Johannesburg - Public servants are generally frustrated by how their senior managers are never sanctioned for transgressions, the Public Service Commission (PSC) has revealed in a report.
The study by the watchdog, produced following a round-table that delved into causes of unfair treatment in the workplace, stopped short of describing senior managers as a law unto themselves.
“Employees from employee relations/labour relations sections are victimised when dealing with investigations of senior managers,” said the newly released report, reflecting complaints of delegates from departments.
“They do not process grievance investigations against senior manages to conclusion because of fear of victimisation.”
Public servants also held that there appeared to be unwillingness to discipline seniors accused of wrongdoing. They said departments moved quickly only when disciplining juniors.
“When managers bully employees, the PSC’s recommendations are not taken seriously. However, if it is a junior employee, the departments are quick to implement discipline.”
The round-table event took place on October 29 last year. It was attended by delegates from national departments and invited specialists, including from the International Labour Organisation and the University of Pretoria.
PSC commissioner Moira Marais- Martin said the event was held to look into recurrent grievances. “From the analysis of grievance trends for the past three years the PSC identified unfair treatment as the highest cause of grievances, and therefore deemed it necessary to focus on the causes of unfair treatment in the workplace.”
The PSC directed the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) to look into disciplinary cases outstanding and report these to the watchdog and Parliament.
“It was agreed (at the round-table session) that a lack of accountability and consequences is a major contributor to unfair treatment in the public service, hence there is a view that disciplinary action is never taken against senior managers,” the study said.
“The DPSA must report on all cases where disciplinary measures have not been implemented to the PSC and Parliament, and executing authorities and heads of department must account to Parliament for failure to implement disciplinary measures.
Directors-general should also be brought up to date about unfair treatment in the workplace, the PSC said.
The commission said kinds of unfair treatment that public servants faced were victimisation, bullying, discrimination, intimidation, harassment, sexual harassment and cyberbullying.
“It is suggested that the presentation on unfair treatment should be Directors-general and at departments’ executive committee meetings.”
Thabang Rapuleng, employment relations director at law firm Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr, said failing to take disciplinary action was in itself also misconduct.
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