Limpopo resort accused of exploitation after string of dismissals
· Citizen
As Women’s Month comes to an end, female employees at a resort in Limpopo have accused their bosses of exploitation and unfair dismissals.
The allegations, mostly from current and former employees of Karibu Leisure Resort in Burgersfort, Limpopo, surfaced soon after the South African Local Government Association (Salga) held a meeting at the resort a fortnight ago. Senior government officials, local and district municipal mayors, and Limpopo’s first female premier, Phophi Ramathuba, attended the meeting, along with other dignitaries.
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Resort accused of unfair dismissals
After the meeting, The Citizen received calls from disgruntled former employees and politicians from the Fetakgomo Tubatse local municipality.
“I have nothing against Nyeleti Mushwana, owner and Managing Director of Karibu. In fact, she should be a role model for all of us. But her labour practices, supported by hostile treatment by senior managers, are not only questionable, but also leave much to be desired,” said Moshireletsi Phaswana, a former employee at the resort.
She said since June this year, a series of employees – most of them women – have either resigned or been fired from Karibu for no apparent reason.
Mushwana, however, has denied the allegations.
The tearful Phaswana said she started working at Karibu Resort on 8 July this year.
“When I started there, there was a sizeable number of workers who had resigned amid similar exploitation allegations,” she said.
She said when she was offered the job, she was not told to sign any contract.
“One more thing, I had applied for a waitressing job, but instead I was allocated a job as a cook in the kitchen. At month-end, I found out that I was not paid for overtime, long weekends or working on holidays,” she claimed.
Phaswana said she clocked in at 5am and knocked off at 11pm or 2am on busy days. Despite the long hours, she was only paid R5 800 a month.
She said a fortnight ago, after her tea break, she felt dizzy and told her colleague that she needed to sit down for a short while. Then, she said she took some pills, but the situation got worse. Despite feeling bad, she said she stood up and walked towards the kitchen. When she got there, she was told to report to the office of the resort manager.
“Without asking for any explanation, he accused me of sleeping on the job and of going AWOL. I told him about my situation, but he said he had had enough of my stupid behaviour and ordered me to pack my belongings and leave the facility,” said Phaswana.
No disciplinary hearings?
She claimed that there was no disciplinary hearing, nor any verbal or written warnings.
“Just like that, he fired me.”
She said she is now living hand to mouth.
“There is absolutely nothing to celebrate Women’s Month when powerful women mistreat us and exploit us while those in power wine and dine with them,” Phaswana said.
Another former female employee, who spoke on condition of anonymity, echoed Phaswana’s sentiments.
“My problem is not Nyeleti the owner. It is those employed as our seniors in the place of work,” she said.
She complained of a particular male manager.
“When giving errands to staff, he always made sure he had given me more work so that I finished late. Sometimes he would shout at me publicly. When we reported this to senior managers, they would only pretend to investigate, but nothing came out of these investigations.
“I decided to resign because there was no help coming my way and because I was no longer feeling comfortable around him,” she claimed.
On Friday, a current employee, who asked to speak on condition of anonymity, said the general manager fired two more reception workers amid allegations that customers had complained about poor service.
“The dismissed employees were allegedly fired without being hauled before a disciplinary process,” The Citizen was told.
Resort owner denies allegations
Responding to the claims, Mushwana said they are not true.
“To begin with, we never received any formal complaint from any employees regarding treating workers unfairly for financial gains or for whatever the case may be. We always make it a point that whenever the hotel is not busy, we grant our employees some time off so that they can rest. But we can confirm that since the opening of the resort, we have had four resignations,” she said.
Mushwana said two women “who loved working with us” resigned for medical reasons. “We tried to negotiate to grant them lighter duties, but they couldn’t make it.”
She also claimed that some employees absconded.
“In our recruitment drive, we wanted to employ our community members in Burgersfort by employing candidates with no work experience so that we can give them training and create job opportunities. Unfortunately, since hospitality is not for everyone, some decided to abscond,” she said.
Mushwana said all her employees had signed permanent contracts and were registered.
Responding to Phaswana being fired without warning or undergoing disciplinary processes, Mushwana had only this to say:
“Phaswana deserted her duty for several hours and was nowhere to be found. The general manager (GM) had been looking for her, as it was noticed she was not part of the team working. This was one of our busy days with the hotel hosting a full-day conference. When she resurfaced, she was addressed by the GM and her immediate supervisor – our chef in the kitchen.
“When asked on her whereabouts, she sited that she was not feeling well and had taken some tablets and fell asleep. But she did not report her not being well at work; she didn’t obtain authorisation to take a break and disappeared for several hours. The GM emphasised to her to report to her manager when she is not well, ask for permission to take breaks, and she apologised and assured this would not happen again,” Mushwana explained.
“She was given a verbal warning by the GM and allowed to return to work. However, less than an hour later she was found again outside at the back of the hotel smoking and playing on her phone. When asked if she obtained permission to take a break after she had self-granted time off work earlier in the day, her answer was ‘I did not know I am not allowed to take a smoke break’. The GM then asked her to report to HR and advised that since she proved that she is not at work to perform any work, she will be released from her duties. So, it is not true that she was not given any warning.
“On a complaint raised against one of our senior managers, we could not do a thorough investigation as the employee is unknown to us. The allegations presented are unfounded and appear intended to be malicious and defamatory,” said Mushwana.