Butcher fired for not obeying Covid protocols

A BUTCHER at a processed meat manufacturer, who went to work after testing positive for Covid-19 and even hugged a colleague who suffered from comorbidities, was dismissed fairly.

This is according to the Labour Court after a dismissal dispute between Stuurman Mogotsi and the company where he was employed as an assistant butchery manager.

The case raised the issue surrounding the fairness of the dismissal of an employee for gross misconduct and related negligence related to his failure to observe Covid-19-related health and safety protocols at the workplace.

Judge Edwin Tlhotlhalemaje, in the opening to his judgment, remarked: “The facts of this case are indeed extraordinary.

“They are indicative of the need for more to be done at both the workplace and in communities, in ensuring that employers, employees and the general populace are sensitised to the realities of this pandemic, and to further reinforce the obligations of employers and employees in the face of an exposure to Covid-19.”

Mogotsi was found guilty of gross misconduct by his employer as he did not tell them he had taken a Covid-19 test and was waiting for his results.

He was also convicted and fired because after testing positive, he continued working.

Mogotsi used to travel to and from work daily with a colleague, who tested positive for Covid-19 and was eventually admitted to hospital.

A few days later Mogotsi started to feel ill and his wife, a traditional healer, booked him off for a few days. He then returned to work, although management told him to stay home.

While waiting for his test results and even thereafter, he continued to work.

The employer said they had policies, procedures, rules and protocols in place, and all employees had been constantly reminded of these.

Mogotsi was a member of the in-house Coronavirus Site Committee and was responsible for advising others on how to follow the protocols.

A day after he received his results, he was observed on video footage at the workplace hugging a fellow employee, who happened to have had a heart operation and who had experienced post-surgery complications.

The footage also showed Mogotsi walking around the workshop without wearing a mask. Upon Mogotsi’s test results being known days later, those who were in contact with him were sent home to self-isolate.

Mogotsi told the court that he knew of his colleague’s positive status and that he told management he had been in contact with him. He alleged that he was not given any clear directive as to what to do.

Despite having seen a traditional healer and being booked off due to headaches, chest pains and coughs, Mogotsi said he had no noticeable symptoms.

He said after testing positive, he did not know that he needed to selfisolate. He conceded having hugged a co-worker and having walked on the shop floor without wearing a mask. He said he was on a phone call at the time.

The judge said Mogotsi had been aware that he had been in contact with someone with the symptoms and that he had later tested positive. He had thus recklessly endangered the lives of his co-workers. As a member of the Coronavirus Site Committee, he knew very well what he ought to have done under the circumstances, the judge said.