Fired domestic worker guns employer

Many people from various sectors of the economy, especially vulnerable and impoverished domestic workers, have borne the brunt of the vicious cycle and fallout from Covid-19.
As the pandemic rages globally, the most disadvantaged individuals and communities have slipped even further into poverty. Women remain at the mercy of the times as their incomes are cut or halved, and unfair dismissals and even firings rise astronomically.
Complaints from domestic workers and their employers are increasingly becoming more frequent. In one of the recent incidents, the Laudium Sun received a complaint from Sbongile Matoaka, a former domestic worker at a Taj Street home. Sbongile visited the Laudium Sun offices this past Tuesday (March 23) and said, “I started to work at Mrs Kim James house in December 2019 as a domestic worker. Then in March 2020, the President announced the lockdown, and I went home for two months. I was paid half my salary at that time because I was not working. On my return, I was employed for two months as a stay-in worker and had to work for the entire week and weekend. On asking for a day off for an emergency, I was told by Mrs Kim to resign and not return. Nevertheless, I went and upon my return, I was barred from accessing the property and asked to return the following day by my madam, to collect my belongings, as I was fired. I approached the CCMA and opened a case of unfair dismissal. Mrs Kim failed to appear at the many hearing dates. I approached the sheriff for assistance in locating Mrs Kim as she was no more at the address where I worked. The Pretoria West sheriff demanded R350 and a further R2000 and told me to return in 10 days. Due to lack of finances, I could not take the matter further. I was also blocked from receiving further SASSA Covid-19 grant funds, as it reflected that I was still working and had a claim via the CCMA.” Sbongile added, “I’m struggling to get help everywhere, I don’t know where else to go and the CCMA is not helping much.”
Kim could not be reached for comment and according to a tenant living on the same Taj Street premises, Kim had moved out some time ago, but she was unaware of Kim’s location.
*The CCMA is inundated with similar requests and is over strained due to a flood of Covid-19 related disputes. Also, the budget of the CCMA has been drastically slashed by the Minister of Finance causing a further burden to disgruntled employees and employers. This remains a challenging situation for many domestic workers and other similar jobholders who are informally employed and struggle to obtain relief under such circumstances…
The socio-economic fallout of the pandemic is yet to be fully understood. There is a sinister knock-on effect on the income chain during the pandemic.
According to labour legislation. “The Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA) says, in a nutshell, that employees do not have to be paid by employers during lockdown if they are not at work. It also says the employer may unilaterally place the employee on paid leave, if it is available.”