Durban - Amid leadership and financial turbulence at the South African Post Office, top officials received some R5 million in payouts from arbitration settlements over the past four years, according to a parliamentary reply.
Telecommunications and Postal Services Minister Siyabonga Cwele made the point that it was not a Post Office practice to pay out the remaining value of a contract.
“The executives... were only paid the arbitration awards agreed to between the employees, their legal representatives and the company. However, these payments are not linked to the contracted term of employment,” he said in the parliamentary reply.
It shows company secretary Bessie Bulunga was paid R404 615.93 in March 2014 following a settlement at the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration after dismissal.
Group executive Marietjie Lancaster was paid just over R1.698m as a voluntary retrenchment package in March 2013, while fellow group executive Maphutha Diaz resigned pending disciplinary steps and was paid just over R370 000 in an arbitration settlement in November 2013.
Post Office group chief executive Motswanesi Lefoka received just over R1.466m in January 2012 in an arbitration settlement following his resignation, and chief operations officer John Wentzel was paid R548 058.25 in July 2011.
Also in November 2011, group manager RM Neshunzhi was paid just over R532 000 in an arbitration settlement “contract paid until 31 May 2012”.
Following last year’s bruising four-month strike, the Post Office board resigned in Nov-ember last year and Cwele appointed an administrator to implement a turnaround, although the entity is expected to remain in the red this year.
In the previous two financial years the Post Office posted net losses of almost R360 million in the 2013/14 financial year, up from R179 million in its 2012/13 financial results.
Daily News