In a landmark ruling that was handed down on Thursday, July 14, the Durban Labour Court found in favour of an employee of Toyota South Africa Motors who was dismissed by the company for abusing its compassionate leave policy.

Lungani Njilo was shown the door after Toyota ruled that he had provided false information about his relationship with deceased individuals, resulting in him receiving compassionate leave payments for which he did not qualify.

Njilo, a Zulu man, had been an employee at the plant in Prospecton, Durban for 17 years and had an unblemished disciplinary record before he was fired.

In his 2013 and 2014 applications for compassionate leave, Njilo indicated that the deceased was his mother on both occasions, and in a 2015 application, he said the deceased was his son.

It was later established that one of the women was his late father’s second wife, and the other one was his mother’s sister. The son was his brother’s child.

After he was dismissed, Njilo took the matter to the CCMA, which ruled in his favour. The CCMA’s arbitrator accepted Njilo’s explanation, which in broad terms is that he just knew, from a colleague, that one can apply for leave when a family member dies.

He also said according to the Zulu culture, the deceased women were his mothers. Toyota then took the matter to the Labour Court on review.

In making her ruling, Judge Benita Whitcher pointed out that Toyota’s leave policy provides for compassionate leave in respect of the death of immediate family members, defined in the policy as a husband, wife, grandparents, father, mother, father-in-law, mother in-law, sister, brother, brother-in-law, sister-in- law, child, and grandchildren.

“Njilo had been unaware of the intricacies of the compassionate leave policy, particularly that it did not cover people he regarded in Zulu culture as his immediate family,” said Judge Whitcher.

She also pointed out that the leave policy in question comprises some 35 pages, with compassionate leave situated in an obscure section in smaller writing. Toyota’s application to overturn the CCMA’s ruling was thus dismissed.

In response, Mzo Witbooi, who is Toyota’s corporate communications manager, says the company accepts the court’s ruling and will not be challenging it.

“Toyota would also like to express that it will not comment further on the matter as it has been brought to a close,” he says.