The National Industrial Court sitting in Kaduna has ordered the Registered Trustees of St. Gerard’s Catholic Hospital, the Registered Trustees of the Catholic Archdiocese of Kaduna, and the Catholic Archbishop of Kaduna to pay three suspended employees outstanding salary arrears exceeding ₦18m.
Delivering judgment at the Kaduna Judicial Division, Justice Bashar Alkali held that the indefinite suspension of Mr. Sunday John Ali, Mrs. Margaret Eleoba, and Mr. Ishaku Doka without pay breached the terms and conditions of their employment contracts. The court further directed the defendants to continue paying the workers’ monthly salaries until their appointments are lawfully terminated.
The claimants informed the court that they were employees of St. Gerard’s Catholic Hospital whose appointments had been confirmed and were governed by their respective letters of employment and the institution’s Staff Manual.
According to the workers, they were placed on indefinite suspension without pay from August 2020 without any prior query or justification. They argued that, despite remaining willing and ready to work, the hospital refused to recall them or pay their salaries from July/August 2020 to September 2024, thereby causing significant hardship and violating the terms of their employment contracts.
In their defence, the Registered Trustees of St. Gerard’s Catholic Hospital and the other defendants maintained that the suspension of the three workers was carried out in line with the Staff Handbook over allegations of misconduct and ongoing investigations.
Counsel to the hospital argued that the workers were not entitled to salaries during the suspension period because remuneration was conditional upon the rendering of services. The defence consequently urged the court to dismiss the suit.
However, counsel to the claimants contended that the indefinite suspension without pay contravened the provisions of the Staff Manual, which prescribes a limited duration for suspension and does not permit prolonged denial of salaries.
The claimants further urged the court to hold that withholding the workers’ salaries for more than four years while their employment remained subsisting constituted both a breach of contract and an unfair labour practice.
In his judgment, Justice Alkali ruled that the defendants acted outside the provisions of the Staff Handbook by placing the workers on indefinite suspension without pay, despite the handbook stipulating a limited period for such disciplinary action.
The judge held that suspension is merely a temporary disciplinary measure and does not terminate a contract of employment. He added that employees under suspension remain in the service of their employer and cannot be deprived of their entitlements in breach of agreed contractual terms.
Justice Alkali further ruled that the continued suspension of the workers beyond two months without pay violated the provisions of the Staff Handbook.
The court declared that the employment of Mr. Ali, Mrs. Eleoba, and Mr. Doka remains valid and can only be determined in accordance with the terms of their contracts and extant labour laws.
Justice Alkali awarded ₦6.8m to Mr. Ali, ₦8.2m to Mrs. Eleoba, and ₦3.7m to Mr. Doka as salary arrears. The court also awarded ₦1m in costs in favour of the three workers and directed the defendants to comply with the judgment within 30 days.
