Starafrica Corporation Limited v Kapunga & 40 Others

### Preamble
IN THE LABOUR COURT OF ZIMBABWE
JUDGMENT NO.LC/H/58/23
HARARE, 01 JANUARY, 2023 AND 22 FEBRUARY 2023
CASE NO. LC/H/935/22
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HARARE, 01 JANUARY, 2023 AND 22 FEBRUARY 2023

STARAFRICA CORPORATION LIMITED

Versus

KAPUNGA & 40 OTHERS

Before the Honourable Kudya J;

For the Appellant - K T Mutambo (Legal Practitioner)

For the Respondents - Bamu (Legal Practitioner)

KUDYA J:

This is an appeal against the decision of the DA who handled the dispute of non payment of terminal benefits to the respondent employees.

The background to the matter is that the employees were awarded an 11% wage increment which the employer unsuccessfully challenged all the way to the Supreme Court. Post the Supreme court judgement the employees again approached the DA alleging non payment of their terminal benefits. This did not go down well with the applicant. In its view such an approach was tantamount to asking the DA to enforce a Supreme Court order and to issue a mandamus by ordering that the Supreme Court order be satisfied in a defined currency which declaration powers the DA did not possess.
 In response to the appeal the respondents only sought quantification of the Supreme Court order as it was not sounding in money.

The

record is clear that when the matter got to the Labour Court the Labour Court ruled that the employer had to pay the 11% hence from the date of the Labour Court order a judgement debt was created. It was therefore imperative for the parties to approach the Labour Court to quantify the award instead of approaching the DA as if it was the lodging of a new claim. A reading of the DA’s order does not show that any quantification exercise was engaged in by him. All that is there is a restatement of the Supreme Court order which business the DA had no need to do.

The court is therefore satisfied that the appeal is well founded and should succeed.

IT IS ORDERED THAT

Appeal being merited it be and is hereby succeeds. Each party to bear own costs.

Lunga Mazikana Attorneys - Appellant’s Legal Practitioners.

Mbidzo Muchadehama & Makoni - Respondent’s Legal Practitioners


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