WATCH | Labour department found no issues at Cartrack during visit last year - minister

In April last year, inspectors from the department of employment and labour visited Cartrack offices for annual inspections, and following interviews with staff members, allegedly found no transgressions being committed by the company.

However, according to the department, after the inspections had been completed, they started receiving anonymous complaints from employees relating to leave policies and working conditions.

Last month, on June 6, Cartrack employee Gcina Dhladhla collapsed and died in a toilet cubicle at the company’s Rosebank offices after she was allegedly denied permission to take sick leave.

She had allegedly submitted two sick notes in the two weeks prior to her death, citing ill health and extreme fatigue.

However, she said she had been instructed to continue reporting for duty, and given warnings after submitting the sick notes.

Yesterday, employment and labour minister Nomakhosazana Meth visited Cartrack’s Rosebank offices as part of the department’s investigation into Dhladhla’s death.

Meth said no compliance notices had been issued during the department’s earlier inspection. “When our inspectors first came, there was no notice issued. But this matter is too serious for a normal inspection. That’s why we now have multi-disciplinary teams, including specialists, digging much deeper before we can tell South Africans what the findings and consequences will be.”

The department is investigating the circumstances surrounding the death, with findings expected within 90 days.

Meth said the investigation would examine compliance with labour legislation, as well as matters concerning occupational health and safety, employment equity, workplace harassment and violence, the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act, the Basic Conditions of Employment Act and relevant ILO conventions.

The minister said her visit was part of the department’s oversight role and followed several inspections conducted at the company since the incident. “I’m here as the political head of the department to get first-hand information as to how the incident occurred. My inspectors are still hard at work doing the inspection, so I can’t pronounce on any findings at this stage.”

Responding to questions about whether Cartrack had previously been monitored, Meth said the company had been inspected on several occasions before Dhladhla’s death. “There have been numerous visits. We don’t only come to do punitive work. We also have a responsibility to educate employers and workers about compliance with labour laws.”

Cartrack CEO Joshua Victor said the company had fully co-operated with the department and that they had completed their own internal investigation. “We’ve done a thorough investigation, and we’re looking forward to the findings from the department of labour and our own investigations confirming and showing that the allegations in the media aren’t true.”

Victor maintained that the company had followed its emergency response procedures on the day Dhladhla died, but acknowledged there was always room for improvement. “We’re comfortable that on the day of the incident protocol was followed.”

Speaking on behalf of the family, Gcina’s aunt, Nomusa Dhladhla, said the family remained frustrated by the pace of the investigations.

She said that the police had also indicated that they were still waiting for the post-mortem report before they could provide any answers. “This basically means things are delayed. The SAPS told us they hadn’t received the report and could not yet tell us anything regarding the investigation into Gcina’s death.”

She said the family did not have confidence in Cartrack’s internal investigation because it was commissioned by the company itself. “We don’t trust the company’s investigation because they were the ones who appointed the investigators, and whatever comes out may favour the company.”

According to Dhladhla, there are currently three separate investigations underway, by the SAPS, the department of employment and labour, and Cartrack.

“The police are investigating the cause of death, the department of labour is conducting its investigation, and the company is doing its own investigation. But we are still waiting for the post-mortem report before the police can tell us anything.”

Sowetan