Where are we heading as a nation? People want more pay for less work and preferably no work at all. We know this, the electorate has spoken. I would like to share a typical type of labour issue with you.
I am in the food and beverage industry and as you are well probably aware the workforce relies heavily on tips and most choose to work on a commission basis which as opposed to a set salary. Some time ago a well spoken reasonably educated gentleman (we will call him Sipho) approached me for a job. He was desperate and did not have any work experience or ethics (found out later)for that matter. He chose to work for a flat rate of R 50.00 including transport, per six hour shift including tips.
Four days later, and on a busy Friday evening he removed his pay, without the manager’s permission, (a very distant, yet clear ting-a-ling) from the till, before closing time and walked out. Three days later he sent me an sms begging for a second chance. He explained that as he is from a different tribe, he accused his co-workers of not giving him a chance to make tips.
He claimed that although he had made in excess of R150.00 for the evening, his co-workers had pocketed more that R 300.00 each and he would like to return to work if the tip structure was changed so that all tips were shared equally. Now the f*cker with no experience was telling me how to run a business that I had built from scratch with tremendous trial and error.
As I am not unreasonable and being a Scorpio (and sometimes senseless) I always grant a second chance, for reasons I will not discuss on an open forum, and I hate having made a bad judgment of character. (So do you ask for directions when you are lost?) Although he seemed a tad too obtuse to grasp the implications of his behaviour he presented himself as someone who could be trained to conform to the system I have in place – or so I fooled myself to believe.
I had to explain the situation to him and then he understood the more you work, the more you take home. Eish! I presented him with a written set of rules and expectations and he returned to work with new vitality. He managed to stick it out for three days and then I discovered that the man was also a magician, he had made stock magically disappear. I should really make an effort to cease this necessity to find the good in people. (Note to self – bash head against wall )
The cameras showed that he had been serving drinks and pocketing the money ( did I really expect anything less) I confronted him and explained to him that I did not tolerate this behavior and asked him to leave. That is a nice way of saying, I took him to the office an explained to him that all the staff were responsible for the loss and if I show them the video footage, he would be beaten to a pulp to say the least. Being of a different tribe to the other wukkers, he was off like Jakob Zuma’s underwear. In the workplace the tribal clan is alive and well (but we won’t discuss that and live in denial until it gets out of hand) .
But you should remember, the wukker has his rights. This “thing” is under the impression that I now owe him a living as I had committed myself to provide him with work, and being as clever as he is, he has decided to single handily destroy me and my business. He has since threatened to take me to court, threatened me and my family and is claiming R3000.00 for lung damage caused by the smoke in the environment he worked in (Zerious).
I am in the food and beverage industry and as you are well probably aware the workforce relies heavily on tips and most choose to work on a commission basis which as opposed to a set salary. Some time ago a well spoken reasonably educated gentleman (we will call him Sipho) approached me for a job. He was desperate and did not have any work experience or ethics (found out later)for that matter. He chose to work for a flat rate of R 50.00 including transport, per six hour shift including tips.
Four days later, and on a busy Friday evening he removed his pay, without the manager’s permission, (a very distant, yet clear ting-a-ling) from the till, before closing time and walked out. Three days later he sent me an sms begging for a second chance. He explained that as he is from a different tribe, he accused his co-workers of not giving him a chance to make tips.
He claimed that although he had made in excess of R150.00 for the evening, his co-workers had pocketed more that R 300.00 each and he would like to return to work if the tip structure was changed so that all tips were shared equally. Now the f*cker with no experience was telling me how to run a business that I had built from scratch with tremendous trial and error.
As I am not unreasonable and being a Scorpio (and sometimes senseless) I always grant a second chance, for reasons I will not discuss on an open forum, and I hate having made a bad judgment of character. (So do you ask for directions when you are lost?) Although he seemed a tad too obtuse to grasp the implications of his behaviour he presented himself as someone who could be trained to conform to the system I have in place – or so I fooled myself to believe.
I had to explain the situation to him and then he understood the more you work, the more you take home. Eish! I presented him with a written set of rules and expectations and he returned to work with new vitality. He managed to stick it out for three days and then I discovered that the man was also a magician, he had made stock magically disappear. I should really make an effort to cease this necessity to find the good in people. (Note to self – bash head against wall )
The cameras showed that he had been serving drinks and pocketing the money ( did I really expect anything less) I confronted him and explained to him that I did not tolerate this behavior and asked him to leave. That is a nice way of saying, I took him to the office an explained to him that all the staff were responsible for the loss and if I show them the video footage, he would be beaten to a pulp to say the least. Being of a different tribe to the other wukkers, he was off like Jakob Zuma’s underwear. In the workplace the tribal clan is alive and well (but we won’t discuss that and live in denial until it gets out of hand) .
