By William Madouk
The plaintiff’s advocate in the UAP Insurance Firm, Mr. Marko Reech, has submitted long-awaited evidence, including contracts, salary structures, and reasons for the termination of his clients, at the first court hearing yesterday.
Lawyer Reech provided these documents to High Court Judge Francis Amum as evidence supporting their claims against UAP Insurance Company.
“The session was set for today (Yesterday), and we proceeded with the hearing, presenting our entire case until we reached the seventh employee,” he explained. “We paused at this point due to the weather, as the court requested us to continue with the hearing on the 24th, which is Friday. That’s all for today, and we will move forward with our case,” he added.
Advocate Reech clarified that after presenting their evidence, the defense lawyer would have the opportunity to either accept or dismiss the claims and provide their own evidence.
“Yes, we are going to conclude our side, and then the defense will have the chance to either dismiss the allegations presented against them, accept them, or accept part of them. That’s all,” he stated.
When asked why the court proceedings were delayed, the advocate explained that the delays are normal occurrences in court procedures, often due to administrative challenges or parties being unprepared.
“Sometimes power may not be available. Other times, administrative issues arise, or parties may come to court unprepared,” Reech noted.
Last October, UAP Insurance dismissed at least ten national staff members for requesting improved wages.
This decision contradicted the Ministry of Labor’s order for the reinstatement of the ten terminated employees following a dispute.
As a result, the National Staff Association (UNSA) initiated legal action against the insurance firm, with the first hearing originally scheduled for Wednesday but postponed to next week.
UAP and its national employees have been in conflict over perceived unfair treatment, particularly regarding salary disparities between nationals and their expatriate counterparts.
This situation prompted around 70 national staff to stage a sit-in strike, which halted UAP’s operations, although some employees eventually returned to work.
Luka Nyarsuk Nason, Chairman of the Labor Advisory Council, sent a letter dated September 29, 2023, requesting UAP management to suspend all administrative actions taken against the staff.
In October, the Ministry of Labor issued a long-awaited ruling on the ongoing dispute between UAP management and the national staff concerning unfair treatment and salary structures.
Mary Hillary Wani, the Undersecretary in the Ministry of Labor, directed UAP to immediately reinstate the ten national employees who had been dismissed.
“The terminated members of the staff association, both executive and ordinary members, are to be reinstated without fail (section 73, sub (2)(a),” she stated.
The Labor Ministry also instructed UAP management to review the salary structure and designate a South Sudanese national to oversee the human resources office.
“The national human resource official is to be trained and given full responsibility for human resource work,” Ms. Wani noted.
According to the labor docket, positions for UAP staff currently working in Kenya will be advertised and filled by nationals.
However, this report indicates that none of the Ministry of Labor’s directives had been implemented by UAP by the time of publication.