Timeslive reports that the cost to reinstate the 700 workers who were fired by the Passenger Rail of SA (Prasa) after a protected strike five years ago will amount to over R1-billion.  

Two weeks ago‚ the Constitutional Court dismissed an appeal by Prasa which had sought to reverse a Labour Appeal Court (LAC) judgment last year ordering the reinstatement of the workers.  The workers‚ belonging to the National Transport Movement (NTM)‚ were dismissed after Prasa accused them of burning trains worth about R42m during the strike.  Prasa had sent workers notices asking them to make representations as to why they should not be fired for a number of incidents at stations and depots during January 2013, but was not satisfied with the explanations provided by the NTM and so dismissed the employees.  The LAC found the dismissal to have been procedurally and substantively unfair and the ConCourt concurred.  Prasa said it would fully comply with the judgment to reinstate all the workers and that it was in dialogue with both the union and the affected employees on the details of the reinstatements.

• Read this report by Ernest Mabuza in full at Timeslive

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