Durban - SA Rugby was hard at work in December compiling a directive for players and employees regarding “romantic and sexual relationships” in the workplace, and while they are not taboo going forward, there will be certain boundaries.
Clearly, the soap opera drama of Springbok flyhalf Elton Jantjies’ alleged affair with team dietician Zeenat Simjee was embarrassing for the game’s governing body, and the directive was quickly drawn up after the Boks ended their November tour to Europe.
According to a report in the Afrikaans media, it has been in force since January 1 and includes all players contracted to SA Rugby and all employees.
When the Jantjies scandal broke in the middle of last year’s Rugby Championship, with Jantjies and Simjee sent home from Buenos Aries shortly before a match against Argentina, SA Rugby said that the two technically had not broken any team protocols as their alleged activities in guest houses in Rustenburg did not take place in the week of a match.
But it did make for unhealthy publicity and the drama played out in gossip magazines and on social media and grew to include tell-all interviews from Jantjies’ wife Iva Ristic.
Jantjies admitted the affair but to this day Simjee denies it and has said it was not her in Rustenburg but her doppelganger.
The media report says the new directive for SA Rugby employees has been seen and the gist of it is that “internal” relationships are allowed but must be disclosed to line managers and if it is between a junior employee and his/her boss, it must be brought to the attention of a more senior manager.
The document says that above all, the operational effectiveness and the reputation of SA Rugby must be protected.
It warns that romantic relationships between staff members create a perception that there is a conflict of interest that can lead to various problems such as favouritism.
IOL Sport