Copy of the letter of dismissal given to one of the fired workers
Dismissed City of Tshwane Meter readers opine that City of Tshwane Mayor Dr Nasiphi Moya is keeping mum while they continue to bite the proverbial dust due to the ongoing dismissals meted out to them by labour brokering company Ntiyiso and its subsidiary called Rihati.
The dismissed Meter readers perform their tasks on behalf of the City of Tshwane, yet the City of Tshwane doesn’t pay them directly but instead pays labour brokers Ntiyiso/ Rihati huge amounts of money, and Rihati/ Ntiyiso would then use its discretion regarding how much it would pay the Meter readers in terms of salaries.
The marathon-like en masse dismissal of City of Tshwane Meter readers by Ntiyiso/Rihati started on 9 July and is still continuing.
According to sources who spoke to Tshwane Talks on condition of their names not being revealed, eight more workers were dismissed on Thursday and more casualties in this regard would follow in the next few days.
“Ntiyiso/Rihati is still aggrieved by the fact that the Meter readers abandoned their posts and went to engage City of Tshwane Mayor Dr Nasiphi Moya herself regarding their demands which include:
1.Being insourced permanently into the City of Tshwane workforce as Meter readers.
2.Being paid decent salaries instead of being paid R2, 50c for each meter they read.
3.Being issued with protective equipment (PPE)
4.Being registered for UIF, Provident Fund and medical aid.
“As dismissed Meter readers we are saying that we were fired for fighting for our rights and the dismissal process is selective and inconsistent because some of the Meter readers who were part of the strike action have not been subjected to disciplinary action by Ntiyiso/ Rihati company because they are favourite employees of the company,” lamented one of the workers who has been fired.
“Ntiyiso/Rihati use divide-and-rule tactics because it used our appearance on videos and photos during the strike action as evidence against us, yet some of our fellow Meter readers who were part of the strike and also appeared in the said photos and videos are still employed and have not been fired; this is unfair dismissal,” he said.
One letter of dismissal given to a lady employee shows that even though she was hard-working, showed remorse regarding the strike and was a first-time offender, Rihati/Ntiyiso fired her nonetheless.
“Another debilitating factor is that there is a City of Tshwane official who encouraged Rahiti/Ntiyiso to fire us due to the so-called illegal strike,” he said.
In a letter of dismissal to yet another Meter reader, Ntiyiso/ Rihati states the following:
1.The company suffered an estimated loss of R60 000 as a result of the strike action and reputational damage.
2.The respondent’s role was described as expressive and influential during the strike action.
Regarding the respondent being found guilty on charge 1 above, one of the dismissed workers said it seems like Ntiyiso/Rihati is more concerned about losing R60 000, reputational damage and possible loss of its contract with the City of Tshwane than the grievances of the workers.
He emphasised that Ntiyiso/Rahiti labour brokers must not be in the picture to start with, that Ntiyiso/ Rahiti exploit them and are the ones who must be gotten rid of instead of them (Ntiyiso/ Rahiti) firing Meter readers from their jobs.
According to the dismissed workers, a sticking point in the whole dismissal matter is that the principle of “authentication” was apparently not implemented when accusing the Meter reader of having been seen on videos or photos during the said strike.
“Authentication” in this case would have resulted in the person who has taken the photographs or shot videos wherein the Meter readers are alleged to be seen taking part in the strike being brought in to the hearing to testify that he/she is the one who has taken the said photos or videos.
Ntiyiso has an R8 million-a- year contract with the City of Tshwane yet it pays Meter readers only R2,50c for every meter that they manage to read.
The expelled meter readers allege that their expulsion was also condoned by some senior City of Tshwane official who was incensed by the fact that the Meter readers dared to approach the Mayor at Tshwane House; the headquarters of the City of Tshwane Municipality regarding their grievances.
“Almost all of us who have been dismissed are breadwinners and we are very hurt by what has happened to us,” he said.
At the time of publication of this story, at least 8 Meter readers had been fired and it was feared that more would follow.
In the case of one fired worker, the following mitigating factors were ignored by those who presided over her disciplinary hearing:
1.Being a disciplined, hard working employee of the company.
2.Being a first time offender. 3.Participating co-operatively and respectfully in her disciplinary hearing.
4.Pleading guilty to the charges against her and showing remorse.