But you should remember, the wukker has his rights. This “thing” is under the impression that I now owe him a living as I had committed myself to provide him with work, and being as clever as he is, he has decided to single handily destroy me and my business. He has since threatened to take me to court, threatened me and my family and is claiming R3000.00 for lung damage caused by the smoke in the environment he worked in (Zerious).
He has notified me that he will strive to close my business and claimed he has the support of a large privately funded organization. This organization contacted me to have a meeting. I told them to f*ck-off and if they wanted to see me, they could have an appointment any afternoon between 3 & 4. How! This was a problem, because there was no transport. Nonetheless, they never appeared.
The sms’s did not stop coming so I subsequently barred his number from my phone. He then started sending messages to my wife’s phone (who says "I told you so" - and reminds me constantly what a doos I am) who is obviously concerned by these threats.
This has absorbed a lot of my time and energy and when, after being sent from pillar to post, I got through to a labour official for assistance, he said they must first hear the wukkers side of the story. PLEASE!!!!!! There was no help from those quarters. He was in my employ for seven days and he has a story – I think not.
The sms’s did not stop coming so I subsequently barred his number from my phone. He then started sending messages to my wife’s phone (who says "I told you so" - and reminds me constantly what a doos I am) who is obviously concerned by these threats.
This has absorbed a lot of my time and energy and when, after being sent from pillar to post, I got through to a labour official for assistance, he said they must first hear the wukkers side of the story. PLEASE!!!!!! There was no help from those quarters. He was in my employ for seven days and he has a story – I think not.
As this thug knows where I stay, he has threatened me with violence and my family does not feel safe at home anymore due to the risk factor of me having to work nights. What is a man to do?
As yet, according to the police farce, he has not transgressed any law. Unfortunately, Sipho in his misinformed state of mind believes that I now owe him a pension based on his seven days working with the company and he will come and take what he thinks is rightfully his. I am waiting patiently for his return.
The sad part is that the people are suffering because they are lied to by their piers and they do not understand the basics of employment. Alas there is a solution. The labour department should run a course for the workforce starting with their employees to inform them of the rights and wrongs and those who attend should be given some sort of work ethic diploma which would make them more eligible for a job as opposed to a person without it.
The work force has been misinformed long enough and now is the time for action. It will not only save employees time and money, but will relieve the pressure of bull sh*t labour cases that are generally a waste of the courts time and money. Many labour dispute cases are won by the tactic of postponing the case until such time as the employer says, f*ck this, this is a waste of time and viola! They hit you with a judgment by default.
The People are misinformed and are taking action on a discussion generally overheard in a shebeen or bar and armed with this layman’s drinkers guide to the law they are taking decisions which affects them and their families lives and often to your detriment as an employer as the system is designed to be against you. It does not help asking some f*ck wit lawyer to assist you, because inevitably you end up paying more than what it is worth.
Any person seeking employment from me in the future will require a police clearance as well as references and work experience. I have rights too. The work force forgets that it is a two way street and in the perceived view of the colourless Rainbow Nation, the constitution protects the rights of the employer, but not as much as the employee.
As yet, according to the police farce, he has not transgressed any law. Unfortunately, Sipho in his misinformed state of mind believes that I now owe him a pension based on his seven days working with the company and he will come and take what he thinks is rightfully his. I am waiting patiently for his return.
The sad part is that the people are suffering because they are lied to by their piers and they do not understand the basics of employment. Alas there is a solution. The labour department should run a course for the workforce starting with their employees to inform them of the rights and wrongs and those who attend should be given some sort of work ethic diploma which would make them more eligible for a job as opposed to a person without it.
The work force has been misinformed long enough and now is the time for action. It will not only save employees time and money, but will relieve the pressure of bull sh*t labour cases that are generally a waste of the courts time and money. Many labour dispute cases are won by the tactic of postponing the case until such time as the employer says, f*ck this, this is a waste of time and viola! They hit you with a judgment by default.
