Johannesburg - A fully grown stuffed lion – the pride of the Gauteng Lions Rugby Union – is one of the numerous items that could be auctioned to pay the organisation’s sexual harassment and illegal dismissal debts.
On Thursday, three sheriffs descended upon the organisation’s premises in Doornfontein, Joburg, eyeing the plethora of property that could be attached after the union failed to abide by a recent court order.
The Ellis Park World of Sport was ordered to pay R1 million in compensation to disgruntled former employees, who complained of sexual harassment and illegal dismissal. The two women, Leanne Jamie and Michelle Varner, won the case in the Labour Court in Joburg last month.
Acting Judge Faan Coetzee ordered that the company pay its former workers the maximum compensation of 24 months, as well as the cost of their legal fees.
But a month later, the company had not abided by the order, and on Thursday they faced the wrath of the three sheriffs.
The stern men arrived at the company’s premises, which includes Ellis Park Stadium, and tallied their assets which would be auctioned so that the proceeds could go towards the women’s compensation.
Among the assets were television, framed rugby T-shirts, pictures of Nelson Mandela with former players, generators and furniture from the rooms and buildings on the premises, which include a bottlestore and executive suites.
The sheriffs considered attaching the posts on the field, but a final decision on the matter was not yet known.
Jamie and Varner, who feared reprisal from the union, brought their bodyguards and lawyer, Heetesh Patel, to the proceedings.
The brawny guards, who stood expressionless, were close to the women’s side at all times.
Jamie and Varner, who worked together, approached the court, claiming their dismissals were unfair.
Problems between the company and the women began in 2012, when Varner lodged a complaint against the then acting chief executive Nico Swartz, who was eventually ordered to apologise to her following internal mediations.
But soon afterwards, the company began a restructuring process, claiming that the Gauteng Lions Rugby Union became financially constrained after they lost the Super Rugby Tournament to another union.
In September that year, Varner lodged another grievance against Swartz, this time for harassment, victimisation and abuse of power; claiming he treated her badly after the sexual assault complaint.
During that time, the women were told by the company that they were still employed, but soon afterwards, Jamie, who was Varner’s close friend, heard through another party that she had been fired.
Fearing for her job, she approached Swartz, who allegedly told her she was in the firing line because she had teamed up with Varner. He said it would help her case if she disassociated herself from her friend.
In February 2013, the women received notice that they were being retrenched because there were financial changes and the company planned to make their positions redundant.
The court found that their dismissals were substantively and procedurally unfair, and ordered the compensation to be paid.
The women said that although they didn’t want to go through the lengths of attaching their former company’s assets, they felt they had no other choice. They said they lost a lot of money since the debacle started about three years ago and it had affected their families’ lives.
The Star