Early Termination of Fixed-term Employment Contracts in Botswana: revisiting Rakhudu v Botswana Book Centre Trust

Abstract

In July 2005 the Court of Appeal of Botswana delivered a judgment in a case where an employee employed on a fixed-term contract had been dismissed from employment prior to the expiry of the agreed duration. The employee had committed no act of breach, and the employer had advanced no reason for terminating the contract of employment. In the course of its judgment, the Court of Appeal made a finding that at common law, absent an express or implied term to the contrary, and provided due notice is given, a fixed-term contract of employment may be terminated before the expiry of the agreed time frame, without having to provide a valid reason. That finding has since been accepted and applied by the High Court of Botswana as binding judicial precedent. This article interrogates that finding, and argues that at common law, a fixed-term contract of employment may not be lawfully terminated prematurely in the absence of a valid reason.