Employees at Motus Retail faces a bleak New Year as 86 are retrenched today and 579 will be impacted by remuneration and benefit changes implemented from 1 January 2026.
This is one of the biggest retrenchments MISA, the Motor Industry Staff Association, were involved in this year after the influx of Chinese brands caused severe pressure and competition in the motor retail industry.
The automotive giant announced a restructuring process in terms of Section 189 of the Labour Relations Act on 9 October after reporting a 1% decline in revenue to R112.60 billion in the year ended 30 June. Its operating profit also dropped slightly to R5.48 billion.
The JSE listen company contributed its reduced revenue to lower contributions from new vehicle sales of R3.33 billion (6%), primarily in the group’s international operations.
Martlé Keyter, MISA’s Chief Executive Officer: Operations, says Tiekie Mocke, Manager of MISA’s Legal Department, Ngoni Goba and Anne-Marie Bodenstein, two of MISA’s Senior Labour Advisors, represented the affected employees. MISA is the majority trade union in the retail motor industry representing more than 75 000 members.
“MISA worked tirelessly with members and the employer’s representatives to save jobs and to resist unreasonable reductions to remuneration and the removal of long-standing benefits. Initially up to 900 employees facing remuneration and benefit realignment. MISA’s sustained engagement significantly reduced the impact.
“Despite these efforts, MISA remains deeply concerned about proposed reductions of up to 30% cost to company (CTC), particularly where the calculation methodology remains unclear.
“MISA did not sign an agreement at the conclusion of the final facilitation session and continues to assess the reasonableness and fairness of the implemented changes. Our commitment remains firm: to support affected members and to pursue all lawful avenues to protect their interests during this challenging transition,” says Keyter.
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