SINENHLANHLA ZUNGU
DURBAN - THE African Meat Industry and Allied Trade Union (AMITU) has accused Tongaat Hulett of disrespecting their agreement allegedly made in 2019.
This was according to AMITU representative Lawrence Nsibande, who said they wanted to expose Tongaat Hulett.
Nsibande alleged that hundreds of Tongaat Hulett employees were left stranded, without food and accommodation, after being fired by the company. The company has allegedly fired between 100 to 150 employees from Shongweni, Empangeni and oThongathi. Most of the farmworkers were reportedly from Transkei and only came for work.
He claimed that South Africans were being replaced by foreign nationals for cheap labour. The events started unfolding on Monday, April 5, when the farmworkers were apparently told to leave the premises and were forced to sleep outside. The following day, the workers gathered around a local hall for the night, where they spent the night without food.
Vuyani Nqobo, a former employee of Tongaat Hulett for seven years, expressed his frustrations: “We were told that all employees from the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal will no longer be in service. We were not given any monetary compensation, but were told to evacuate the premises immediately.”
Since the employees were allegedly fired, they have been relying on Nsibande for food and he was now primarily responsible for their well-being.
“I have spent about R500 on food, as the workers have now turned to me for help,” Nsibande said.
The parties signed a separation agreement in 2019, where Tongaat Hulett agreed to pay termination packages to all permanent and seasonal employees, following, among other things, two weeks’ basic pay for each completed year of service with the company; one-month’s notice pay and accrued leave pay, and bonuses as applicable.
In response to the allegations, Tongaat Hulett’s external communications officer Virginia Horsley said: “In October 2019, Tongaat Hulett launched a strategic project called FarmCo, which aimed to create empowerment within sugar cane farming. As part of our efforts to optimise our direct farming activities in South Africa and enabling an empowered industry, Tongaat Hulett handed over the farming of our land to an empowerment group called Uzinzo, and other third-party farmers.”
“These parties now lease this land from Tongaat Hulett. Many of our farmworkers affected by this process were re-employed by these third-party growers, in line with the Labour Relations Act. Unfortunately, not all employees could be reabsorbed and, as a result, affected employees received severance benefits in line with South African legislation.”
Horsley also highlighted that Tongaat Hulett was no longer farming these farms and, as such, has not re-employed any workers for these farms, whether directly or indirectly.
AMITU has been in talks with Tongaat Hulett through the Commission of Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA), and has been advised to take the matter to the Labour Court.
The workers are still stranded and do not know where to turn to, as the two parties – AMITU and Tongaat Hulett – will not agree.
Daily News