affidavit, Mike Oranga states that the parties have a valid agreement dated October 19, 2012 setting out the terms of engagement between them on behalf of the supermarket’s unionisable employees.
“Pursuant to the recognition agreement the parties have concluded CBAs, the last one having come into effect on March 1, 2017”, the document reads.
The union further claims that the review of the CBA for the period 2019/2021 stalled after conclusion of negotiations as the supermarket refused to sign the new terms of service.
It says the supermarket attempted to reduce employees’ wages unilaterally without consulting the union which forced them to challenge the decision in court in which there is a court ruling stopping such actions.
“The supermarket towards the end of May, 2020 moved and closed four branches Digo, Mtwapa , Tom Mboya and Kitale Mega city and declared over 80 employees redundant, a matter which is also in court pending hearing and determination”, the union adds.
The union says hardly two months after the initial ruling, the supermarket is at it again with unlawful decisions to terminate the services of over 400 employees instantly and without following the lawful procedure.
It claims the supermarket is not acting in good faith as their plan to realign their business operations was not arrived at overnight as to serve termination letters dated September 17 to 21, 2020 without any attempt to prepare employees for the exit.
