Contract of employment

In the words of the controversial labour lawyer, Sir Otto Kahn-Freund, “The relation between an employer and an isolated employee or worker is typically a relation between a bearer of power and one who is not a bearer of power. In its inception it is an act of submission, in its operation it is a […]

In the words of the controversial labour lawyer, Sir Otto Kahn-Freund, “The relation between an employer and an isolated employee or worker is typically a relation between a bearer of power and one who is not a bearer of power. In its inception it is an act of submission, in its operation it is a condition of subordination, however much the submission and the subordination may be concealed by the indispensable figment of the legal mind known as the ‘contract of employment’ {en.wikipedia.org}.
A young lawyer recently applied to the Young Progressive Lawyers to intervene in the undue exploitation by a senior colleague.  According to him, he was employed as a youth corps member by a law firm in December 2013 with the agreement that he would be paid N5,000 monthly with no appearance fee or permission to handle private briefs, unfortunately this agreement was not contained in a letter of appointment or contract of employment, and so it was that this corps member was and is still being owed his entitlements by the firm and, after much confrontation with the senior colleague, the learned senior asked the junior counsel to take him to court.  By the way there is no contract of employment binding the agreement.
When discussing this sad event with fellow colleagues, this writer got to learn of another junior who has been owed salary from November last year till date and his principal still expects him to come to work every day and give his best. When I asked of an appointment letter, he too didn’t have a contract of employment, the same applies to this writer, there is no contract of employment between the employer and employee and this is very prevalent in the legal profession.
Black’s Law Dictionary, 8th Edition, page 345 refers to a contract implied in fact as a contract that the parties presumably intended as their tacit understanding as inferred from their conduct and other circumstances; MULTI CHOICE (NIG) LTD v AZEEZ {2010} 15 N.W.L.R  (part 1215) Pp. 51, paras E.
It is the practice as observed that most law firms don’t give contract of employment when employing the services of a young lawyer; the terms of the appointment are implied, the junior counsel is really not aware of his true entitlements. One cannot say if he is entitled to other allowances apart from his monthly pay cheque or if he is entitled to leave once in a year.
This uncertainty as to the true terms of employment as contained in a document is a contributing factor why junior counsels are exploited by senior colleagues.  It is almost a year and the junior counsel in the above scenario is still owed paltry sums of money {this is the kind of thing that makes one regret why one became a lawyer in the first place}.
The Nigerian Bar Association needs to put strict restrictions on the type of law firms that operate in Nigeria, because some law shops parading as law firms are bringing the profession into disrepute. Law firms should be mandated to give contract of employment to lawyers they want to employ; law firms without the financial standing to pay employees should not be in business. Young lawyers are really not protected with the informal agreements that form part of a larger percentage of what goes on in the legal profession; a principal partner depending on how he wakes up can decide to terminate the services of a young lawyer without paying attention to any procedure because there is no agreement binding them together.
The sad part is a young lawyer desperate for employment would not want to jeopardise his employment by asking for an appointment letter or contract of employment, this puts one in an uncomfortable position.
The Bar ought to assist young lawyers safeguard their future.  If a firm can’t shoulder a responsibility it shouldn’t  employ a young lawyer but if a firm employs one, it should be  paying salaries as at when due and provide a contract of employment to truly determine the terms of the agreement.

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