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 roundup of weekend news, see
summaries of our selection of South African
labour-related stories that appeared since
Friday, 20 October 2023.
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Tshwane Bus Service and A Re Yeng to resume operations from Monday TimesLIVE reports that Tshwane Bus Service (TBS) and A Re Yeng will resume bus operations from Monday after disruption due to an unprotected strike by Tshwane workers. The strike left the city in disarray when workers downed tools in July to force the city to implement salary increases in terms of SA Local Government Bargaining Council agreement. According to the city, it could not afford the R600m addition to the wage bill because of a shortage in revenue collection. MMC for roads and transport Katlego Mathebe said bus operations would commence alongside “the deployment of police and technology” in the CBD and other parts of the city. She said that to ensure the safety of commuters, bus drivers and the city’s transport infrastructure, the city, along with the security cluster, had put in place measures to oversee the efficient running of bus operations. Mathebe made it clear that anyone engaging in any acts of violence, threats or intimidation against those performing their duties would be in contempt of a court order. A Re Yeng bus operations were suspended after its buses were pelted with stones in the Pretoria CBD last Tuesday. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Shonisani Tshikalange at TimesLIVE
One fatality in light aircraft crash at Bram Fischer Airport on Saturday SABC News reports that a light aircraft carrying two people crashed at Bram Fischer International Airport in Bloemfontein and caught fire on Saturday morning. The aircraft, believed to be a Piper, crashed in a grassy area on the airfield at about 09h20. The incident was confirmed by Airports Company SA (ACSA) and local authorities, including the SA Police Service. According to Sipho Towa, spokesperson for Free State emergency services, the aircraft, which was used for training purposes, crashed during landing. The cause of the crash is investigated by the relevant authorities. One passenger died at the scene and another was seriously injured as rescuers extinguished a fire and administered first aid. The director of operations at Bram Fischer International Airport advised that operations at the airport were back to normal. Read the full original of the report in the above regard at SABC News. Lees ook, Een sterf toe vliegtuig by Bram Fischer neerstort, by Maroela Media Security guard accused of murdering Mpumalanga protester in August 2022 on the run following release on bail News24 reports that Mpumalanga police have launched a manhunt after a security guard accused of murder went missing following his release on bail. Nqubeko Bright Mchunu, 41, disappeared after he was released, following his arrest for the murder of Tsepo Maseko, 33, who was killed on 17 August 2022. Maseko was shot and killed during a protest at the Steve Tshwete Municipality in Middelburg. According to police spokesperson, Colonel Donald Mdhluli, Mchunu was employed as a security guard at the municipality offices. Mchunu's first appearance at the Middelburg Magistrate's Court was on 19 August 2022. He was granted R10,000 bail in September 2022. Mdhluli said the case resumed and Mchunu attended until 9 March, but hasn't returned since. A warrant for his arrest was then issued in April. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Cebelihle Mthethwa at News24 Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Bheki Cele called upon to address shortage of police detectives Sunday Independent reports that the Democratic Alliance (DA) has called on Police Minister Bheki Cele to address the shortage of detective divisions in the SA Police Service (SAPS). This was after national police commissioner General Fanie Masemola revealed that the SAPS lost 8,400 detectives since 2016. Masemola made this revelation to the police portfolio committee in Parliament last week and said the number had gone down to 17,000 from 26,000. The DA’s shadow minister of police, Andrew Whitfield, said Cele urgently needed to address the situation. He added that the loss of thousands of skilled detectives was compounded by the fact that those left in the detective service also have a shortage of vehicles. The DA previously exposed that up to 26% of detective vehicles were either broken or inoperable in certain provinces. The party also found that the Detective Service Programme only achieved 43% of its targets. It was even worse that key departments such as the Criminal Records Centre and the Forensics Science Laboratories failed to achieve any of their targets. Anti-crime activist Ian Cameron said poor training had also added to the shortage of detectives. He said there was a need to train the juniors under the supervision of senior detectives to be able to deal with the problem. “We need a specialised unit and specialised detective capacity and not just station capacity,” he pointed out. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Manyane Manyane at Sunday Independent. Read too, Detective shortage in SA, at The Witness. And also, Fewer SAPS detectives means less criminal evidence for court, warns criminologist, at EWN
