The appellant was employed as a clerk at the Hwange magistrate's court in the Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs since February 1987. Following the enactment of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Amendment Act No. 1 of 1992, which designated Saturday as a court day, the Chief Magistrate directed magistrates and supporting staff to make arrangements for Saturday court sittings. In November 1995, the Provincial Magistrate instructed all clerks to report for duty on Saturdays from 4 November 1995. The appellant attended the meeting where this instruction was given but refused to report for duty on 4, 11, 18, and 25 November and 2 December 1995, despite warnings. He was charged with misconduct, found guilty, fined $400 and reprimanded in December 1995. When he continued to absent himself, he was charged again on 28 December 1995, found guilty, and dismissed from employment on 15 March 1996. He appealed to the Public Service Commission on 2 April 1996, which was dismissed on 13 November 1996. He then noted an appeal to the Labour Relations Tribunal in July 1998, well outside the prescribed time limits, and applied for condonation of the late appeal.
The appeal was dismissed with costs.
Section 8(5) of the Public Service (General) Regulations 1992 empowers a head of department to require officers and employees to be on duty at times other than normal hours of work, including Saturdays. An employee in the Public Service who refuses to comply with a lawful directive to report for duty on a Saturday, where such day has been designated as a court day by statute and the head of department has issued instructions accordingly, commits misconduct warranting dismissal. Religious obligations do not excuse non-compliance with lawful work directives unless formal exemption has been sought and granted. The conditions of service applicable at the time of appointment are those contained in the relevant Public Service Regulations, which authorize requiring employees to work beyond normal hours without additional remuneration. An application for condonation of late appeal will be refused where the applicant has no reasonable prospects of success on the merits of the appeal.
The Court observed that even assuming the appellant had genuine religious obligations to attend church on Saturdays, it was incumbent upon him to approach either the Provincial Magistrate or the Chief Magistrate and seek exemption from the Saturday work requirement before absenting himself from duty. The Court also noted that the appellant raised the religious obligation argument only long after he had already absented himself from duty on numerous occasions, suggesting it may have been an afterthought rather than a genuine concern at the relevant time. The Court's interpretation of Order 1 Rule 5(2) of the Magistrates Court (Civil) Rules 1980 provides guidance that procedural rules concerning computation of time do not create substantive rights regarding when employees may or may not be required to work.
This case clarifies the scope of employer discretion in the Zimbabwean Public Service to require employees to work outside normal hours, including on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. It establishes that public service employees have no inherent right to refuse weekend work where legislation designates such days as working days and regulations authorize heads of department to require attendance. The case also affirms that religious obligations do not automatically excuse an employee from lawful work requirements without first seeking and obtaining formal exemption. The judgment reinforces the principle that conditions of service in the Public Service are governed by the applicable regulations, and employees cannot unilaterally refuse to comply with lawful directives from supervisors. It also demonstrates the Court's approach to condonation applications, requiring applicants to show reasonable prospects of success on the merits.