This news aggregator site highlights South African labour news from a wide range of internet and print sources. Each posting has a synopsis of the source article, together with a link or reference to the original. Postings cover the range of labour related matters from industrial relations to generalist human resources.
In our afternoon roundup, see summaries
of our selection of South African labour-
related stories that appeared thus far on
Wednesday, 31 July 2019.
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Axed Old Mutual CEO Peter Moyo reinstated by High Court Moneyweb reports that Peter Moyo has won his legal battle against Old Mutual to be reinstated as the life insurer’s CEO. On Tuesday, the High Court in Johannesburg set Moyo’s dismissal from Old Mutual aside and rendered it as unlawful — effectively paving the way for him to be reinstated as CEO. This could mean that Moyo will serve the four-and-a-half years remaining on his employment contract with Old Mutual. The court found that the insurer failed to follow the terms of Moyo’s employment contract when he was dismissed. However, Old Mutual said it would immediately appeal the judgment. “The filing of the appeal will suspend the operation of the court order. Mr Moyo has been informed that he is not required or permitted to resume his duties, pending the outcome of the appeal proceedings,” Old Mutual said in a statement. According to Old Mutual, Moyo’s court application was “ill-conceived, contained a number of false allegations, and should have been dismissed”. It said it was optimistic that another court might come to a different conclusion. The court said Moyo’s dismissal could not be justified because the insurer denied Moyo a disciplinary hearing – as stipulated in his employment contract – before he was suspended and subsequently fired. The judgment means that Old Mutual has been interdicted from appointing a CEO to replace Moyo. It has already appointed Iain Williamson as acting CEO. Read the full original of the above report by Ray Mahlaka at Moneyweb. Read too, Court orders Old Mutual to reinstate axed CEO Peter Moyo, at Fin24 Old Mutual to appeal court ruling reinstating Peter Moyo as CEO Bloomberg reports that Old Mutual will appeal a court ruling that the insurer must reinstate its fired chief executive officer, thus preventing Peter Moyo from reporting for duty on Wednesday as he had planned to do. The company will argue in a higher court that it followed sound governance principles and gave Moyo enough notice of his termination, Old Mutual indicated in a statement. The Johannesburg High Court ruled that Old Mutual acted unlawfully when terminating Moyo and also blocked the firm from continuing a process of finding a replacement. “Old Mutual is clear that there has been a complete and irreparable breakdown in trust and confidence in Mr Moyo. The filing of the appeal will suspend the operation of the court order. Mr Moyo has been informed that he is not required or permitted to resume his duties, pending the outcome of the appeal proceedings,” the company advised. In firing Moyo, Old Mutual deprived him of procedures laid down in his employment contract, but argued that it was entitled under certain provisions in the contract to suspend and dismiss Moyo without a hearing. The appeal is poised to fuel a bitter feud between Moyo and the board led by Chairman Trevor Manuel amid allegations and counter-accusations of conflicts of interest. Read the full original of the report on the above by Vernon Wessels and Roxanne Henderson at Moneyweb. Read too, Old Mutual to appeal Moyo's reinstatement, interim CEO to remain in place, at Fin24 Moyo’s lawyer says he will continue working while Old Mutual appeals his reinstatement EWN reports that the lawyer representing Old Mutual CEO Peter Moyo said the fact that the insurer was appealing his reinstatement did not mean that Moyo could not continue to work. Moyo returned to the company's headquarters on Wednesday despite warnings that he should not do so. Old Mutual had fired him for what it said was a conflict of interest relating to payments to NMT Capital, a company he co-founded. But on Tuesday, the High Court in Johannesburg ruled that the dismissal was unlawful and ordered that he be temporarily reinstated. Moyo’s lawyer Eric Mabuza said: “Their legal position is incorrect; the correct position is that the interim order is not suspended by the application for leave to appeal. If you want to suspend an interim order, you need to go to court.” He added: “We will continue talking (on Wednesday afternoon) but we’re waiting for their senior counsel to talk about what is happening.” Read the original of the above report by Kgomotso Modise at EWN Peter Moyo’s reinstatement as Old Mutual CEO could wreak havoc on share price BL Premium reports that analysts say that Peter Moyo’s reinstatement as Old Mutual CEO and his legal challenge to have the insurer’s board of directors – including chair Trevor Manuel – declared delinquent could wreak havoc on its share price. Soon after the news on Tuesday, Old Mutual’s share price fell 5.45% to R19.26, its biggest one-day drop in more than four months, to the lowest level seen since its split into four separate businesses in June 2018. Analysts say this volatility