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TimesLive reports that an employee at the Housing Development Agency has lodged three legal claims against the institution and against a colleague who alleged that the employee had been promoted for her silence after she was allegedly raped by two senior executives.
The employee is seeking more than R10m. The claims include a R2m defamation suit against the agency and against her colleague, who is a senior manager, for allegedly telling the board that she believed the employee had been raped by two senior male employees after a staff party and was given a promotion in return for her silence. The senior manager had also told the board that in a separate incident at the same party the employee had engaged in sexual acts with one of the men, who had taken “advantage” of her in full view of other employees as she had allegedly appeared intoxicated. The sexual acts allegedly happened in September 2017 in full view of others. The employee, a 42-year-old mother of two, was promoted by her superiors in 2018. She denies the allegations and has taken civil action in the Johannesburg High Court. Human Settlements Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi has also been roped in and she has now demanded a report from the agency, which falls under her department. The employee wants the agency to pay her a further R500,000 for trauma and emotional suffering, and R60,000 for current and future medical treatment involving psychotherapy. In a separate matter in the Labour Court, the employee is seeking R3m for harassment and unfair discrimination. She claims the agency launched an investigation which involved allegations of her being raped without even contacting or involving her. In a third case, the employee has lodged a legal claim in the Johannesburg High Court against her employer for breach of common law for failing to create and maintain a safe environment in which she was not emotionally and psychologically harassed, and for the violation of her constitutional rights. She is seeking R5m. The matters are awaiting court dates.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Isaac Mahlangu at TimesLive
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