The National Industrial Court, Lagos Division, on Tuesday, ordered Total E&P Nig. (formerly Elf Petroleum Nigeria Limited) to pay the security guards it unjustly disengaged N50 million as aggravated damages.
Justice Elizabeth Oji, a professor of Law, who gave the judgment on Tuesday, said the N50 million was for the psychological and mental trauma that the firms subjected the disengaged security guards to.
The judge described as callous, insensitive and a breach of the Labour Act, the refusal of Total E&P Nig. to issue the claimants employment letters for about 15 years they worked in the company.
The court gave the firm 30 days to comply with the order, failing which the N50 million damages would attract an interest of 20 per cent.
The claimants, Odah Ezekiel Ogah, Adefemi Eyitayo Moses, Ogwuche Abraham, and Charles Okwori, who sued for themselves and on behalf of the disengaged security employees of Total E & P Nigeria Limited had in their suit marked NICN/LA/663/2016 accused the oil company of unfair labour practice.
Joined as defendants alongside Total E&P Nigeria Limited were Transworld Security System Limited, Bemil Nigeria Limited, Halogen Security Nigeria Limited, Lack Guards Security Limited, and Kings Guards Security Limited.
The claimants, through their lawyer, Ali Adah, had prayed the court for a declaration that the unilateral transfer of the claimants’ employment to five different companies at different times by the 1st defendant within a period of about 15 years without their consent and the endorsement/approval of such transfer by any authorised labour officer was illegal, unlawful and unfair labour practice and therefore a breach of Section 10 of the Labour Act of Nigeria and international best practices with impunity.
They also prayed for “a declaration that the refusal and neglect by the 1st defendant to issue letters of employment to the claimants despite repeated demands for same by the claimants without success is illegal, unlawful, unfair labour practice, a breach of international best practices and therefore, a violation of Section 7 of the Labour Act and liable under section 21 of the same Act.
“A declaration that the conspiracy among the defendants to enslave, neglect or ill-treat the claimants under a clandestine working condition for so many years for the 1st defendant without any terminal benefit entitlement paid to them is wicked, unconstitutional, illegal, unlawful, wrongful, unfair labour practice and breach of international best practices and therefore an arrogant breach of Section 46 (1) of Labour Act and liable under the same section”.
In its defence, Total E&P said it was not the employer of the claimants but the 2nd to 6th defendants.
Justice Orji held that the continued refusal by the firm to pay the claimants their terminal benefits after summarily dismissing them in 2014 and 2015 was “illegal, unfair labour practice and international best practices and therefore unconstitutional, null and void”.
