BY JAMES MUTASA

An Arbitrator, Sarah Mudimu recently ordered that Plot Value Walling reinstates Tatenda Gate without any loss of salary and benefits from the date of unfair dismissal to the date of reinstatement.

According to Danford Chamwarura who represented Gate, a former Harare sales representative with Plot Value Walling employed in September 2018 was verbally dismissed after she had complained about the conditions of employment that she was being subjected to prior to the alleged transfer to Chiredzi.

“Gate was never given adequate time to prepare for the relocation to Chiredzi as she has a family, no relocation allowance was paid to her to enable to meet the cost of relocation. She was also not given transport to carry her property to the new alleged destination. When she queried all those things she was told that she was fired because she had failed to obey world command hence was accused of being disrespectful,” Chamwarura submitted to the arbitrator.

“No entity exists known by the said name nor is it registered in terms of law. The claimant alleges that the respondent is a legally registered company incorporated in terms of the laws of Zimbabwe yet no such company exists. The claim is bad at law and cannot succeed, it should simply be thrown out for want of compliance with the law, it is simply a bad pleading,” Moses Chigudu of Zinyengere Rupapa Legal Practitioners who was fighting in Plot Value Walling’s corner argued.

“The allegation of unfair dismissal is vehemently denied by the respondent, no allegation of fact to sufficiently sustain such a claim has been placed before the forum. There is a mere allegation of difficult conditions yet they are not particularized, this leaves the forum with more questions than answers.’ Chigudu had said.

The operative part of Mudimu’s award reads, “on the issue that the respondent was wrongly cited, it is this tribunal’s considered view that in as much as it is a fatality for a party to wrongly cite, in this matter the omission of Pvt Ltd does not render that respondent is/was not the employer of claimant. The point in limine raised by the respondent is a mere technicality that has no much bearing on the case since the respondent is not denying that the claimant is her former employee.

Mudimu concluded the award by ordering that the salaries and benefits should be calculated from the date of unfair dismissal to the date of reinstatement. If reinstatement is no longer tenable, the respondent is ordered to pay the claimant damages in lieu of reinstatement, the quantum of which shall be agreed upon by the parties.

Plot Value Walling Pvt Ltd is a registered company that manufactures and supplies precast concrete products which includes walling, hallow bricks and follower pots among others.