Published: 01 June 2018

TWELVE employees at Simms Electrical Company in Bulawayo have taken their employer to court demanding payment of $122 194 owed in outstanding salaries after they recently obtained an arbitration award when the company was placed under judicial management.

Amon Munyanyi and 11 others filed their application at the Bulawayo High Court on May 15 demanding payment of their dues. They cited company director and shareholder, Garry George Kevin Ainscough, another director and shareholder, Nicola Ainscough and Simms Electrical and Diesel Services (Private) Limited Company as respondents.

In their application, they submitted that they were employed by the company and obtained an award of $122 194, which they registered in 2013.

"The award was registered as an order of the court under cases no 3133/13. Sometime in 2014, the first respondent duly advised the applicants at work that the third respondent (company) had been placed under judicial management and that Micheal Mpofu as the judicial manager was now in charge of all company affairs," the application read.

"They were made to believe that their concerns and the dues owed in terms of the order in their favour will be addressed in his (Mpofu) management. As such, they did not seek to execute against company property, as they were also interested in the welfare of the company, which they still worked for."

They later realised in 2016 that the company was disposing its property. The workers said they later realised the company was never placed under judicial management.

"What had been placed on record by first respondent is rather an ex-parte chamber application for provisional liquidation issued on December 13, 2013 under case no 1623/14 and which has never been set down to date. It is at this instance that they realised that the first and second respondents deliberately lied to them to avoid settling dues in terms of the order they obtained and began liquidating the company without due process and leave of this court."

They prayed for the order compelling the company to pay them $122 194. They also prayed for the directors' personal assets to be declared especially executable at the instance of applicants for the amount recovery.

The respondents are yet to file their oppositions. 
- newsday