The court also dismissed the school’s counterclaim seeking US$60,000 in alleged reputational and financial losses, payment in lieu of notice, and recovery of outstanding school fees.
KAMPALA – The Industrial Court has ordered King’s International School Limited to compensate two former British teachers for unpaid wages after finding that they were employees of the school and not volunteers, as the institution had claimed.
In a ruling delivered on June 18, 2026, Justice Anthony Wabwire Musana, together with panellists Adrine Namara, Susan Nabirye and Michael Matovu, directed the school to pay Jane Dicker and James Connolly a total of over US$5,100 in salary arrears, plus interest accruing from November 26, 2017.
The dispute stemmed from a labour complaint filed by the two United Kingdom nationals, who were recruited by the school in July 2017 to serve as Academic Manager and Mentor, and Head Teacher respectively.
The claimants argued that they had been offered two-year employment contracts with a monthly salary of US$1,500, medical benefits, accommodation and work permits. However, they alleged that the school later attempted to alter the terms of their employment by introducing new conditions that effectively downgraded them to volunteer status.
IGG Recognises Top LDC Graduate in Trial Advocacy, Rewards Excellence in Legal Education
Dicker further claimed that she was dismissed through a text message and email without being accorded a fair hearing, while Connolly argued that persistent salary delays forced him to stop working and return to the United Kingdom.
The school denied wrongdoing and maintained that both individuals had initially joined on a voluntary basis and were only entitled to allowances depending on the school’s financial position. It also accused the pair of abandoning their duties before the end of the school term and causing reputational and financial losses estimated at over US$60,000.
However, the court rejected the school’s argument that the teachers were volunteers, finding sufficient evidence that an employer-employee relationship existed.
Justice Musana held that despite the contracts being unsigned, the parties’ conduct established a valid employment relationship because the teachers performed their duties while the school paid them remuneration consistent with the agreed monthly salary.
“An employer cannot unjustly enrich itself by withholding remuneration for labour duly performed,” the court observed.
The court awarded Dicker US$2,662 and Connolly US$2,447 in unpaid wages, with interest at six percent per annum from November 26, 2017, until full payment.
Muhoozi Vows to Oust Ssenyonyi as Leader of Opposition, Tasks PLU to Explore Removal
However, the court dismissed the teachers’ claims of unlawful termination, ruling that both individuals had voluntarily chosen not to return to work due to frustrations arising from unpaid salaries rather than being formally dismissed.
The judges noted that while the school’s failure to pay wages and its unilateral changes to employment terms constituted breaches of the employment relationship, the legal threshold for unlawful termination or constructive dismissal had not been met because neither claimant formally resigned.
The court also dismissed the school’s counterclaim seeking US$60,000 in alleged reputational and financial losses, payment in lieu of notice, and recovery of outstanding school fees.
It found that the school had failed to provide credible evidence linking the former teachers to the alleged loss of students and revenue.
The judges further ruled that unauthenticated WhatsApp messages and hearsay testimony could not be relied upon to establish reputational damage.
The school was ordered to bear the costs of the suit.
The judgment was delivered electronically and will also be published on the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ULII) and Industrial Court websites.
