Kenya Hotels and Allied Workers Union v Great Lakes Hotel Ltd (Cause E035 of 2023) [2024] KEELRC 495 (KLR)
The bottom line
#What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Questions the Court framed
#The issues the Court set itself to decide, in its own words.
- 1.Whether the Respondent should deduct union dues from Claimant members' wages and remit them to the Union's gazetted accounts
- 2.Whether the Union had recruited a simple majority of unionisable employees so as to warrant a recognition agreement under section 54(1) of the Labour Relations Act
- 3.Whether the Respondent intimidated and victimised Claimant members because of union activities
Key legal issues
#Deduction and remittance of union dues
Employees who signed Form S gave written instructions under section 19(1)(a),(f),(g) of the Employment Act for wage deductions; employer must remit subscriptions forthwith.
Section 19 of the Employment Act permits an employee to give written instructions for deductions from wages to a named entity. The signed check-off forms constituted such instructions, and the Labour Relations Act obliged the Respondent to commence deductions within 30 days. The Respondent was ordered to commence deductions forthwith or risk making up the subscriptions from its own funds, subject to withdrawals under section 48.
Recognition agreement
Claim for recognition dismissed; Conciliator's finding that simple majority threshold not met accepted.
The dispute over employee numbers (22 per the Union, 46 per the Respondent) meant the Union had not proved recruitment of a simple majority under section 54(1) of the Labour Relations Act. The Court had no reason to doubt the Conciliator's statutory report dated 30 May 2023 finding the threshold unmet, and accordingly dismissed the recognition claim.
Legal principles established
#- An employer receiving check-off (Form S) instructions from employees is obliged to commence deduction and remittance of union subscriptions within 30 days, or make up for the subscriptions from its own funds.
Court orders
#- 1.Claim for recognition dismissed
- 2.Respondent to commence deducting monthly union subscriptions from its employees who are members of the Union and remitting the subscriptions to the Union forthwith
- 3.No orders as to costs
The bench
#One judgment of the whole court — no separate or dissenting opinions.
Wrote the judgment
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Employment and Labour Relations Court jurisdiction under the Employment Act, 2007 and Labour Relations Act (trade dispute over union dues and recognition)
Relief refused
#Recognition agreement
Union failed to prove it had recruited a simple majority of unionisable employees; Conciliator's statutory finding accepted
Costs
The Court makes no orders as to costs.
Quotable passages
#Verbatim from the judgment, each located to the page it appears on in the official PDF — so these can be cited and checked directly.
Unless some of the employees have withdrawn from the Union as contemplated by section 48 of the Labour Relations Act, the Respondent should commence the deduction of union subscriptions forthwith or risk making up for the subscriptions from its own funds.
The Respondent to commence deducting monthly union subscriptions from its employees who are members of the Union and remitting the subscriptions to the Union forthwith.
The parties are social partners with anticipation of getting into a formal recognition, and the Court makes no orders as to costs.
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Kenya Hotels and Allied Workers Union v Great Lakes Hotel Ltd (Cause E035 of 2023) [2024] KEELRC 495 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2024). Cause filed 6 June 2023. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2024/495/eng@2024-02-22
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.