Ex-labour director-general Thobile Lamati cries foul after being implicated in R5bn UIF scandal City Press reports that former Department of Labour and Employment (DEL) director-general (DG) Thobile Lamati claims he is the victim in a controversial scheme to channel billions from the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) into a private investment company. Lamati resigned from his post via WhatsApp on Wednesday in the wake of the scandal regarding the scheme, which involved a R5 billion transaction – part loan and part grant funding – with Thuja Capital, owned by businessperson Mthunzi Mdwaba. In a farewell message to staff, Lamati, who worked for the department for 25 years, said his resignation had been triggered by the scandal, but was not an admission of guilt. Instead, he suggested that his stepping down was to protect the department – which he said had become home to him – from reputational damage. He added that his own safety had been compromised after his office had been broken into. Lamati ranted that he had been a victim of unscrupulous journalists out to get him, claiming that some of them had been hired to do so. Thuja Capital was hastily registered less than a year ago, shortly before Lamati and UIF commissioner Teboho Maruping pushed for the deal to happen. The former DG confirmed having approved the project, saying it offered greater prospects of employment to millions of jobless people. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Sipho Mabena at City Press
Nelson Mandela Bay suspends fraud-accused city manager News24 reports that the fraud-accused city manager of Nelson Mandela Bay, Noxolo Nqwazi was suspended in an emergency council meeting on Friday. Of the 120 councillors, 62 voted for Nqwazi's removal. Nqwazi is on trial in the Gqeberha Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on fraud and corruption charges. The charges stem from her alleged involvement in a toilet tender of more than R24 million, which was fraudulently awarded by the municipality a few years ago. Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana highlighted her removal as one of the conditions to disburse more than R700 million in equitable share grant funding owed to the municipality since July. Godongwana indicated that, if the City failed to take disciplinary action against Nqwazi, he would take further steps, including withholding the next equitable share grant or approaching the provincial executive council to intervene. The mayor, Gary van Niekerk, said there was no timeframe to the precautionary suspension, but mentioned that the chief operations officer, Christopher Dyani would be acting City manager for no longer than three months. The matter was referred to the disciplinary board. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Candice Bezuidenhout at News24 (subscriber access only)
Nearly R70m earned over three years by 417 public service officials on suspension Maroela Media reports that a written response by the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) to a DA parliamentary question has revealed that taxpayers have paid close to R70 million in salaries to 417 public service employees in both national and provincial government departments who are currently sitting at home on suspension with pay. A DPSA employee, who has so far been on suspension for two years and seven months, has earned R4,4 million while sitting at home. At a provincial level, an employee in the Free State Department of Human Settlements, who has been on suspension for two years and eight months, has pocketed R3,6 million. Mimmy Gondwe, DA Shadow Deputy Minister of Public Service and Administration, said that of particular concern was that 42 public service employees who occupied senior management positions and earned over R1 million rand per year were getting paid to do nothing. She added: “This terrible state of affairs is a grave indictment on the deficient disciplinary management system in the public service. While the country’s labour laws guarantee the rights of all employees to fair disciplinary hearings, the failure by the public service to timeously conclude disciplinary cases is testament to a system in need of serious reform. Prolonged suspensions affect service delivery as government departments are forced to shoulder the extra workload of an employee on suspension.” Read the full original of a report in the above regard in Afrikaans at Maroela Media
Presidency official appointed himself as judge in his disciplinary matter and issued himself with verbal warning Sunday Times reports that a chief director in the Presidency’s department of planning, monitoring & evaluation (DPME) is accused of having engineered his own appointment to the post — and of having taken charge of a disciplinary process in which he was both judge and offender. Ntabozuko Nomlala, the DPME’s head of human resources and corporate services, apparently gave himself a verbal warning after the disciplinary process, which was held after he wrongly appointed a vehicle fleet manager who did not have the requisite driver’s licence. Nearly four years ago the Public Service Commission (PSC) found Nomlala had been involved in the irregular appointment of various senior officials — including himself. The PSC recommended that Nomlala and other officials should face disciplinary action. DPME spokesperson Lawrence Ngoveni advised that the department initiated a disciplinary process against Nomlala at the time, but it was never finalised because of factors beyond the department’s control. Ngoveni said a new disciplinary process had since been launched into Nomlala and the other implicated officials. In June last year representatives of the National Health & Allied Workers Union and the Public Service Association (PSA) — which complained to the PSC three years ago about the suspect appointments — held a meeting on the issue with the then minister in the Presidency, Mondli Gungubele. The minutes of that meeting indicate: “In all these three irregular appointments, the common denominator and major role player is Mr Nomlala. Astonishingly, Mr Nomlala, on submission made by organised labour, and supported by a PSC report, facilitated and engineered his own appointment, by manipulating the recruitment process outside established policies and prescripts, from advertising of the post to the eventual filling of the post.” Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Thanduxolo Jika at Sunday Times (subscriber access only)
