Shoprite workers’ bid to sue parent company dismissed
The workers had challenged the termination of their employment and sought various remedies, arguing that their employment contracts ought to have been transferred following the sale of the business. Shoprite, however, maintained that the workers had been declared redundant as part of the company’s restructuring after it decided to cease its operations in Uganda.
The court found that the workers had lodged their claim before the termination date stated in the redundancy notices. (New Vision/Files)
KAMPALA - The Industrial Court has dismissed an application by 45 former Shoprite workers seeking to add Shoprite International Limited to their labour dispute, ruling that the application had been overtaken by events.
Justice Anthony Wabwire Musana, sitting with panellists Adrine Namara, Susan Nabirye and Michael Matovu, dismissed Labour Dispute Miscellaneous Application No. 52 of 2023 on September 7, 2026.
The application was filed by Rashid Nyende and 44 others against Shoprite Checkers (U) Ltd and Shoprite International Limited.
The workers wanted the court to lift the corporate veil of Shoprite Checkers and add Shoprite International Limited as a party to Labour Dispute Reference No. 179 of 2021.
The application arose from a labour dispute between the workers and Shoprite following the sale of Shoprite’s assets to Majid Al Futtaim Hypermarkets Uganda Ltd, which operates MAF Carrefour.
The workers had challenged the termination of their employment and sought various remedies, arguing that their employment contracts ought to have been transferred following the sale of the business.
In a judgment delivered on May 8, 2026, the Industrial Court dismissed the workers’ claims of unfair and unlawful termination, among other claims, after finding that the labour dispute had been filed prematurely.
The court found that the workers had lodged their claim before the termination date stated in the redundancy notices.
The court also considered whether the sale of Shoprite’s assets automatically required the transfer of the workers’ employment contracts to the new owner.
Despite dismissing the claims of unfair and unlawful termination, the court awarded terminal benefits to some of the workers.
The first 14 claimants were awarded severance pay amounting to sh510.8m, representing one month’s salary for every year worked, and three months’ notice pay amounting to sh85.6m.
However, their claims for general, punitive and aggravated damages were dismissed.
The court also noted that some of the workers had already settled their claims with Shoprite.
Following the May judgment, the workers’ application seeking to add Shoprite International Limited to the proceedings remained before the Industrial Court.
Justice Musana noted that the purpose of the application was to lift the corporate veil of Shoprite Checkers and bring Shoprite International Limited into the labour dispute.
However, since the substantive labour dispute had already been determined, the judge found that there was no longer a live dispute upon which the application could operate.
The court therefore held that the application had been overtaken by events and dismissed it.
The court ordered each party to bear its own costs.