City of Joburg terminates more than 100 jobs.
A civic organisation to support whistle-blowers is established. The CoJ fires employees. The Constitutional Court backs the government in its wage deal. Employers to be fined over R100,000 for not keeping to quotas. SAA workers who opted for failed scheme are laid off.
Organisation supporting whistle-blowers created
A non-profit organisation, The Whistleblower House, has been launched to protect those who speak out against abuse and wrongdoing. The organisation aims to facilitate access to the support whistle-blowers need.
Daily Maverick reports that its services include a support system of medical, psychological, legal and financial assistance.
City of Joburg fires over 100 employees
More than 100 employees of the City of Johannesburg have lost their jobs. According to the SABC, the municipality sent out termination letters to the affected workers after the council declared the conversion of some fixed term contracts to permanent positions irregular.
Johannesburg’s executive mayor Mpho Phalatse says the previous administration should not have approved the appointments.
ConCourt backs government’s refusal to implement final leg of 2018 wage deal
In a hard-hitting unanimous judgment and a big victory for the government, the Constitutional Court has ruled the state can back out of what an acting judge blasted as an “impugned wage deal” with unions in 2018.
Business Tech reports that the court ruled that the government does not have to implement the last leg of the three-year agreement reached at the public sector bargaining council in 2018 as the unions were “unjustifiably enriched” from the “impugned collective agreement”.
A ruling in the unions’ favour would have cost the government R37 billion in the 2021 fiscal year, as well as an additional R75 billion in back pay.
The Public Servant’s Association said it will pursue increases equivalent to the consumer inflation rate.
Employers could be fined up to R100,000 for not adhering to hiring quotas
Fin24 reports that companies that fail to keep to proposed employment quotas on foreign workers could be fined up to R100,000.
These are among the proposals of the National Labour Migration Policy (NLMP) and the Employment Services Amendment Bill, which were launched by Department of Employment and Labour (DEL) Minister Thulas Nxesi for public comment.
The policy will give the director-general of the DEL the power to seek a fine from the Labour Court of up to R100,000 on any business whose appointment of foreign national employees is not in line with the newly introduced quotas.
Final loss for 200 SAA employees who did not take severance packages
About 200 staff members of state-owned South African Airways (SAA) will be let go at the end of March this year.
Fin24 reports that the employees chose not to take voluntary severance packages during SAA's business rescue process and opted instead to be placed on a government-run training scheme.
Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) director-general Kgathatso Tlhakudi said SAA unfortunately found itself in a dire financial situation due to state capture that was “enabled” at the airline.
