The right to a chair for hundreds of weary cashiers working for a top Eastern Cape retail group is heading to court.
Till hands working for 13 Western Gruppe Spar stores owned by retail mogul Götz von Westernhagen have been struggling for years to get the labour department to help get them a seat.
Provincial chief inspector of labour advocate Livingstone Matiwane said the department had again sent inspectors to the Gonubie and Nahoon Super Spar stores last week, where they found the employer failed to provide seats for cashiers.
This was three years after the matter was referred to the labour court for prosecution.
“It appears that the file was not processed in court, either due to misplacement of records between the two offices or refusal to accept the file for prosecution due to prospects of success,” Matiwane said.
He said the department is reviving the case and seeking a court date.
Westernhagen insists that Western Gruppe is compliant because the matter was never taken to court and no reply was ever received.
Dr John Victor Rautenbach, head of social work and social development at University of Fort Hare, said he tried in vain to raise the issue with Spar in 2011.
Rautenbach said the denial of a chair could lead to miscarriages if a cashier was not aware she was pregnant.
“I first noticed the problem in Nahoon. When I moved to Gonubie there was the same problem.
“You see tired workers who tell us how tired they are,” he said.
“You see them trying to support their back against the walls.
“I have written letters to the national Spar group, who said the decision is up to store owners.”
Frustrated cashiers told the Dispatch the problem was experienced by Western Gruppe staff working the tills across the province, including Butterworth, Mdantsane, Nahoon, and Gonubie.
Department of Labour regulations state that, where reasonable and practical, employers must provide a seat with a backrest for employees whose work can be efficiently performed while sitting.
A chair must also be provided for workers who have to stand to be used at “any opportunity for sitting”.
Westernhagen explained: “The cashier has to remain standing in order to see under the trolley. She is contractually accountable for any negligent losses and therefore needs to be able to stop goods from leaving the store without being scanned through the till. She can’t do that while seated.”
The Dispatch checked other local retailers. Other Spars and rivals Pick n Pay and Checkers all provide cashiers with chairs.
A Western Gruppe cashier told the Dispatch: “Pregnant women have to bring a doctor’s note to state that they cannot stand the whole day.
“After giving birth it’s back on your feet.”
Another said: “Our feet get swollen, our backs hurt but no one seems to care. It is worse on weekends, when we work double shifts from early in the morning until 8pm or 9pm. They don’t care because the bosses sit comfortably in their offices.”
Department of labour employment standards specialist Patiswa Mbongwana said an inspection in 2012 showed that two Spar stores owned by Von Westernhagen were non-compliant and a contravention notice was issued. — mamelag@dispatch.co.za
Cashiers cry out to receive seats
Till hands working for 13 Western Gruppe Spar stores owned by retail mogul Götz von Westernhagen have been struggling for years to get the labour department to help get them a seat.
Provincial chief inspector of labour advocate Livingstone Matiwane said the department had again sent inspectors to the Gonubie and Nahoon Super Spar stores last week, where they found the employer failed to provide seats for cashiers.
This was three years after the matter was referred to the labour court for prosecution.
“It appears that the file was not processed in court, either due to misplacement of records between the two offices or refusal to accept the file for prosecution due to prospects of success,” Matiwane said.
He said the department is reviving the case and seeking a court date.
Westernhagen insists that Western Gruppe is compliant because the matter was never taken to court and no reply was ever received.
Dr John Victor Rautenbach, head of social work and social development at University of Fort Hare, said he tried in vain to raise the issue with Spar in 2011.
Rautenbach said the denial of a chair could lead to miscarriages if a cashier was not aware she was pregnant.
“I first noticed the problem in Nahoon. When I moved to Gonubie there was the same problem.
“You see tired workers who tell us how tired they are,” he said.
“You see them trying to support their back against the walls.
“I have written letters to the national Spar group, who said the decision is up to store owners.”
Frustrated cashiers told the Dispatch the problem was experienced by Western Gruppe staff working the tills across the province, including Butterworth, Mdantsane, Nahoon, and Gonubie.
Department of Labour regulations state that, where reasonable and practical, employers must provide a seat with a backrest for employees whose work can be efficiently performed while sitting.
A chair must also be provided for workers who have to stand to be used at “any opportunity for sitting”.
Westernhagen explained: “The cashier has to remain standing in order to see under the trolley. She is contractually accountable for any negligent losses and therefore needs to be able to stop goods from leaving the store without being scanned through the till. She can’t do that while seated.”
The Dispatch checked other local retailers. Other Spars and rivals Pick n Pay and Checkers all provide cashiers with chairs.
A Western Gruppe cashier told the Dispatch: “Pregnant women have to bring a doctor’s note to state that they cannot stand the whole day.
“After giving birth it’s back on your feet.”
Another said: “Our feet get swollen, our backs hurt but no one seems to care. It is worse on weekends, when we work double shifts from early in the morning until 8pm or 9pm. They don’t care because the bosses sit comfortably in their offices.”
Department of labour employment standards specialist Patiswa Mbongwana said an inspection in 2012 showed that two Spar stores owned by Von Westernhagen were non-compliant and a contravention notice was issued. — mamelag@dispatch.co.za
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