Nearly three decades of loyal service ended not with a handshake, a farewell letter or even a disciplinary hearing, but with silence.
Now, the Employment and Labour Relations Court has ruled that Kotecha Wholesellers Ltd must compensate its former Stores and Logistics Manager, Louis Kipchumba Nel, after finding that the company unfairly and unlawfully terminated his employment following a prolonged medical absence.
In a judgement delivered in Kisumu on July 7, 2026, Justice Nzioki wa Makau awarded Nel KSh3,005,502, comprising KSh969,834 in terminal benefits previously agreed during labour conciliation and KSh2,035,668, the equivalent of 12 months’ salary, as compensation for unfair dismissal.
After deducting an outstanding staff loan of KSh620,000, the court ordered the company to pay him a net KSh2,385,502.
The case traces back to a motorcycle accident in 2020 that left Nel unable to work.
Having joined the company in November 1994, he had spent nearly 29 years climbing to become the firm’s Stores and Logistics Manager.
During his recovery, his salary was initially maintained before being stopped in November 2020.
Medical Clearance
According to court records, Nel later approached his employer in June 2023 seeking to resume work and was advised to return in January 2024 with a medical clearance.
He did exactly that. Armed with a doctor’s report declaring him fit, he reported back on January 2, only to be verbally informed that his services were no longer required.
Kotecha Wholesellers painted a different picture. The company insisted it had never dismissed its employee, arguing instead that he had failed to submit the necessary medical documentation and had effectively absconded duty.
It also pursued recovery of an outstanding staff loan through a counterclaim.
Justice Makau, however, looked beyond the competing narratives.
The judge found that regardless of the employer’s insistence that no dismissal had occurred, the practical reality was unmistakable.
Nel had not been paid for years, had not been reinstated after recovering, and no lawful process had been undertaken to formally end the employment relationship.
The court observed that once the employer concluded the veteran employee could no longer continue in service, it had a legal obligation to accord him procedural fairness under Kenya’s Employment Act.
Instead, it simply left the employment relationship hanging.
Poignant Observations
In one of the judgement’s most poignant observations, Justice Makau noted that the company’s own director described Nel as being “akin to family”.
That long relationship, the court held, made the manner of his exit all the more unjust.
A worker who had devoted almost three decades to one employer “deserved to be treated better”, the judge said before awarding the maximum 12 months’ compensation permitted by law.
The court nevertheless declined Nel’s claim for salary arrears covering the period he remained away from work, holding that wages are generally not payable for periods during which no work is performed.
It also upheld the employer’s claim for repayment of the KSh620,000 staff loan, ordering that the amount be offset against the damages awarded.
The ruling reinforces a principle repeatedly affirmed by Kenya’s Employment and Labour Relations Court: long illness does not extinguish an employee’s rights.
READ ALSO: Kawaken Holdings Ltd Ordered to Pay KSh 2.78 Million After High Court Rules Email Acknowledged Debt
Employers retain the prerogative to end employment where circumstances justify it, but they must do so through a fair, transparent and lawful process.
Recent appellate decisions have similarly stressed that disputes over alleged absenteeism or medical absence must still satisfy the procedural safeguards set out in the Employment Act.
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