EX-MANAGER SUES WORLD VISION FOR E1 MILLION

MBABANE - World Vision Eswatini former Communications and Campaigns Manager Nontobeko Mbuyane is demanding over E1 million from the organisation.

According to Mbuyane, the money was in respect of maximum compensation for unfair dismissal, notice pay, remainder of contract, leave pay and cost of her application. The exact amount which Mbuyane is demanding from the organisation is E1 034 381 62.

Through her lawyer, she has since filed an application for the determination of an unresolved dispute in the Industrial Court.

In her application, she outlined how she was allegedly grossly ill-treated and frustrated by her former employer before she decided to resign.

Mbuyane informed the court that she was employed by the respondent (World Vision Eswatini) on a fixed term contract of employment on March 16, 2019 up until June 18, 2020 when she was allegedly constructively dismissed by the respondent.

She averred that at the time of her alleged constructive dismissal, she was occupying the position of Communications and Campaigns Manager and was earning a gross salary of E35 000.

According to the applicant, (Mbuyane) the fixed term of the contract was due to expire on October 31, 2021, hence at the time of the alleged constructive dismissal, the remaining period of the contract was 16 months.

“I was not paid all the monies which were due to me at the time of my dismissal including accumulated leave days, remainder of contract period, notice pay and maximum compensation for unfair dismissal,” contended the applicant.

ill-treat

Mbuyane recounted that from September 2019, the respondent   allegedly started to grossly ill-treat her.  The applicant asserted that she was continuously subjected to serious unfair labour practices. “My immediate supervisor Sakhile Dlamini started shutting down key working tools which were critical in allowing me to effectively carry out my duties. I was deliberately frustrated,” submitted   Mbuyane.

She informed the court that she raised a concern to her supervisor and requested her to ensure that there was a conducive working environment.  The request, according to Mbuyane was ignored by the immediate supervisor.

“The same supervisor stalled an officially approved budget and called for review of same in the middle of work implementation yet the budget had been approved and my department had already started using the funds to carry out scheduled work,” she argued.

Mbuyane avowed that she was subjected to unfair labour practices and the budget was stalled between October 2019 and November 2019. “I was deliberately and continuously sidelined from serious strategic planning and implementation of duties which were within my portfolio. I was literally left without duties to perform hence I became idle,” alleged Mbuyane.

frustration

She informed the court that the alleged unfair labour practice was designed and calculated to force her to leave employment out of persistent frustration and emotional drainage.

The applicant  further submitted that when she remained patient and the respondent seeing that she was being pushed out, her supervisor, acting for and on behalf of the organisation, then assigned her subordinates to carry out her duties.  

She highlighted that the subordinates reported directly to the supervisor not her. “One such incident took place on November 18, 2019 in which the supervisor assigned my duties to a subordinate named Zanele Dlamini to handle all the preparations  of the commemoration of the Day of the African Child,”  contended Mbuyane.  

She alleged that one Sakhile Dlamini even wrote the Country Director’s speech yet that was her (Mbuyane) duty.   

The applicant argued that in all this she was not consulted.

These are allegations whose veracity is still to be tested and the respondent is yet to file its papers. Mbuyane stated that in short she was cut-off the reporting line and she became even more idle, frustrated and emotionally drained by such alleged unfair labour practice by the organisation.

She contended that the supervisor also instructed the Supply Chain and Finance Departments not to process her work activities and this rendered her frustrated and practically redundant. “This led to serve frustration and irreparable breakdown in the employment relationship thus leading to continued employment being intolerable,” stated Mbuyane.

The matter is still pending in court and appearing for Mbuyane is Sikhumbuzo Simelane of SM and Company.

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