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Barclays Bank breached employment contract - counsel
FAUSTINE KAPAMA
Daily News; Monday,June 16, 2008 @00:03
A counsel for Amani Ali Karume, son of Tanzania's Ambassador to Germany Ali Amani Karume, has asked the High Court to rule in favour of his client, who is demanding over 16bn/- from Barclays Bank for breach of employment contract.
Mr Alipo Atunkolepo told Judge Thomas Mihayo in his final submissions that Mr Karume, who worked with the bank as Deputy Managing Director, suffered a lot of damages after his then employer pressurized him to resign from the post.
He submitted that the bank, through its former Managing Director and Corporate Director, Mr Mark Petchel and Karl Stumke, respectively, subjected his client to sinister racial discrimination to the extent of being told that the post he was holding was inexistent.
According to him, Mr Karume was employed by the bank as Corporate Director on September 9, 2002 and in May 2003 was promoted to Deputy Managing Director. However, the bank continued to pay him same salary, while Mr Stumke, his subordinate was paid three times more.
He submitted that the defence by the bank that expatriates were usually paid better than local staff was mere sweeping statement as no evidence was produced to substantiate the same and described the evidence by Mr Rished Bade, the current banks chief executive, as hearsay.
Mr Atunkolepo told the court that Mr Bade produced no evidence to prove such claim and there was no provision in the banks Staff Handbook, which stipulated that foreign staff would be remunerated better.
According to him, the evidence of his client as far as discrimination is concerned was not challenged as both Mr Petchel and Mr Stumke were not summoned to testify to the contrary. He submitted further that the chain of pressure and discrimination exercised on Mr Karume was stretched to its fullest lengthy on November 6, 2003, when Mr Petchel asked him to sign a consultancy agreement and directed him later to tender a resignation letter.
In a response, advocate Dilip Kesaria, for the bank, however, asked the court to hold that there was no evidence to support the claims by Mr Karume on racial discrimination as his resignation notice was proper and, therefore, no breach of employment was committed.
He told the court that there was no evidence to prove that Mr Karume was wrongfully and unfairly dismissed from his employment as he resigned on his own and was no longer interested in continuing with employment after signing the said consultancy agreement.
Furthermore, Mr Kesaria submitted that Mr Karume was not entitled to the damages claimed for failure to prove his claims on the balance of probability, being the required standard of proof in civil proceedings. No oral or documentary evidence was produced to prove them. In his the case, Mr Karume is demanding 6,060,600 US dollars being special damages and 10,000,000 US dollars as general damages.
FAUSTINE KAPAMA
Daily News; Monday,June 16, 2008 @00:03
A counsel for Amani Ali Karume, son of Tanzania's Ambassador to Germany Ali Amani Karume, has asked the High Court to rule in favour of his client, who is demanding over 16bn/- from Barclays Bank for breach of employment contract.
Mr Alipo Atunkolepo told Judge Thomas Mihayo in his final submissions that Mr Karume, who worked with the bank as Deputy Managing Director, suffered a lot of damages after his then employer pressurized him to resign from the post.
He submitted that the bank, through its former Managing Director and Corporate Director, Mr Mark Petchel and Karl Stumke, respectively, subjected his client to sinister racial discrimination to the extent of being told that the post he was holding was inexistent.
According to him, Mr Karume was employed by the bank as Corporate Director on September 9, 2002 and in May 2003 was promoted to Deputy Managing Director. However, the bank continued to pay him same salary, while Mr Stumke, his subordinate was paid three times more.
He submitted that the defence by the bank that expatriates were usually paid better than local staff was mere sweeping statement as no evidence was produced to substantiate the same and described the evidence by Mr Rished Bade, the current banks chief executive, as hearsay.
Mr Atunkolepo told the court that Mr Bade produced no evidence to prove such claim and there was no provision in the banks Staff Handbook, which stipulated that foreign staff would be remunerated better.
According to him, the evidence of his client as far as discrimination is concerned was not challenged as both Mr Petchel and Mr Stumke were not summoned to testify to the contrary. He submitted further that the chain of pressure and discrimination exercised on Mr Karume was stretched to its fullest lengthy on November 6, 2003, when Mr Petchel asked him to sign a consultancy agreement and directed him later to tender a resignation letter.
In a response, advocate Dilip Kesaria, for the bank, however, asked the court to hold that there was no evidence to support the claims by Mr Karume on racial discrimination as his resignation notice was proper and, therefore, no breach of employment was committed.
He told the court that there was no evidence to prove that Mr Karume was wrongfully and unfairly dismissed from his employment as he resigned on his own and was no longer interested in continuing with employment after signing the said consultancy agreement.
Furthermore, Mr Kesaria submitted that Mr Karume was not entitled to the damages claimed for failure to prove his claims on the balance of probability, being the required standard of proof in civil proceedings. No oral or documentary evidence was produced to prove them. In his the case, Mr Karume is demanding 6,060,600 US dollars being special damages and 10,000,000 US dollars as general damages.