The People are misinformed and are taking action on a discussion generally overheard in a shebeen or bar and armed with this layman’s drinkers guide to the law they are taking decisions which affects them and their families lives and often to your detriment as an employer as the system is designed to be against you. It does not help asking some f*ck wit lawyer to assist you, because inevitably you end up paying more than what it is worth.
Any person seeking employment from me in the future will require a police clearance as well as references and work experience. I have rights too. The work force forgets that it is a two way street and in the perceived view of the colourless Rainbow Nation, the constitution protects the rights of the employer, but not as much as the employee.
I read somewhere and it could have been on this blog, " Because you beleive you have a right to walk on the pavement, does not mean I have to walk in the gutter"
Fortunately, I pay well and my current work force is very protective of the company. So at grass tip level, it is not all bad.
In conclusion, I will reword this blog and send the unedited version minus the profanities to the office of our future president Jakob Zuma. Who knows maybe he will read it and change the laws. Yoh !! Dream on!
Fortunately, I pay well and my current work force is very protective of the company. So at grass tip level, it is not all bad.
In conclusion, I will reword this blog and send the unedited version minus the profanities to the office of our future president Jakob Zuma. Who knows maybe he will read it and change the laws. Yoh !! Dream on!
5 Opinion(s):
Here's a wonderful idea:
http://www.news24.com/News24/Technology/News/0,,2-13-1443_2510263,00.html
Know the feeling well Joe. At the height of my company's growth, I employed about 300 people, 90% black. I got smacked for R48000 once in '97 just after the new labour laws came out because I fired someone (bloody useless too he was) without going through the 'right' procedure even though it was correct based on the old system. I had a signed employment contract which stipulated he could be fired etc, a contract drafted by my attorney and that complied with the old labour laws. Unbeknown to me, the new Labour Act cancelled all previous employment arrangements including contracts and because I hadn't followed the new 'procedures', I was therefore guilty. He was middle management so his payout was extensive. I paid out his claim but learnt my lesson. Never had a problem thereafter. I was wary, employed very carefully, kept the numbers to the bare minimum, oh yes, there were many chancers like yours afterwards but none succeeded. Had the laws been a bit more even, I would have employed more people but such was the fear of running into Siphos like yours, I ran the business on a tight rein worker-wise.
There are so many stories to tell. Here is one of them.
I owned a manufacturing and retail business that was regulated by a union. Minimum wages per skill level were prescribed, as were increases and bonuses. Bonuses, for example, had nothing to do with merit, they were a right. We had to pay the bonus over to the union, who in turn paid a cheque to the employee at year end.
Now get this, the union paid bonuses on the 15th of December, but our production facility remained open until the 24th of December, working at full speed to meet year-end production deadlines. So the obvious happened.
Bonuses get paid, and 80% of your work force doesn't return to work. Finally what we did was we called the union representative in and we asked how we could get around the problem. Well it meant providing some of our manufactured goods to the representative every year in order for them to turn a blind eye.
Finally, when I sold I decided that my future career would only involve me, a secretary and the output from my brain. No labour ever again.
Stop taking anymore of this nonsense immediately. Tell this con artist to go to the CCMA as that is the correct avenue to resolve matters of this nature. The CCMA will send you a notice to appear at a hearing, but you have the right - which you should definitely use - to reject the Con Arb process in writing beforehand. If you want to know more about why you should reject the Con Arb process, see the following:
http://www.bizland.co.za/articles/labour/conarb.htm
Go to a decent lawyer to prep you on what you should say and not say at the initial hearing. It's an education well worth R1,000. Once you have proof of rejecting the Con Arb hearing, the officials at the CCMA know that they will be involved in a protracted legal process, and will throw out the case with you paying him a day's salary as notice to get him to bugger off. I have been through this process myself, the previous employee who tried to rip me off for R5k sat there with tears streaming down his face when his stunts didn't work.
If he bothers you again, obtain an interdict against him.
Thank you Herr Dashhund - very informative article. as Truter so aptly states, "do not get caught off guard" but this is what these "civil servants" at the CCMA continue to do. You are, as an employer, guilty until proven innocent. You would swear that the aggenda is to replace all manual labour with machinery. The more difficult they (guvenmunt) make it to get rid of someone, is directly proportionate to the attitude adopted by employers in hiring people. It is a see saw effect that will be to the detriment of the employee.
As VI said "Finally, when I sold I decided that my future career would only involve me, a secretary and the output from my brain. No labour ever again."
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