could continue as Moyo returns to what is expected to be an increasingly hostile work environment. The Johannesburg High Court ordered the insurer to temporarily reinstate Moyo as his axing was unlawful. Old Mutual fired Moyo in June‚ citing a breakdown in trust between him and the board due to a conflict of interest linked to NMT‚ co-founded by Moyo and in which Old Mutual has shares. Karl Gevers of Benguela Global Fund Managers said it would make the atmosphere tense, which might divert everybody’s attention from daily operations. The insurer could ill afford that, given how competitive the sector was, Gevers said. Old Mutual’s lawyer Ngwako Maenetje told the court earlier in July that reinstatement was not an option because there was “no mutual respect left” between the two parties. Moyo said he was not fazed by the animosity between him and the board. Read the full original of the above report by Londiwe Buthelezi at BusinessLive (paywall access only)
Ramaphosa faces surging unemployment problem, with goal of 275,000 jobs a year looking unlikely BusinessLive writes that President Cyril Ramaphosa has been dealt another blow as SA’s unemployment rate climbed to an 11-year high, nearing the 30% mark. Reducing the unemployment rate and putting the economy on a robust growth path are at the top of the priority list in Ramaphosa’s reform drive. In 2018, at the inaugural jobs summit, he promised to create 275,000 jobs a year, but with the economy slowing this is looking increasingly unlikely. Unemployment jumped to 29% in the second quarter of 2019, which was much higher than expected. There were 6.7-million people without jobs in the three months to the end of June, compared with 6.2-million people in the prior quarter, data from Stats SA showed. “The unemployment situation — the product of years of economic mismanagement — is undoubtedly SA’s most pressing matter,” NKC analyst Jacques Nel said. Sizwe Pamla, spokesperson for labour federation Cosatu, said the government had done little to honour its agreements made at the jobs and investment summits held in 2018. “There is no government plan to solve the situation if the state of the nation is to be believed. A promise of 2-million jobs over 10 years when you have the highest unemployment rate in the world is an admission of defeat,” he noted. SA Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi said the rising unemployment trend in SA had become entrenched. “We have made endless calls to government to abandon the current economic policies they have embarked on. We have been marching and doing all sorts of things. We just don’t know anymore. We are just waiting for the implosion to happen,” he lamented. Read the full original of the above report by Sunita Menon and Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive. Read Cosatu’s press statement on the unemployment rate at Polity. Read Saftu’s press statement in response to the second quarter Labour Force Survey 2019, at Saftu News Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Ambulance driver and patient killed on Tuesday in collision with truck on N3 near Cedara TimesLIVE reports that a paramedic and a patient died when an ambulance collided with a truck on the N3 near Cedara, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), on Tuesday. Con Roux, spokesperson for N3 Toll Concession, confirmed that a KZN Emergency Medical Services ambulance had been travelling towards Johannesburg when it collided with a truck. "Unfortunately there have been two fatalities, one a patient and the other the driver of the ambulance. A third person, who was in the passenger seat, is being transported to hospital in a serious condition," said Roux. Traffic towards Johannesburg was severely affected as the road had to be temporarily closed. Read the original of the above report by Orrin Singh at TimesLIVE
After peaceful early morning, Tshwane municipal workers resume chaotic protest on Wednesday ANA reports that after what started off as a peaceful early morning following two days of unrest, disgruntled SA Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) members again took to the streets of the Tshwane central business district on Wednesday, blockading roads and upending trash bins to press for higher wages. The workers have been on the rampage this week in a bid to force the municipality into giving them an 18% salary increase. The Tshwane city council has obtained a court order declaring the strike illegal, but that has not deterred the employees. They resumed their street protest on Wednesday, even as the City of Tshwane and Samwu representatives were expected to hold discussions at the SA Local Government Bargaining Council in Centurion. Mayoral spokesperson Omogolo Taunyane confirmed that talks would occur at the bargaining council while lambasting striking workers. Samwu regional secretary Mpho Tladinyane said a late-night meeting with the city council had not yielded results, and the union looked forward to airing its views at the bargaining council. Read the full original of the above report at The Citizen. Read too, Increased law enforcement deployed to restore order in Tshwane, on page 7 of Sowetan of 31 July 2019 ANC supports Samwu’s crippling strike action in City of Tshwane BusinessLive reports