Three cops arrested after demanding for R1m bribe from suspect to avoid arrest over fraudulent stamps in passport TimesLIVE reports that three police officers and another suspect are expected to appear in the Randburg Magistrate's Court on Monday facing charges of corruption. They were arrested by the Hawks' serious corruption unit over the weekend. Hawks spokesperson Col Katlego Mogale said the suspects — two members of the Silverton K9 unit, a member of the crime intelligence unit and a businessman — were reported to have participated in corrupt activities and solicited gratification. “This was for a complainant to avoid arrest. It is alleged that three officials went to the complainant's residence to enquire about her passport and the alleged fraudulent stamps. They later arrested her and during questioning, hints relating to the case being dropped if money exchanged hands were spoken of by the trio,” she reported. Mogale said they had asked for R1m and threatened that the complainant’s son would also be arrested. “The complainant gave in, and R580,000 was agreed to resulting in the complainant being released.” A case of corruption was reported and on completion of the investigation, the suspects were arrested. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Shonisani Tshikalange at TimesLIVE RTMC raids Meyerton licensing centre, seven officials nabbed for fraudulent licenses The Citizen reports that the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) has uncovered a troubling tale of greed at the Meyerton Driving Licence Testing Centre (DLTC). The RTMC conducted a raid at the centre in Midvaal on Friday. During the operation, seven suspects were arrested on suspicion of issuing driving licences fraudulently. One of the officials was found with more than R30,000 in cash, believed to be proceeds of suspected criminal activity. “It is alleged that officials issued heavy duty driving licences to applicants who were not present to do the test. They also allegedly collude with driving school operators to have intermediaries write learner licence tests on behalf of applicants,” the RTMC indicated. RTMC chief executive Makhosini Msibi said there was a problem with greed among licensing officials. “Our officials have permanent employment. On a normal day at this testing station, about 11 or 10 o’clock in the morning, most of them have in their pockets about R6,000, so you can imagine how much they have at the end of the day,” he stated. According to the CEO, on an annual basis the country was spending about R146 billion because of vehicle accidents, inclusive of medical costs. “What causes this is that the people we have on the roads can’t drive,” Msibi said. “They could have been avoided if we were doing our work well. What is more frustrating is the collaboration among government employees,” the CEO lamented. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Chulumanco Mahamba at The Citizen. Read too, ‘A corrupt official at Meyerton licensing centre makes R6,000 by 10am daily’, at IOL News
Deputy health minister Sibongiseni Dhlomo accused by male parliamentary staffer of sexual assault Sunday Times reports that Deputy Health Minister Sibongiseni Dhlomo is under investigation by police and parliament’s ethics committee after a parliamentary staffer accused him of sexual assault. The ethics committee resolved on Friday to probe Dhlomo after the staff member, a 33-year-old man, lodged the complaint. The offence is alleged to have occurred early last month at Dhlomo’s ministerial home in Cape Town. Parliament confirmed that the matter had been reported to National Assembly speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, who in turn reported it to President Cyril Ramaphosa. Dhlomo is a highly regarded politician with struggle credentials. Within the ANC he is seen as being well-qualified for promotion to full minister of the health portfolio. The complainant is a researcher employed by an opposition party. In an affidavit to the ethics committee, the complainant said that what was supposed to have been a meeting to discuss the proposed National Health Insurance (NHI) scheme ended with him fleeing Dhlomo’s home after the deputy minister inappropriately touched his genitals before trying to push him onto his bed. But Dhlomo, in his submission to the ethics committee, denied the allegation. He made counterclaims that the man invaded his space and “took a banana” from his fruit basked without permission before he chased him away. Western Cape police spokesperson Col Andrè Traut confirmed a sexual assault case had been reported at the Rondebosch station and was under investigation. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Andisiwe Makinana at Sunday Times (subscriber access only)
Only one train a day for Eastern Cape commuters GroundUp reports that there have been no scheduled passenger train services in Gqeberha since September 2022, due to “operational challenges”. But since last Monday, the Passenger Rail Agency of SA (Prasa) has managed to introduce one train service in the Nelson Mandela Bay region, departing Kariega at 6:15am for Gqeberha and departing Gqeberha at 5:15pm for Kariega, weekdays. The full journey takes over an hour and costs R9. On Saturdays it departs Kareiga at 7am and Gqeberha at 2:30pm. On Thursday afternoon, no more than 100 commuters boarded the ten-carriage train, leaving it almost empty. The National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) welcomed the service as trains would bring relief from the high cost of travel for the working class. Provincial Prasa spokesperson Mimi Katsio said while facilities and protection services employees have been deployed, customer service employees have been doing refresher training, while train operation employees have been training for the change to new locomotives. The staff complement is 607 for the East London and Gqeberha corridors. She added that Prasa security was working with law enforcement agencies and railway SAPS to have crime prevention teams patrolling stations and platforms. “Our focus now is to restore services, trust from our commuters, and patronage numbers,” said Katsio. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Thamsanqa Mbovane at GroundUp Other internet posting(s) in this news category
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