Nigerian court orders bank to reinstate sacked employee, awards N5.5m damages

A Nigerian bank has been ordered by the National Industrial Court to reinstate a former employee, Mr. Tajudeen Balogun, and pay him N5.5 million in damages after finding his dismissal unlawful.

The court ruled that the bank breached its disciplinary procedures and denied Balogun a fair hearing before dismissing him in November 2005. The dismissal was based on allegations of certificate forgery, stemming from discrepancies in his academic records provided by Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife.

According to court documents, the bank received conflicting information from OAU regarding Balogun's degree classification. While Balogun presented a Second-Class Lower degree, the university reportedly informed the bank he graduated with a Third-Class. This led the bank to conclude his certificate was forged.

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The defendant breached the terms contained in its staff handbook and denied the claimant fair hearing.

Balogun maintained he was never informed of any forgery allegations or given a chance to explain the discrepancy before his dismissal. He only discovered the issue years later when he investigated his academic records while processing documents for postgraduate studies.

The court found that OAU later admitted its error in supplying the erroneous information to the bank. Justice Maureen Esowe emphasized the sensitivity of academic records, stating they significantly impact a person's career, reputation, and prospects, and must be handled with utmost care. The court also awarded N500,000 in litigation costs to Balogun.

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The dismissal was founded on an allegation of certificate forgery that was never disclosed to the claimant or subjected to any disciplinary process.