Kenyan B2B enterprise Twiga Foods has been ordered by the Employment and Labour Relations Court to pay over KES 1 million (around $7,800) in compensation to a former sales staff member after ruling that his dismissal was unlawful.
During a virtual session on October 9, Justice Linnet Ndolo concluded that Twiga Foods had wrongfully terminated Maxton Duke Kibira’s employment in December 2018. The court noted that the company accused him of “poor performance” without providing any evidence to back this claim. Additionally, the judgment pointed out that Twiga failed to supply Kibira with a clear job description and did not follow due process before ending his contract.
This decision reflects a rising wave of labor disputes involving Kenya’s tech startups, pushing these companies to improve their adherence to employee rights and labor regulations. Earlier this year, in April, the court mandated digital bank Umba to compensate KES 2.88 million ($22,300) for unfair dismissal, citing the lack of documented performance criteria. In the same month, Dawa Life Sciences faced judicial criticism for unequal pay practices for employees in similar roles, prompting many startups to reevaluate their salary structures.
Kibira, who joined Twiga in 2015 earning approximately KES 100,000 ($774) monthly, testified that he was subjected to unrealistic sales targets, compulsory overtime, and frequent transfers between different locations. He also claimed that the company unlawfully deducted KES 426,000 ($3,298) from his salary, attributing the deduction to unbanked cash-a penalty he described as a “surcharge” imposed without any chance to dispute it.
Justice Ndolo highlighted that Twiga’s representative failed to present any tangible proof of Kibira’s alleged underperformance. The court also condemned the company’s unilateral salary deductions as breaches of labor laws and criticized Twiga for penalizing Kibira twice-first through wage deductions and then by terminating his employment over the same issue.
Twiga Foods defended its actions by asserting that Kibira’s performance consistently fell short despite repeated warnings, and that the deductions were related to bonuses he had not earned. However, the court found no evidence supporting these claims or proof that Kibira was given sufficient assistance to enhance his performance.
As a result, the court awarded Kibira compensation equivalent to six months’ salary plus reimbursement of the unlawful deductions, amounting to KES 1.026 million ($7,800) along with accrued interest.