Herbert Sauramba and 113 Others v Mitchells Bakery Mutare

The applicants, all employees of the respondent company, had a grievance concerning non-payment of wages. The parties went for arbitration and an award was made in favour of the applicants on 14 November 2010. The arbitral award ordered that the employer had partially fulfilled what was agreed at conciliation stage at the Ministry of Labour, and that the respondent should pay all outstanding salaries by end of February 2010, failing which it would pay with interest at prevailing bank rates. The applicants sought to register the arbitral award with the High Court in terms of s 98(14) of the Labour Act [Cap 28:01] to enable them to execute upon it.

• Whether an arbitral award that does not sound in money can be registered with the court in terms of s 98(14) of the Labour Act
• Whether an award can be executed upon by issuance of a writ where it does not contain a specific monetary determination
• Whether a calculation made by one party to a dispute, not subjected to arbitral determination, can form the basis for registering an award

Application dismissed with costs

An arbitral award can only be registered with the court in terms of s 98(14) of the Labour Act if it sounds in money or falls within the categories of judgments that can be executed by writ under Rules 322 and 323 of the High Court Rules 1971 (payment of money, delivery of goods or premises, or ejectment). An award that does not contain a specific monetary determination, but merely requires payment of outstanding salaries without quantifying the amount, cannot be registered for enforcement. A calculation of monetary value made by one party to the dispute, which has not been subjected to arbitral determination or agreed to by the other party, does not form part of the arbitral award and remains a mere claim until properly adjudicated.

The court observed that the purpose of registering arbitral awards is to enable the applicant to execute upon the awards by the issue of writs. The court noted that while an award may by its terms and wording give rise to a formula by which its monetary value can be calculated, this does not suffice for registration if the actual monetary amount has not been determined by the arbitrator or agreed to by the parties.

This case establishes important principles regarding the registration and enforcement of arbitral awards in Zimbabwean labour law. It clarifies that only arbitral awards that sound in money or fall within the categories executable by writ (payment of money, delivery of goods/premises, or ejectment) can be registered with the court for enforcement purposes. The case reinforces that calculations made unilaterally by one party, even if based on the terms of an award, cannot substitute for a specific monetary determination by the arbitrator. This ensures certainty in the enforcement process and protects parties from execution on amounts that have not been properly adjudicated.