that the ANC in the greater Tshwane region has thrown its weight behind the crippling strike action by SA Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) members in Pretoria. The party’s regional secretary Eugene Modise said they supported Samwu for being “proactive” in engaging the City of Tshwane to resolve the wage impasse. The city’s employees are demanding that the 18% wage increases that senior managers recently received be extended to lower level workers too. Municipal workers are also unhappy with the council’s decision to allow city manager Moeketsi Mosola to receive a R7.5m payout to step down at the end of July. On Tuesday, Modise said the governing party had full confidence in Samwu to represent workers to find a solution to the impasse. Samwu is an affiliate of union federation Cosatu, an alliance partner of the ANC. The party’s regional communications manager Tlangi Mogale said they would meet with municipal workers with a view to breaking the deadlock between Samwu and the metro. Read the full original of the above report by Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Pravin Gordhan appoints Freeman Nomvalo as Eskom’s chief restructuring officer BusinessLive reports that public enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan on Tuesday appointed former treasury accountant-general Freeman Nomvalo as chief restructuring officer (CRO) of Eskom. Nomvalo is currently CEO of the SA Institute of Chartered Accountants (Saica). He has previously worked closely with Gordhan, serving as one of the top treasury officials during Gordhan’s first stint as finance minister. Making the announcement, Gordhan said that it had been decided that “an office” rather than a single individual was required and that Nomvalo had been tasked with establishing that office. The CRO would report to him, the minister of finance and the Eskom board and will be responsible for all aspects of transforming the business from debt management and restructuring to the building of capacity at Eskom. A policy paper on the future of Eskom, which will outline how the proposed split into generation, transmission and generation would take place, is expected to be completed by mid-September. The government will then engage in consultations with labour and other stakeholders to develop “a sufficient consensus” on the future of the company. Read the full original of the above report by Carol Paton at BusinessLive. See too, What we know about Freeman Nomvalo, Eskom’s new 'bad cop', at BusinessInsider Denel going after former bosses to claw back 'misspent' money, aware of Solidarity’s dossier TimesLIVE reports that state-owned arms manufacturer Denel says it is pursuing civil and criminal action against former executives following several forensic investigations into alleged fraud and misappropriation of money. Group CEO Danie du Toit said he had already received several reports concerning improper transactions, irregular appointments and potential fraud, while other investigations were in advanced stages. The reports have been referred to independent legal firms to review the evidence and to help with the implementation of the recommendations. Nonetheless, Denel has already taken a number of corrective steps, including civil action against some former executives to recover monies lost through the irregular awarding of pilot bursaries. Civil claims will be instituted against former bosses once the quantum of other losses has been determined. Meanwhile, Solidarity indicated that it would this week serve urgent court papers on the company to force it to pay outstanding unemployment insurance and tax contributions. The trade union said it has also started a process in terms of the Companies Act to have alleged mismanagement and corruption perpetrated by former Denel directors investigated, with a view to their possible prosecution. On Wednesday, Du Toit said the company was aware of the contents of a dossier on alleged corruption compiled by Solidarity and of the union’s intention to institute legal steps to investigate the issues. “It is completely untrue to allege that Denel has not taken actions to investigate transgressions and recover the money,” said Du Toit, adding that Solidarity had been kept in the loop on the investigations, along with other stakeholders. “We are in an advanced stage of investigations and there is no need to compel us to act through court actions,” Du Toit stated. Read the full original of the above report TimesLIVE. Read too, Solidarity tackles Denel head-on, at SA Labour News (press statement) Other internet posting(s) in this news category
