HARARE – The Labour Court of Zimbabwe has reinstated a former Lobels Bread employee who was fired over the loss of more than 35,000 loaves of bread, ruling that the dismissal was procedurally flawed and substantively unfair.
Christopher Rufaro Mashaire, who served as an Electrical Foreman at Lobels Bread (Private) Limited for 17 years, was accused of gross incompetence and negligence following a technical failure that allegedly led to a loss valued at over ZW$5 million.
However, Justice Bridget Chivizhe ruled in favour of Mashaire, overturning the company’s internal disciplinary ruling and ordering his reinstatement with full benefits and back pay. “This court has found it pertinent to allow the appeal with costs,” she stated in her judgment.
The ruling follows Mashaire’s challenge of a 2021 decision by Lobels’ Appeals Officer to uphold his dismissal. Central to his appeal was the argument that the disciplinary process was marred by procedural irregularities and lacked fairness.
Justice Chivizhe agreed, pointing out that the disciplinary authority failed to consider crucial mitigating factors and did not afford Mashaire a fair hearing.
“Even at the shop floor level, a party ought to be given the opportunity to ask questions and test the evidence,” she said. “This forms the basis of the right to be heard, where an accused employee can confront their adversary through cross-examination.”
The court noted that the circumstances surrounding the case, particularly the contested issue of whether Mashaire had conducted a root cause analysis of the fault, were not adequately examined during the disciplinary proceedings.
Mashaire’s legal team argued that the company had not met the required burden of proof to justify the dismissal, and that no other staff members involved in the incident were held accountable. “His dismissal was disproportionate given the shared responsibility among staff,” the defence argued.
The court concurred, finding that Lobels Bread had relied on unsubstantiated claims regarding Mashaire’s alleged incompetence and failed to demonstrate gross inefficiency on his part.
Justice Chivizhe concluded that the penalty of dismissal was excessive under the circumstances, reinforcing the importance of procedural integrity and proportionality in workplace disciplinary actions.
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