Employee Gets Judgment Against Shell for Wrongful Employment Termination

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company, as well as Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria, has been directed to pay about N15.4 million to one of its employees, Mr Odinma Aju Oworo, within 30 days for wrongful termination of employment.

This directive was given by Justice Faustina Kola-Olalere of the Port Harcourt Judicial Division of the National Industrial Court.

Business Post reports that the court mandated the oil company to pay Mr Oworo two years’ salary as compensation at the rate of N7.4 million per annum, amounting to N14.9 million, together with N500,000 as costs.

According to Justice Kola-Olalere, Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria was Mr Oworo’s primary employer, while Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company was his secondary employer, as he was employed by Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria to work for Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company.

From the facts, the claimant submitted that he was employed by Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company and that Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria had no contractual authority to determine his employment.

Mr Oworo further contended that the termination of his employment was unlawful and sought, among other reliefs, orders setting aside the termination and warning letters, N2 million as his expected salary and emoluments up to July 2037, N273.8 million as gratuity and N2.1 million as pension upon retirement.

In defence, Shell companies maintained that Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria remained his employer and had the contractual right to determine his employment, and that Mr Oworo was paid three months’ salary instead of notice together with his other terminal benefits.

Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria and others further argued that the employment was a private employment governed by the terms and conditions of service and that Mr Oworo had no contractual right to remain in employment until 2037.

They maintained that the termination was an exercise of the contractual right to terminate the employment and that the motive for termination was irrelevant once the contractual provisions had been complied with.

In opposition, Mr Oworo, through his counsel, Mr George Ogara, argued that his employment termination was wrongful because it was carried out without a valid reason relating to his work capability or competence, and urged the Court to grant the reliefs sought.

Delivering judgment after carefully evaluating the pleadings, evidence, documents and submissions of counsel, Justice Kola-Olalere affirmed a triangular employment relationship and held that the employment of Mr Oworo was wrongly determined because the Shell Companies failed to state the reasons for the determination in his letter of release.

The court further held that, having regard to the development of labour jurisprudence in Nigeria and the constitutional mandate of the National Industrial Court to apply international best practices and International Labour Standards (ILO) Convention No. 158 on Termination of Employment was relevant to the determination of the dispute.

Justice Kola-Olalere noted that termination should be based on a valid reason connected with the employee’s capacity or conduct or the operational requirements of the employer and held, in the circumstances of the case, that the reasons for the determination ought to have been stated in his letter of release.

The court held that the gratuity claim was a special claim which required strict proof and that Mr Oworo failed to prove his entitlement to N273.8 million as gratuity and N2.1 million as pension.

“Consequently, I hold that the employment of the claimant, in this instance, was wrongfully determined by the defendants.

“For this wrongful determination of the claimant’s employment, the defendants are to jointly pay him his two years’ salary as a model compensation at the rate of N7,423,002.00 per annum,” the court ruled.