As labour department raids Randjiesfontein stables, horse grooms demand better living conditions TimesLIVE reports that cramped rooms, dirty toilets and showers, low salaries and a lack of "job appreciation" were among a multitude of concerns horse grooms raised at the Randjiesfontein racecourse in Midrand during a site inspection by the department of labour on Tuesday. Grooms at the facility sleep on steel beds with mattresses, in rooms which accommodate up to four people. Some renovations have been done to four hostels, but other grooms still live in dire conditions. Walter Sibande, who has been working at the racecourse for over eight years, and 49 others share four indoor toilets and four indoor showers at the grooms' hostels. Sibande said there were no lights in the bathrooms and the dirty toilets had no lids. There are also no shower heads and the bathroom doors are rundown. The broken windows in some of the rooms are covered with newspaper, while rubbish lies littered next to the open gas stoves they use. The labour department inspected at least three employers at the racecourse on Tuesday. Each employer has about 18 employees. Spokesperson Mishack Magakwe said employers were complying with the national minimum wage, but not with occupational health and safety standards. Returns of earnings and payments in terms of the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act were outstanding. Employees were also not registered under the Unemployment Insurance Fund. Contravention notices have been issued and the employers have 14 days to comply or face the full might of the law. Read the full original of the above report by Iavan Pijoos at TimesLIVE
President Ramaphosa extends deadline for PIC commission report until end of October BusinessLive reports that the number of issues coming up at the inquiry into governance at the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) have once again prompted President Cyril Ramaphosa to extend the deadline for the submission of the final report. “Given the breadth of the investigations and the number of witnesses giving evidence at public hearings, the commission requested a further extension. The president has thus extended the term of the commission by a further three months, with the final report now due on the 31 October 2019,” said the commission, which is being chaired by retired judge Lex Mpati. The commission was originally supposed to hand its final report to the president at the end of April, but an additional three months to the end of July was provided to complete the work. The commission has been tasked with investigating allegations of impropriety at the state-owned asset manager as well as conducting a review of organisational matters. It functions as the investment manager for a number of state funds, including the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) and the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF). Read the full original of the report on the above by Warren Thompson at BusinessLive Other internet posting(s) in this news category
MEC wants answers on Tshwane city manager's reported 'R7m golden handshake' News24 reports that Gauteng Human Settlements MEC Lebogang Maile is demanding answers about the alleged R7m golden handshake set to be paid to outgoing City of Tshwane municipal manager Dr Moeketsi Mosola. Maile wrote to Tshwane mayor Steven Mokgalapa on Tuesday, requesting a reply within three working days. In the letter, Maile noted that it had been reported that Mosola, whose five-year contract only ends in 2022, would be paid the remaining remuneration in full. Mosola pockets almost R2.5m annually. He said he wanted to know if the reports were true and demanded that the City provide an appropriate explanation on the route it would pursue regarding the matter. Maile threatened to take appropriate action that might include an application to court for an order to review and set aside the alleged agreement in question with costs, “which may include a cost order against any councillor, in his or her personal capacity, who voted in favour of the said agreement." He expressed his concern that the City had not acted on a number of glaring accusations of maladministration or wrongdoing levelled against Mosola. City spokesperson Omogolo Taunyane disputed Maile's claims and said it had not signed any agreement with Mosola. Read the full original of the above report by Ntwaagae Seleka at News24. Read too, Accounting for GladAfrica: Will Tshwane city manager get away with it? at News24
Labour department to cut back on overseas costs in wake of R3.5m jaunt to ILO conference in Geneva BusinessLive reports that employment and labour minister Thulas Nxesi said this week his department would review its policy regarding the composition and costs of overseas delegations with a view to containing and cutting costs of future delegations. This followed widespread criticism after the government sent one of the largest delegations to a recent International Labour Organisation (ILO) 12-day conference in Geneva, Switzerland, which cost taxpayers millions of rand. The delegation included officials from the department of employment and labour, and various stakeholders, such as trade unions. The department covered their accommodation, flights and daily allowances. Nxesi confirmed in a reply to a DA question in parliament that there had been 62 accredited delegates in total, which had cost the department at least R3.5m. However, he justified the trip, describing it as a “very important session”. Government delegates and social partners from 187 member states of the ILO gathered for a historic session of the annual conference as the organisation celebrated 100 years of existence. DA MP Michael Cardo described the Geneva trip as a “colossal waste of taxpayers’ money”. Read the full original of the report on the above by Bekezela Phakathi at BusinessLive
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