Cape Town - The ANC provincial legislature caucus said is studying a CCMA ruling in favour of nine Nehawu members who were dismissed from their jobs as parliamentary constituency office (PCO) administrators by the caucus in December 2019.
The matter, which had originally been referred to the CCMA in February last year, was delayed by the lockdown and eventually deliberated upon on January 19 this year.
According to a statement from Nehawu: “On December 31, 2019 the caucus unfairly dismissed our members who worked as PCO administrators. The caucus did not renew the contracts of our members while the contracts of other workers were renewed.”
The CCMA ruled: “All nine workers must be reinstated with effect from the January 1, 2020. The caucus must pay each dismissed worker an amount of R141 920 as a backpay by no later than February 15, 2021 by when all nine workers must have returned to work.”
Reacting to the CCMA ruling delivered on Tuesday, Nehawu national spokesperson Khaya Xaba said: “We call on the caucus to abide by the ruling and desist from victimising our members.
“This victory should serve as an inspiration to other workers that such cases are winnable and they should not cower when employers use underhand tactics to dismiss them,” said Xaba.
ANC provincial chief whip Pat Lekker said: “I am currently studying the contents of the judgment. The provisions of the Labour Relations Act makes a provision for review applications if the need arises.”
“The ANC caucus will brief the interim provincial committee (IPC) and release a statement once it has satisfied itself that the award is that of a reasonable decision maker,” said Lekker.
Cape Argus