By Bongiwe Dlamini

MBABANE:Bonsile Mabuza, the AutoZone Eswatini Director allegedly dismissed nine(9) employees unfairly, she subsequently ran to the Bush Fire Festival and refused to entertain grievances from the workers.

The justification by the Director was that the company was restructuring.

The alleged unfairly dismissed employees are Nosisa Maseko, Bonsile Sithole, Mabandla Mgabhi, Manqoba Mdladla, Wonder-boy Manyisa, Reginaldo Mudumbe and Callie Gamedze.

Others are Bongani Mkhabela and Nokwanda Masimula.

A questionnaire was sent to the AutoZone Director, however, she had not responded at the time of compiling this report.

But a memorandum seen by this Swaziland News suggests that on the 25th May 2023, Xolani Mdluli, the Human Resources Officer wrote to the staff informing them about the dismissed employees.

“As we come to the end of our financial year, please note the company has been involved in a restructuring exercise which involves rotations and termination of contracts therefore; Below is a summary of employees who have exited the company due to the same exercise,” reads the memorandum in part.

Reached for comments,Wander Mkhonza, the Secretary General of the Amalgamated Trade Union of Swaziland (ATUSWA)said the law was clear that employers must pay their employees terminal benefits before retrenching them.

“This is now a crisis that should be resolved by the government, the law is very clear that employers must pay their employees terminal benefits if they retrench them. It is the government that must ensure that the law is followed,” said the ATUSWA Secretary General.