Johannesburg – Trade union Solidarity and the South African Council for Educators (Sace) are headed to court over the council’s “refusal” to register its members.
The union said it was fighting for the rights of three of its members to register with the body.
A letter from Solidarity’s lawyers, Serfontein, Viljoen & Swart, gives Sace until the end of March 26 to confirm that it will register Solidarity’s members with the body.
“First, the members are qualified educators with respective professional teaching qualifications. However, and not withstanding the aforesaid eligibility, the members have been to date hereof and notwithstanding countless attempts to register with Sace, been unsuccessful in doing so,” reads a le¤er dated February 17.
“We are therefore instructed to demand, as we hereby do, that written confirmation be provided to the effect that members will be registered with Sace, by default of which our client on behalf of its members will be forced to explore external legal proceedings, seeking your capitulation in terms of your governing act supra with a punitive order as to costs.”
Sace is required by law to “register fit-to-practice educators and lecturers, promote their continuing professional development, and maintain the profession’s professional teaching and ethical standards”.
“Sace’s negligence in registering teachers is unacceptable. Teachers are obliged by law to register with Sace, following which Sace issues certificates to the teachers concerned which enables them to hold positions in teaching,” said Anton van der Bijl, head of legal matters at Solidarity.
“Sace is not just failing to fulfil its statutory obligation it has to these teachers, but as a consequence the teachers are also prevented from practising their profession, and this while there is a shortage of teachers in the country.”
Sace spokesperson Themba Ndhlovu did not respond to questions sent to him and ignored phone calls
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