SAMSON GWER, MICHAEL MWANIKI, NAHASHON THUO, JOHN WANGAI, MOSES NDIRITU & ALBERT KOMBA V. KENYA MEDICAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE, MINISTRY OF PUBLIC HEALTH & SANITATION, ATTORNEY-GENERAL & UNION OF NATIONAL RESEARCH & ALLIED INSTITUTES STAFF OF KENYA

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

A. INTRODUCTION

[1] This is an appeal from the Judgment of the Court of Appeal, dated 9 November 2018, by which the Judgment and Decree of the Employment and Labour Relations Court dated 18 July 2019 had been set aside. The trial Court had found that the petitioners had suffered discrimination in their employment, at the hands of 1^st respondent, and had awarded each petitioner 5 million Shillings. The petition is dated 19 March 2019, and is premised on Article 163 (4) (a) of the Constitution.

B. BACKGROUND

[2] The petitioners had been employees of the 1^st respondent under various contracts renewed and extended from time to time, over a period of several years. They had also been attached to the KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, hosted by 1^st respondent, as clinical researchers, and were pursuing post-graduate studies leading to the award of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, in their fields of research. The said programme belonged to Oxford University in Engl…