Sars executives reinstated to their previous positions

Two former executives of the South African Revenue Service (Sars), who were dismissed “for operational requirements” during the controversial Bain restructuring of the tax authority, have been reinstated to their previous positions.

Johannesburg Labour Court Acting Judge Smanga Sethene has ruled the dismissals of Hope Mashilo and Tshebeletso Seremane were unfair. Mashilo had been a whistle-blower and had made a protected disclosure about the hiring of Bain by then Sars commissioner Tom Moyane.

Sethene said Sars “deserves the utmost censure” for not settling the matter with the two women in light of the negative public findings on the appointment of Bain and the fact that Bain had reimbursed the fees earned.

Because it had tried to “defend the indefensible”, he ordered Sars to pay punitive costs. Sethene said the case “captured the hardships endured by two single mothers and senior executives during the infamous restructuring of Sars”.

“Their main sin was to question the integrity of the 2015 restructuring. They repeatedly requested information about the details of the positions … and refused to accept them,” he said.

This led to their dismissals. Mashilo told the court in 2015 she was executive for workplace wellness, earning R1.5 million a year. Bain “unveiled” the new structure at a meeting that August.

In October, she realised her position had been phased out at executive level and downgraded. From April 2016 to August 2017, she earned a salary for doing nothing – she switched on her computer and read newspapers.

Mashilo then penned what she called “Breaking the Silence” – a missive which she e-mailed to then minister of finance Malusi Gigaba and Yunus Carrim, chair of the standing committee on finance. She copied it to Moyane.

This was a protected disclosure in terms of the Protected Disclosures Act, which gives whistle-blowing employees protection from dismissal. Soon afterwards, she was fired and escorted off the premises. Seremane was executive of integrity and organisational culture, also earning R1.5 million a year.

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She said she realised that during the restructuring there was a “lapse of integrity and corruption issues were becoming prevalent”. Her position was also downgraded. She was also earning a salary for doing nothing.

The judge said both women had suffered injustice. He ordered they be retrospectively reinstated as Sars employees as of the date of their dismissals with full benefits and that they report for duty on 1 September.

This article was republished from GroundUp. Read the original article here