The Labour Court has struck from the roll an urgent application by former National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) Highveld regional chairperson, Bizzah Motubatse, who sought reinstatement as a member and office bearer after being expelled by the union.
The court found that the matter lacked urgency and ordered Motubatse to pay NUM’s legal costs. Acting Judge Sean Snyman ruled that the dispute should be dealt with in the ordinary course rather than through urgent proceedings.
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The judgment centred on procedural issues rather than the merits of Motubatse’s expulsion. The court specifically stated that it made no factual findings on whether the expulsion itself was lawful, focusing instead on whether urgent intervention was justified.
Why Motubatse was expelled
According to the judgment, the disciplinary process that ultimately led to Motubatse’s expulsion began after he posted a comment on Facebook on March 17, 2026, praising the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) for saving about 1,500 jobs at Nissan.
Motubatse said NUM subsequently wrote to him on the same day, calling on him to explain why he should not be found guilty of misconduct and setting out allegations against him. He submitted a response on March 22, 2026.
The court record states that on April 30, Motubatse received a letter informing him that he had been expelled from NUM.
However, the judgment does not detail the specific misconduct charges or the reasons NUM ultimately relied on to justify the expulsion. Instead, the court records only Motubatse’s version that the Facebook comment triggered the disciplinary action and that he believed the union failed to follow its constitutionally required disciplinary procedures.
Challenge based on union constitution
Motubatse argued that NUM terminated his membership and removed him as Highveld regional chairperson without complying with the union’s constitution.
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He contended that he was denied a properly constituted disciplinary hearing and the opportunity to present evidence in his defence before the decision was taken.
Motubatse sought court orders declaring the termination of his membership and removal from office unlawful and invalid. He also asked to be reinstated to both positions, with all associated benefits restored.
Court finds no urgency
The court noted that Motubatse initially challenged his expulsion at the Gauteng High Court on May 29, and did so in the normal course, not as an urgent matter.
After NUM argued that the Labour Court had exclusive jurisdiction over disputes involving trade union constitutions, Motubatse withdrew the high court application and filed a fresh application in the Labour Court in September, this time on an urgent basis.
Judge Snyman found this approach undermined any claim of urgency. The court held that Motubatse had delayed for several months before approaching the Labour Court and that any urgency was therefore self-created. It further found that he could still obtain full relief through ordinary court proceedings if he ultimately succeeds.
Costs order against applicant
The Labour Court concluded that there were no exceptional circumstances warranting urgent intervention. As a result, the application was struck from the roll, meaning the merits of the dispute remain undecided. The court emphasised that a successful application brought in the normal course could still restore Motubatse’s membership, position and benefits retrospectively.
Judge Snyman also ordered Motubatse to pay NUM’s costs on a party-and-party scale, finding that the urgent application unnecessarily consumed court resources and amounted to an abuse of process.
In June last year, Sunday World reported that a NUM high-ranking regional official had been suspended after over R11-million in workers’ subscriptions had allegedly been unaccounted for.
According to a source who preferred to remain anonymous, the R11.2-million from Seriti Coal was allegedly paid to an agency bank account which was controlled by Highveld regional leadership instead of the NUM national subscription account.
The agency account is used to fund the training of members only as guided by the Labour Relations Act. However, the insider said the money was used to allegedly pay bogus service providers.
- The Labour Court struck from the roll an urgent application by former NUM Highveld regional chairperson Bizzah Motubatse, who sought reinstatement after being expelled by the union.
- The court found the matter lacked urgency and ordered Motubatse to pay NUM’s legal costs, ruling the dispute should proceed in the ordinary course.
- Motubatse's expulsion followed a disciplinary process triggered by a Facebook comment praising NUMSA for saving jobs at Nissan, but the court made no factual findings on the expulsion's lawfulness.
- Motubatse argued that NUM did not follow its constitution for disciplinary hearings and sought court orders declaring his expulsion unlawful and his reinstatement.
- The court noted Motubatse delayed several months before seeking urgent relief, deemed the urgency self-created, struck the application from the roll, and emphasised regular proceedings could still restore his membership.
