MRI staff wants 'salary cut' orders enforced
Mpho Mokwape | Tuesday July 19, 2022 06:00
The seven employees have filed an urgent application praying to be granted leave to implement the orders judge Isaac Bahuma granted on July 8.
Bahuma had ordered during his judgment that MRI ceases from carrying out any restructuring exercise giving rise to the employees’ reduction in salary.
The integrated health services company was directed to stop implementing the resolution of the restructuring exercise pertaining to the seven workers’ employment as it was unlawful.
The judge also ordered that the company returns all the money unlawfully deducted from the employees and be repaid within seven days of the order.
“The applicants are restored to the salaries they earned before the restructuring exercise,” Bahuma had said.
However, after the orders, MRI filed an application with the Court of Appeal on July 12 seeking a review of the Industrial Court judgment.
The appeal gave rise to the employees’ application for enforcement of the orders saying they stand to suffer while waiting for the appeal.
Contained in Boipelo Moabi’s founding affidavit she explained that they stand to suffer irreparable prejudice if the application is not granted.
“A drastic and continuous reduction of one’s salary causes immeasurable harm. For instance salaries of some of us were reduced from P13,924.31 to P8,000 which represents a deduction of almost P6,000. A salary deduction of nearly 50% would naturally cause hardship. There is no other immediate remedy that can compensate for that harm,” she noted.
Moabi submitted that their salaries were their source of livelihood and that they have not been given sufficient time to adjust their financial obligations, especially since they have loans that they have been unable to service due to the drastic salary reduction.
She pointed out that they could barely survive and were unable to meet their sustenance needs and that if they were not successful on appeal, they would authorize the company to make monthly deductions of what has been paid to them in equal monthly instalments at the rate of increases.
Further Moabi pointed out that the company had zero success on the appeal as it had violated their rights to be heard before the restructuring exercise was carried out.
MRI in response has indicated that they would not be restoring the salaries as the court had ordered until the appeal is finalized.
The company was addressing a letter written to them by the employees’ attorney to do as the court has ordered.
In the notice and grounds of appeal before CoA, the company said the Industrial Court was wrong to find that there was a violation of rights and that the alleged ongoing violation rendered the matter urgent even though it was self-created by the employees.
“The court granted final relief when a temporary order was sought. The court should have at least set a date for confirmation of the temporary order and afforded us an opportunity to file further pleadings prior. Also, there was granting of final relief where there existed a dispute of facts,” read MRI papers.
The company further argued that the court completely disregarded that the employees had consented to variation of their contracts of employment.
The dispute between the parties is a result of a restructuring exercise announced by MRI. In May early this year the company announced salary cuts on grounds that it would save the struggling company and save employees’ jobs, a move that was criticized by the employees.
Employees are represented by Uyapo Ndadi while Shathani Somolekae represented MRI Limited.