By Lavern de Vries
A prostitute who is suing her former employers on a charge of unfair dismissal has been lauded as "brave".
"The woman will get a better hearing than she did at the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) because the court will not judge it on a moral basis but rather on a constitutional and legal basis," said Michael Bagraim, who has been practising labour law for 22 years.
A weekend newspaper reported that the woman, known as Kylie, planned the action after she was fired for reportedly refusing to perform oral sex and for having too few clients.
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Her former employer, Michelle van Zyl from Brigitte's Massage Parlour in Bellville, told the newspaper she had not sacked Kylie but had asked her to find alternative accommodation.
Attempts at contacting both Kylie and the parlour proved futile on Sunday.
The report also stated that the woman, who has been a sex worker for 22 years, decided to take a stand because too many women were kicked out of their homes without money.
She then filed a case at the CCMA, which dismissed it on the grounds that it could not deal with an unfair dismissal claim by a sex worker because prostitution was illegal.
However, Bagraim said the woman should have protection under the Labour Relations Act.
"Every single person who is employed and receives a salary, even if they receive it by doing something illegal, is entitled to protection.
"The Labour Court should not judge based on the Criminal Procedures Act nor should the judgment be morally binding.
"They will be governed by the constitution and if she wins, it will be a landmark ruling."
Commenting on the matter, the owner of Paradise Penthouse, an "upmarket" massage parlour in Cape Town, said he hoped justice would prevail for the sex worker.
The owner, who declined to be named, said he had been in the industry for 15 years and had never fired a worker on the grounds that they would not perform certain acts.
- This article was originally published on page 6 of Cape Argus on February 04, 2008
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