73 EX-WORKERS OF 3 HOTELS TO SHARE E14M

PIGG’S PEAK – There is relief for 73 former employees of the three hotels which were recently placed under liquidation, as they will share E14 million.

In June 2021, the High Court of Eswatini issued a final order for the liquidation of five companies under Sun International Management Limited. The affected companies included Swazi Spa Holdings, which was operating SwaziSpa Hotel and Casino, Lugogo Sun and the Ezulwini Sun. The former workers of the three hotels will share the money, following that the liquidation and distribution account was opened on July 31, 2024 and has since been approved by the Office of the Master of the High Court. The Master of the High Court Office approved the Liquidation and Distribution Account on August 14, 2024.

This shall result in the employees benefitting, as they had filed a claim of E38 million and shall be offered E14 million, which is 41 per cent of the initial claim. This is because creditors of the Sun International hotels shall be paid pro-rata, which cumulates to 41 per cent for the former employees.VPro rata is a Latin term used to describe a proportionate allocation and it translates to ‘in proportion’.  According to Investopedia, it is a process in which an allocated asset will be distributed in equal portions, such that an amount is assigned to one person according to their share of the whole if something is distributed to several people on a pro-rata basis. Meanwhile, according to Nkosingivile Dlamini, all creditors shall be paid, with some getting all their dues. This publication gathered that about E25 million of the money shall pay other creditors, who include banking institutions.

Liquidator

The money set to settle the debts is said to have been derived from the sale of the Swazi Sun to the Central Bank of Eswatini (CBE) and some other movable property belonging to the companies by the liquidator. According to a notice issued by the Deputy Master of the High Court, Lindelwa Magagula, to the liquidators, Paul Mulindwa and Marisa Boxshall-Smith, the account has been examined and it appears to be in order. “You are hereby authorised to advertise the account in terms of Section 343 (2) of the Companies Act No. 2009 as lying open for inspection for a period of 21 days. Thereafter, provide the master with proof of having done so,” Magagula said.

Meanwhile, the jubilation of the former employees shall exclude the 242 former employees of Royal Swazi Spa Holdings and subsidiaries, who were retrenched in 1992. The Office of the Master of the High Court rejected the claim filed by the 242 former employees of Swazi Spa Holdings, because they were allegedly paid their terminal benefits in 1992. In a letter dated January 2021, Magagula informed the lawyer representing the 242 former employees that the issue of payment of their terminal benefits was found in the schedule of payments made to the workers, which was submitted as support.

“It was found that even many elements of the claim fell outside the employment/ labour laws of the Kingdom of Eswatini. The Office of the Master of the High Court searched frantically, but could not find for instance in the Industrial Dispute Act 2000 of Eswatini. The only Act we came across is the Indian Act and the section noted in the claim corresponded with the Indian Act,” said the deputy master. According to Magagula, this piece of legislation was not applicable to the Kingdom of Eswatini. She highlighted that the retrenchments took place in 1992 and the employees were allegedly paid severance allowance in October 1992. 

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