Rainbow Meat Supply distances itself from injured former employee

Having worked for Rainbow Meat Supply (RMS) for two years as a sales representative, a single mother from Palm Ridge Sonia Mzunga (40) had a fall-out with management when they refused to acknowledge her as an employee after her catastrophic vehicle accident on the N3.

Mzunga and her colleague were involved in the accident during the early hours of July 29, 2022, when a tyre detached from a speeding truck and hit the back of the H100 Hyundai bakkie the pair were travelling in.

They were travelling from Gauteng to KwaZulu-Natal to deliver orders and market the Katlehong-based company in the coastal province. Unfortunately, the driver could not stop the bakkie; and it skidded before landing on its roof.

Despite the evidence (letter confirming employment) brought forward by the Gauteng Department of Labour during the business inspection visit at their premises at 1981 Masakhane Street, Tshongweni Section on March 25, the management of RMS maintained their stance that Mzunga was not a company employee at the time of the accident.

The letter confirming Mzunga’s employment (seen by Kathorus MAIL) reads, “This letter serves to confirm that Sonia Mzunga is employed as an apprentice. She has been with the company effective July 13, 2020, as a sales representative with a basic salary of R 3 500 before deductions.”

The managing director of RMS, Siphiwe Nkosinathi Mashinini, who also serves as the sole director of the company, signed it.

The GDL provincial communication officer, Mishack Magakwe, told Kathorus MAIL the employer is still denying the complainant (Mzunga) was an employee of RMS.

“They further noted they have never paid her any money and that the letter was only for access,” said Magakwe.

He said they would investigate further to determine the relationship between the employer and employee.

According to Magakwe, during the inspection, they also found the employer was non-compliant in certain areas and they issued compliance orders.

“We have asked for certain documents that the company still has to provide, hence, I am saying further investigations are underway.”

Mzunga dismissed claims that they never paid her as lies. She said the company paid all the employees with envelopes instead of bank payments.

“I think they never wanted to leave a trail, meaning they wanted to use me and discard me. If I was an independent distributor, why was the letter of employment not stating that? Why was I using the company vehicle and why were they giving me a food allowance?

“An independent distributor decides on the rate for the product. I was selling their product with the prices they gave us and there were receipts. I think the employer is realising he made a mistake and is trying to avoid accountability,” said Mzunga.

RMS industry relations officer Aubrey Mashele said they knew about a case with the GDL, but he was not willing to respond to questions posed by the Kathorus MAIL news reporter.

Background

On February 12 Kathorus MAIL received an email from a devastated Mzunga who wrote that after having tried various fruitless avenues to resolve the existing issue between herself and RMS, she decided to reach out to the media for assistance.

She noted her eyesight was slowly deteriorating because of a vehicle accident that she suffered while working for the company.

She suffers from recurring headaches, dizziness, blackouts and her failing eyesight. Mzunga said the company refused to engage her on the matter and take responsibility.

Mzunga told the Kathorus MAIL before the accident that her manager unfairly dismissed her from her duties in 2020, reasoning that her presence did not sit well with her soul.

However, she did not provide Mzunga with any documentation that legally proves she was fired and the reason for her dismissal.

The company owner rehired her on March 21, 2022, five months before the vehicle accident that led the management to ‘abandon her’ during her vulnerable time of need.

At the time she was re-absorbed into the business, she was promised a market-related salary for her position as a sales and marketing representative, but that never materialised.

After the accident, she realised her efforts to engage the firm were ineffective. She contacted the EFF’s labour department in Johannesburg, who approached RMS on her behalf. The engagement ended with RMS offering Mzunga R10 000, which she declined since it would be insufficient to meet her current and future medical needs.

Mzunga is a single mother raising a 10-year-old primary school girl. She vented that since the accident it has been extremely difficult for her to provide essential needs like food and personal care products for herself and her daughter.

She said that being rejected by the company made her feel used, exploited, overworked, underpaid and then tossed out once she became an invalid to them.

A plea for helpMzunga is pleading with good Samaritan to lend a helping hand to keep her family afloat during these difficult times.

Anyone with the means to assist the family with food and personal care products can contact Mzunga at 060 570 2564, or email: haruzivi676@gmail.com