NEHAWU calls for Maphutha CEO to be shown the door
National Education Health & Allied Workers Union's Elwels Maponya Branch, is calling for the immediate dismissal of Maphutha L. Malatji Hospital CEO, Rebecca Peta and Nursing Manager Helen Modjadji Mononela.
More than 80 nurses and staff members marched outside Namakgale Magistrate Court last week Wednesday, while their colleagues and union leaders, led by NEHAWU Regional Secretary, MacDonald Sibuyi were inside the court when Prosecutor Ndzuza withdrew an intimidation case opened by Mononela against Union leaders the previous day.
Moments after the matter ended, Sibuyi addressing fuming members and instructed them to head to the Hospital to hand over a memorandum of grievances to the Hospital management.
“The Prosecutor has withdrawn the case as he felt that it belongs in the workplace.
Your resilience has forced him to withdraw the case.
We have won the outside battle, now we are left with an internal one.
Mononela must go and the CEO must also go, but we are going to do it responsibly as handing over a memorandum won’t be the last resort, we need to show real action and solidarity amongst us is paramount,” explained Sibuyi to a cheering crowd singing derogatory songs aimed at Mononela and Peta.
The crew using the main road from the Magistrate Court to the Hospital continued singing offensive songs.
The group entered the Hospital with a storm while security personnel tried to stop them, but could do nothing as they proceeded to the administration block still singing their derogatory songs.
After the memorandum was read at 11:08, 35 minutes later after union leaders had gone to one of the offices to draft a memorandum, while the group marched to the wards although their actions didn’t harm or threaten anyway, four Namakgale police constables came to the Hospital to observe proceedings.
While reading the memo, Sibuyi said members of NEHAWU and DENOSA, representing more than 5000 members in Mopani district, are demanding their employer corrects the placement of an infection control nurse, the opening of an infection control office with immediate effect and no deduction of no work no pay for the time that workers went to court.
He added that they need transparency in recruitment and employment of new staff, an end to intimidation of their members and workers in general, consistency and consultation in allocation of nurses and immediate procurement of protective clothing for general workers.
He went on to say they need an immediate re-implementation of commuted overtime for dental workers, corrected implementation of OSD for allied health workers, filling of all vacant posts, end the outsourcing and privatization of laundry services, security and others as well as an end to reporting of labour matters to the police.
Sibuyi concluded reading the memo, by saying they need the removal or resignation of the nursing manager and the CEO and that all demands have to be responded to within 14 days of the receipt of the memorandum.
