The Motor Industry Staff Association (MISA) is taking Motus Group back to court on behalf of almost 100 members who were allegedly forced to accept unilateral changes to their employment terms or face retrenchment without severance pay.
The union has requested the court to cancel the acceptance letters signed by workers and order Motus to pay them money they should have received retrospectively.
MISA has simultaneously applied for permission to appeal Judge Zolashe Lallie’s ruling handed down on 6 February, which dismissed the union’s urgent application to interdict Motus from retrenching members who refused changes to their remuneration structures. The union believes the Labour Appeal Court will find the judge made an error in law.
The dispute began in October last year when Motus started a restructuring process that led to 67 union members being retrenched. A second group of 645 employees faced changes to their cost to company, including reductions of basic salaries, removal of incentives, and withdrawal of company cars, car allowances, cellphone allowances and fuel allowances.
According to MISA, Advocate Tertius Wessels, representing Motus, confirmed in November that the second group would not face retrenchment. However, in January this year, Motus sent final impact letters to staff indicating it would proceed with changes to salaries and benefits.
On 19 January, MISA referred a unilateral changes dispute to the Motor Industry Bargaining Council’s Dispute Resolution Centre, with a hearing scheduled for 16 February.
A day later, Motus issued a “revised offer” as an alternative to retrenchment. The offer stated that basic salaries would not be cut and employees earning less than R15 000 cost to company would not be affected. It confirmed changes of up to 20% of cost to company for those earning more than R15 000.
MISA disputed this characterisation, saying it was an attempt to resuscitate a retrenchment process finalised in December and represented another unilateral decision to change members’ employment terms. The union warned it would seek a court order if Motus continued with retrenchment consultations or forced members to accept the alternative.
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On 27 January, MISA members were told to attend a meeting the following day to discuss their dealings with the union. MISA objected, saying Motus was not permitted to negotiate retrenchments directly with members.
During the first meeting on 28 January, Gideon Janse van Rensburg, chief executive officer of Motus Retail, allegedly told employees they would be retrenched without severance pay if they did not accept the revised offer. Employees were instructed to sign Motus’s forms or lose their jobs and income.
MISA described this as an ultimatum that placed undue duress on members to accept the unilateral changes or face retrenchment without a severance package. The union advised members to sign under protest to secure employment whilst reserving their rights.
The union claims Motus ignored the Section 189 process set out in the Labour Relations Act, which guides restructuring that leads to retrenchments.
MISA is now asking the court to cancel the acceptance letters and rule that the revised offer breached the terms of employment contracts.
Motus has not yet filed its response to the case.
