The National Industrial Court sitting in Lagos has ordered Melrose Books & Publishing Limited to pay its former accountant, Mr. Ade, 68 months’ outstanding salaries and allowances, covering October 2015 to June 2021, following an unlawful suspension from work.
Delivering judgment, Hon. Justice (Prof.) Elizabeth Oji directed the company to pay Ade his monthly salary of ₦60,000 for the 68-month period, along with annual leave and medical allowances of ₦30,000 each per year — all within 30 days.
The court ruled that Melrose Books had no right to suspend Ade indefinitely without pay.
Justice Oji, presiding over the Lagos Judicial Division, held that the company’s action “of keeping the employee in limbo without determining his employment status goes against the progressive development of labour law, which frowns upon prolonged and indefinite suspensions without pay.”
The judge also dismissed Melrose Books’ counterclaim of ₦12.2 million, which the firm alleged was a shortfall from funds handled by Ade. The court found that the company’s allegations were “neither founded on any administrative nor judicial determination.”
According to court documents, Melrose Books accused Ade of owing the company ₦18,264,343.25 after an internal audit and claimed he admitted to a ₦12.2 million shortfall in a handwritten note. The company said Ade requested more time to reconcile the accounts but failed to do so, leading to his indefinite suspension without pay in October 2015.
In his defence, Ade denied owing any money, stating that an external audit found no financial discrepancy. He said the internal auditor refused to release the company’s bank statements for full reconciliation, and that he signed an interim report believing it was procedural, not an admission of guilt.
Ade told the court that he was given a seven-day ultimatum to reconcile the accounts but was suspended just two days later. He described the suspension as unlawful, arguing that he should have been placed on interdiction with half pay pending investigation, in line with fair hearing principles.
Melrose Books maintained that interdiction with half pay did not apply in cases of gross misconduct, and that Ade’s later acquittal in a related criminal case did not absolve him of civil liability. The company urged the court to enter summary judgment for the alleged ₦12.2 million debt.
However, Justice Oji ruled that the company failed to prove Ade’s guilt or justify his indefinite suspension.
“There is no evidence that the defendant’s request to audit the claimant’s statement of account was adhered to, to enable him conclude the reconciliation before he was suspended,” the judge stated.
The court therefore ordered Melrose Books & Publishing Limited to pay all outstanding entitlements to Ade within 30 days.
