More than 7000 Ellerines Holdings employees face a bleak Christmas as the company buckles under the strain of the collapse of African Bank Investment Limited (Abil).
Abil, which is made up of African Bank and the Ellerines Holdings group, saw unsecured lending division African Bank collapse due to what analysts said was reckless lending practices.
Now the collapse of the furniture retail division, which includes Ellerines, Green & Richards, Beares, Furniture City, Wetherlys and Dial-a-Bed, has seen the auctioning off of furniture in recent weeks while some shops have closed or are in the process of closing, employees said.
Some outlets have been left bare, and when the process is complete by the end of February, almost 800 stores will have been closed around the country resulting in the loss of 7060 jobs.
Cosatu general-secretary Zwelinzima Vavi described the developments as a disaster.
“Every worker supports up to 15 dependants and we have a crisis of unemployment as it is. Losing 7000 jobs is an absolute disaster,” said Vavi.
He tore into Abil’s reckless lending and said he would advise the Cosatu affiliate responsible for furniture retailers to sue the government and the company.
“African Bank has operated as a mashonisa and government did nothing. The rate of borrowing and interest rates were never in the interest of the country,” Vavi said.
An Ellerines Holdings employee in East London said they were given letters telling them that the store would close and their retrenchment packages were currently being worked out.
Ellerines Holdings owes its creditors R1.3-billion according to a recent Business Day report. The Ellerines brand has been around since 1950 and was incorporated into the Abil fold in a R9.9-billion acquisition in 2008.
Neither Les Matuson nor Jay Pema who are driving the Ellerines business rescue could be reached for comment yesterday.
Ellerines spokeswoman Roshnee Pillay said the company would respond to questions today.
African Bank curator Tom Winterboer declined to comment, saying he was only responsible for African Bank and not the entire Abil group. — siyam@dispatch.co.za
Top furniture retailer set to lay off 7 000
Abil, which is made up of African Bank and the Ellerines Holdings group, saw unsecured lending division African Bank collapse due to what analysts said was reckless lending practices.
Now the collapse of the furniture retail division, which includes Ellerines, Green & Richards, Beares, Furniture City, Wetherlys and Dial-a-Bed, has seen the auctioning off of furniture in recent weeks while some shops have closed or are in the process of closing, employees said.
Some outlets have been left bare, and when the process is complete by the end of February, almost 800 stores will have been closed around the country resulting in the loss of 7060 jobs.
Cosatu general-secretary Zwelinzima Vavi described the developments as a disaster.
“Every worker supports up to 15 dependants and we have a crisis of unemployment as it is. Losing 7000 jobs is an absolute disaster,” said Vavi.
He tore into Abil’s reckless lending and said he would advise the Cosatu affiliate responsible for furniture retailers to sue the government and the company.
“African Bank has operated as a mashonisa and government did nothing. The rate of borrowing and interest rates were never in the interest of the country,” Vavi said.
An Ellerines Holdings employee in East London said they were given letters telling them that the store would close and their retrenchment packages were currently being worked out.
Ellerines Holdings owes its creditors R1.3-billion according to a recent Business Day report. The Ellerines brand has been around since 1950 and was incorporated into the Abil fold in a R9.9-billion acquisition in 2008.
Neither Les Matuson nor Jay Pema who are driving the Ellerines business rescue could be reached for comment yesterday.
Ellerines spokeswoman Roshnee Pillay said the company would respond to questions today.
African Bank curator Tom Winterboer declined to comment, saying he was only responsible for African Bank and not the entire Abil group. — siyam@dispatch.co.za
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